Richard Sherman is yet to officially start his career as an NFL analyst for Amazon Prime, but that hasn’t stopped the free agent cornerback to dish out bold predictions for the 2022 season.
And that includes his hot take on how the quarterback room for the San Francisco 49ers will look like.
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Already, one 49ers insider Nick Wagoner has predicted that Jimmy Garoppolo will still drift away via trade by 49ers camp, which was mentioned in this Heavy on 49ers story from Monday, May 9.
Does Sherman believe his former teammate who took the All-Pro cornerback to his last Super Bowl appearance will also be shipped off when camp begins?
Jimmy G Will be ‘Safety Valve’
Speaking on his podcast released on Tuesday, May 10, Sherman declared where he believes Garoppolo will be after he’s fully recovered from his shoulder surgery and cleared to throw again.
“I think he’s going to be on the team during training camp,” Sherman said.
Next prediction from “Sherm:” Does he believe Garoppolo will be QB1 over the incoming second-year quarterback Trey Lance?
“I think he’ll be more of a safety valve, and a really expensive safety valve, but safety all the same,” Sherman said of Garoppolo. “I think they’re going to give Trey Lance an opportunity to start in ball games. I think they want to see it.”
Sherman Includes Preseason Projection
Sherman, who played three seasons with the 49ers and went on to play in the 2019 Pro Bowl (his last Pro Bowl appearance), then predicted how the preseason will shake out for the third overall pick of the 2021 NFL Draft.
“I don’t think he’ll play a ton in the preseason, so they’ll keep a ton of backup quarterbacks in the preseason,” Sherman said. “But I don’t know if either of them will play in preseason. It’s not worth the injury risk to Jimmy G with his cap number, and it’s not worth the injury risk to the guy who you want to start.”
“They need Trey Lance to get live reps,” Sherman continued. “If the rumored schedule that came out of them playing Carolina and then Atlanta the first two games of the season is accurate, I definitely see Trey Lance starting in those games. I think those are two teams that are up and coming, who have pieces, but I think San Francisco would be, on paper, a lot better than those teams. They would expect to win [against] those teams.”
The NFL schedule isn’t expected to be completely released until 5 p.m. PT on Thursday, May 12. Already, one game is set in stone for the 49ers: The November 21 road trip to Mexico City to face NFC West rival the Arizona Cardinals. There’s also the added possibility that the 49ers could start the year in the annual Thursday NFL kickoff game with the NFC title game rematch against the Los Angeles Rams. It’s one of three season opening possibilities mentioned here by Heavy on 49ers.
However, if the leaked schedule holds true and the Panthers and Falcons are the first two opponents, Sherman views it as a prime opportunity for his former head coach Kyle Shanahan and Lance.
“They will be perfect games for Kyle [Shanahan] to draw up and scheme up plays to get Trey in his comfort zone and feel like they are in control of those ball games,” Sherman said.
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Richard Sherman Shares Bold Prediction for 49ers QB Room