Getty Jimmy Garoppolo throws the football during the 49ers' 30-23 loss on Sunday, December 5, at Seattle.
The question was asked: Who or what is capable of preventing the San Francisco 49ers from making the playoffs?
Three of the four panelists on Heavy’s “I’m Just Saying” that aired on the evening of Monday, December 6 chose Jimmy Garoppolo and gave their reasonings. Understandably so, considering Garoppolo just came off a two interception game in the 30-23 defeat at Seattle on Sunday at Lumen Field that put the 49ers back at .500.
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Garoppolo has been plagued by bad performances before. However, it was one analyst on “I’m Just Saying” who gave a unique description of “Jimmy G” that would surely take those who once had the original Nintendo game console back down memory lane.
Garoppolo’s Video Game Comparison
Those who once had Nintendo, or are video game enthusiasts, likely remembers the game “Mike Tyson’s Punch Out.”
But how many remember the characters not named Tyson? Let alone, one fragile character from the game that made its debut during the 1980s? Well, Heavy on Patriots and Bulls writer Brian Mazique — who is the host of “I’m Just Saying” — recalls one Tyson opponent from the pixel universe that got compared to Jimmy G: Glass Joe. Here’s why Mazique made the comparison:
“You may remember the first guy you fight is Glass Joe. If Jimmy Garoppolo was a Mike Tyson Punch Out character, he would be freaking Glass Joe because he’s so fragile. From week-to-week, even when he’s on a roll, any sort of thing is liable to derail Jimmy Garoppolo.”
For anyone not familiar with the character, here’s a succinct breakdown: He’s the first opponent, and considered the weakest. Joe was hailed as one of the most memorable video game characters from Nintendo in a December 3 Yardbarker article.
Mazique then coined a new name for the 49ers’ starting quarterback.
“He’s Glass Jimmy, not Glass Joe,” Mazique said.
Other Analysts Offered Strong Takes of Jimmy G
Paul Esden, who writes on the Jets for Heavy and hosts “The Manchild Show with Boy Green” on The Score 1260 in Syracuse, New York, gave this follow-up of Garoppolo:
“The reason that could prevent the 49ers from making the playoffs is Jimmy Garoppolo’s consistency, not inconsistency. At least he’s able to keep the same thing that is terrible completely bad,” Esden said regarding why he chose the word consistency to describe Garoppolo — consistent at being bad. “There’s been so much hype and nonsense. He just isn’t the guy and that’s the reason they’re not going to make the playoffs. They need a quarterback to do so and they got one on the bench in Trey Lance.”
Meanwhile, Ryan Sanudo — who covers the Arizona Cardinals on Heavy — was another who believed Garoppolo is likely the reason why the ‘Niners won’t make the playoffs.
“I think it’s a low hanging fruit, to be honest. I mean, it’s so easy to say he’s the main issue,” Sanudo said. “The turnover worthy plays have to stop.”
However, Sanudo did offer another reason why the 49ers could miss the playoffs.
“I’m going to say another thing other than the quarterback situation, I’m going to go with the run game,” Sanudo added. “I think they were, what, under 3 yards per attempt against the Seahawks? A Seahawks team that really has done nothing throughout the year? So that’s the thing that needs to be shored up.
“I know Elijah Mitchell has been hurt. But if that doesn’t work, forget about Jimmy Garoppolo. We all know Kyle Shanahan’s M.O. of always running the football. If that can’t happen, then kiss the playoffs goodbye. I’m not going to rule them out of the playoffs (just yet), but in terms of what’s going wrong with the 49ers, you can start with Garoppolo but you can also start with the running game,” Sanudo added.
Lastly, the fourth member of the panel — yours truly — concurred with the trio about the Garoppolo talking points. But, do I believe he will be the reason the 49ers watch the playoffs on the weekend of January 16? My take:
“If I were to really choose, I’m going to go different on this one: I think it’s the injury bug. It has hit the 49ers massively hard. Emmanuel Moseley, arguably their best shutdown corner, is out for the next four weeks — that pretty much wipes his whole season out at this point. Then you have Fred Warner who was injured; he was their most cerebral linebacker. They’ve had injuries on the defensive line. It seems like when you’re a key guy on the 49ers, you’re going to go down eventually. It’s almost as if the grim reaper is lurking around the Bay Area.”
The entire episode of “I’m Just Saying” can be viewed here.