Getty Jimmy Garoppolo faces an uncertain future with the San Francisco 49ers.
Uncertainty continues to surround the quarterback position for the San Francisco 49ers and there appears to be a growing buzz that the team will move on from Jimmy Garoppolo. The Athletic’s Mike Sando spoke with several people around the NFL who believe Garoppolo’s days are numbered in San Francisco.
“You can’t factor in too much of this season because he’s been hurt the whole time, but in the Super Bowl, he proved what he is,” one evaluator told The Athletic. “They don’t trust him enough to put the ball in his hands and let him throw it around. His big gains come off of well-designed plays where he’s not throwing the ball down the field. He is giving it to his playmakers, and they are making plays.”
Sando reported that “multiple execs think the 49ers will strongly consider alternatives” as San Francisco is headed for a very intriguing offseason. Another NFL executive believes the only way Garoppolo returns to the 49ers in 2021 is if the team strikes out in their pursuit of other players.
“I think he may be done in San Francisco,” the executive told The Athletic. “And if they keep him, it’s only because they don’t have another option.”
John Lynch Called Jimmy G’s Future the ‘Elephant in the Room’
The 49ers are hearing the rumors, and general manager John Lynch called Garoppolo’s future the “elephant in the room.” Lynch added that the team has “a lot of belief in Jimmy” but that is far from a statement that cements Garoppolo’s status as the team’s quarterback of the future.
“I think the elephant in the room: Everyone wants to know about Jimmy,” Lynch noted, per NFL.com. “Here’s what I know about Jimmy Garoppolo, and I think I’ve been consistent: We’re a better football team when he’s out there. We win a lot of games when he’s out there. We’ve struggled to win without him. So, people can try to pick his game apart. And I do believe this year Jimmy hasn’t played up to his standard. I think a lot of that is he’s been somewhat compromised by his health … We have a lot of belief in Jimmy.”
The Niners Have Been Linked to BYU’s Zack Wilson & North Dakota State’s Trey Lance
The reason there is so much buzz about the 49ers moving on from Garoppolo is the team has already paid the quarterback the guaranteed money he is owed. There would be little financial ramifications for the team releasing Garoppolo and moving on at quarterback in 2021. The most cost-efficient way to do this would be for the Niners to hand over the offense to a rookie quarterback.
Two college quarterbacks that have been linked to the 49ers are BYU’s Zack Wilson and North Dakota State’s Trey Lance. Most recently, the 49ers scouted Wilson’s game against Boise State, but Lynch tried to emphasize the draft is a long process where the front office will watch a lot of players.
“We’re scouting hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of players each year,” Lynch explained on KNBR, via NFL.com. “And we try to be as thorough as possible. Adam did go out … to watch a Boise State-BYU game. That seemed to have garnered a lot of attention. We’re doing our jobs. You prepare for everything. … We’re always going to be thorough. We’re always going to work our tail off to scout all the players and be prepared for anything.”