Veteran quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is nearing the end of his up-and-down tenure in Northern California. If the San Francisco 49ers can’t find a trade partner for the embattled quarterback ahead of roster cut downs later this summer, Garoppolo will be released.
San Francisco made the not-so surprising decision to go with youngster Trey Lance under center this season after yielding huge bounty to trade up to the No. 3 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft for the North Dakota State product. At the time of the trade, it stood to reason that Lance would take over sooner rather than later.
This past offseason saw Garoppolo remain away from team activities as he both recovered from shoulder surgery and looked for a new home. Despite this, Garoppolo remains on the 49ers’ active roster as their fourth-string quarterback heading into Friday’s preseason opener againt the Green Bay Packers.
We’re now learning a bit more about Garoppolo’s time in Northern California courtesy of the San Francisco Chronicle’s Mike Silver (h/t NBC Sports Bay Area). It’s not great.
According to the longtime NFL insider, Garoppolo frequently “ghosted” the 49ers’ organization in the offseason during his time with the team. It started immediately after he signed a then-record five-year, $137.5 million extension with San Francisco back in February of 2018.
“Once he left that press conference, nobody heard from him for weeks and weeks. He didn’t return calls, he didn’t return texts — he basically just vanished. And we were looking at each other going, ‘What just happened?’”
One former member of the 49ers’ coaching staff on Jimmy Garoppolo
Related: Jimmy Garoppolo to the Cleveland Browns, evaluating fit and potential trade cost
New report on Jimmy Garoppolo troubling, provides some clarity
As Silver noted, head coach Kyle Shanahan was fully prepared to get to work with Garoppolo leading up to the 2018 season. The former second-round pick had been acquired from the New England Patriots midway through the 2017 campaign. Shanahan wanted to work with him as the new face of the franchise prepared for his first full season with San Francisco. He had posted a 5-0 record to close out the 2017 season. Expectations were high.
Overall, Garoppolo’s tenure in San Francisco combined a low ceiling from an individual perspective with team-wide success. He played in only three games during the 2018 season after suffering a torn ACL.
Garoppolo rebounded by leading the 49ers to a surprise Super Bowl appearance in 2019 while putting up a career-best performance. He then missed 10 games in 2020 to injury and was mediocre this past season despite San Francisco earning a trip to the NFC Championship Game.
- Jimmy Garoppolo stats (2017-21): 68% completion, 11,162 yards, 66 TD, 38 INT, 98.3 QB rating
As you can see, Garoppolo never panned out as a franchise quarterback in Santa Clara. While it’s pure conjecture, this report of the veteran “ghosting” San Francisco’s organization during the offseason could have played a role.
Related: Jimmy Garoppolo and NFL’s top QBs of 2022
Moving forward, Garoppolo is pretty much in limbo. Shanahan noted recently that he has not heard about any trade talk surrounding the signal caller. With that said, the Cleveland Browns have reported interest pending the outcome of the Deshaun Watson situation.
From San Francisco’s perspective, it’s fully prepared to go with a raw Lance under center. The decision will come under scrutiny should things not pan out for a team that has legitimate Super Bowl aspirations. It just won’t be with Jimmy Garoppolo in the roster. Whether this report expedited the end of his tenure with the 49ers remains to be seen.