Jimmy Garoppolo has seen his name mentioned in trade rumors for quite some time, but it now seems safe to conclude that he will be the starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers in 2021.
During an appearance this week on “The Eye Test for Two” podcast, 49ers GM John Lynch was asked if he has any doubt that Garoppolo will be the team’s quarterback to start next season if he’s healthy. Lynch did not mince words.
“Not at all,” he said. “I really believe that.”
There have been questions about Garoppolo’s durability, as he has missed 23 games over the past three seasons and appeared in only six games in 2020 due to an ankle injury. Lynch said the Niners have to make sure they’re a deep enough team to overcome that, but he insists he is not overly concerned about Garoppolo’s injury history.
“I’ve watched people go through this in their careers where they struggled early. It happened to me early, and then I went eight years without missing a practice,” Lynch said. “So I believe things can happen, and I believe they will for him. I really believe that Jimmy is our guy.”
Garoppolo had 1,096 yards, seven touchdowns and five interceptions in his six games last season. You can easily make the argument that he has not lived up to his $137.5 million contract, but he did lead the 49ers to a Super Bowl two years ago. That’s more than most quarterbacks have accomplished.
While it’s hard to believe Garoppolo is untouchable, the belief has been that San Francisco would probably only trade him for one specific quarterback. Since that seems unlikely to happen, it makes sense that Lynch is publicly backing his current QB.
H/T CBS Sports
