When are we going to start recognizing Jimmy Garoppolo as one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL? Jimmy G is rarely mentioned with the elite quarterbacks in football. It’s a narrative that needs to end. Garoppolo is one of the best quarterbacks in football. It’s time to start realizing it.
Did you know that Jimmy Garoppolo is 18-3 as a starting quarterback? 2-0 in New England and 16-3 in San Francisco. Yes, he’s been super fortunate to be mentored by Bill Belichick and now Kyle Shanahan. It doesn’t get much better than that. Still, 18-3 is 18-3. It’s not like Nick Mullens or CJ Beathard were winning games. They had the 2nd pick in the draft when Jimmy G went down. He’s clearly mattered during San Francisco’s resurgence in 2019. You can say whatever you want but San Fran is the best team in the NFL with Garoppolo and one of the worst without him. Now that’s valuable.
Let’s be honest about something. Garoppolo is no worse than Matt Ryan is. I would argue that he’s better. Kyle Shanahan took Matt Ryan to the Super Bowl. He’s going to win one with Jimmy G. The Italian Stallion has been the perfect trigger man for the Shanahan offense. He’s completing 68.8 percent of his throws while averaging 8.1 yards per attempt. I’ll take those numbers all day.
Jimmy G has 20 touchdowns and 10 picks on the season. With the way San Fran is running the ball, he doesn’t have to be much better than that. San Francisco runs the ball well and they control the game with their defensive front. Nick Bosa, Dee Ford, Justin Jones, Arik Armstead, DeForest Buckner, etc. Jimmy G is the trigger man that puts it all together.
We also have to talk about the intangibles. Garoppolo seems like a great leader and his teammates love him. He’s also done a really nice connecting with a young group. This 49ers team is really young. Deebo Samuel is a rookie and developing quickly. They traded for Emmanuel Sanders and has fit right into the offense immediately. George Kittle is the best tight end in football. Garoppolo deserves a ton of credit for their success.
You don’t go 10-1 in the NFL with a bad quarterback. You cannot Trent Dilfer your way to a Super Bowl anymore. Jimmy G hasn’t had to carry them all the time but has delivered when they needed him to. The 49ers are serious Super Bowl contenders and we should remember they’re nothing without Jimmy Garoppolo.
