49ers Leave Door Open To Bringing Back Jimmy Garoppolo As Starting QB

Will Jimmy Garoppolo be under center for the 49ers next season, after all?

When the 49ers lost to the Rams in the NFC Championship last season, it was assumed by most that it was the last time we’d see Jimmy G in a Niners uniform, given that the team was preparing to hand over the reigns to Trey Lance next season.

But yesterday, Niners GM John Lynch left the door open for Jimmy Garoppolo to get playing time when speaking on his unwillingness to release the veteran QB if they can’t work out a trade.

“I don’t foresee that,” Lynch said, via ESPN. “He’s too good a player. I think Jimmy will be playing for us or will be playing for someone else. He’s too good of a player not to be.”

Today, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan took it a step further — saying that the time will come when Trey Lance would be their starter. But that time might not necessarily be right now.

“That’s why we looked into trading Jimmy, because we obviously believe that Trey can be a starter and we’re ready to do that,” Shanahan said. “But if we can’t upgrade our team in another way, we’re not just going to get rid of a good quarterback because we have other quarterbacks on the roster. Quarterbacks are really hard to come by. Some teams don’t have any at all, and the fact that we have three that we’re happy with, that is a good thing.

“We brought Trey here to be that eventually, and I think that will be sooner than later, but when Jimmy gets his surgery and we can’t upgrade our team by getting some good picks until people feel good about that [surgery], I’m all right with that. We’re not just getting rid of him to get rid of him. Jimmy is a good player that we all really like as a person and as a teammate, and we’re going to wait to see whatever helps the Niners the most.”

Kyle Shanahan would also say that Jimmy Garoppolo’s surgery might have changed the dynamic in his QB room come next season.

“You’ve got to make sure that you’re not hindering his development,” Shanahan said. “Trey’s working his tail off. He knows how I feel about him. He knows what our expectations are for him. And I think he’s got a lot of respect for Jimmy. But the situation is clear. We were trying to make a move to add some draft picks … and we were pretty close to it. And then Jimmy ended up getting the surgery, which changes things.

“I think Trey will understand all that. I haven’t had to talk to him about it. But I think it makes sense for all these guys. Trey’s not an insecure guy. I think the situation makes sense. There’s nothing sneaky going on about it. And he’s confident. He’s going to come in and focus on playing football. And focus on beating out whoever he has to, whether it’s [Garoppolo], whether it’s Nate [Sudfeld]. He’s going to come in and be the best he can be.”

Jimmy Garoppolo’s shoulder surgery will sideline him until at least July, so Trey Lance will undoubtedly get the starter’s reps in camp until that point.

And when push comes to shove, I think we’ll still be seeing Lance under center for the Niners once the season begins. But for now, the team’s brass isn’t prepared to close the book on Garoppolo.

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