San Francisco 49ers: Jimmy Garoppolo should not start in 2017

With Jimmy Garoppolo’s short performance at the end of Week 12, the Bay Area is buzzing about what could be. Even though it is tantalizing, the San Francisco 49ers would be wise to keep Garoppolo on the bench.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan was certainly in no rush to play trade deadline acquisition quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, but Seattle Seahawks defensive lineman Michael Bennett changed all of that when he tackled San Francisco quarterback C.J. Beathard late in the 4th quarter.

The rookie signal-caller suffered a knee injury and was subsequently replaced by Garoppolo. With 1:07 left on the clock, Garoppolo only needed three plays to make himself a fan favorite and further intensify the quarterback debate for the 49ers.

After converting on a 4th and 1, Garoppolo hurried the offense to the line of scrimmage and found wide receiver Louis Murphy Jr. in the back of the end zone for a 10-yard touchdown as time expired.

Talk was already mounting about if and when the 49ers were going to decide to play Garoppolo in 2017, and this most recent game is the cherry on top.

But, for a number of reasons, San Francisco should keep Garoppolo on the sidelines for the remainder of this season.

Porous offensive line play

For those thrilled with what they saw in Garoppolo in Week 12 and want to see him play from here on out, it cannot be forgotten the beating Beathard was taking all game long. While the Seahawks only managed three sacks, they registered a staggering 13 quarterback hits.

And remember that Arizona Cardinals game in Week 9 where Beathard took 16 quarterback hits? That was mere weeks ago. The performance in Week 12 was not an outlier, but more indicative how the unit has fared all season.

Outside of tackles Joe Staley and Trent Brown, the quality of play is rather low. Guard Brandon Fusco has played well at times this season, but is by no means a top-level lineman.

Speaking on Staley and Brown, those two might not even be around to protect Garoppolo. Staley has already suffered one injury this season when he fractured an orbital bone against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 8 and had a very brief scare against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 12 when he hyperextended his knee.

Brown missed last game with a shoulder injury and his replacement, Erik Magnuson, was uninspiring to say the least. Left guard Laken Tomlinson and center Daniel Kilgore have been quite bad this season too, registering at 46.9 and 43.8 from PFF, respectively.

Quite simply, this offensive line has far too many holes in it right now to throw out your potential franchise quarterback. It will not give Garoppolo a fair chance either — how can the 49ers even properly evaluate if he is under constant pressure?

It is tank season

San Francisco currently sits at 1-10 on the season. Obviously, there is nothing meaningful to play for in terms of postseason for this team. It is a lost cause in that effort.

So why not try to get the highest draft selection possible? You are not going to the playoffs this season — there is no point in trying to salvage wins now. Winning four games does not set you up better for the next season than winning one or two games does.

Now, I am not saying the 49ers become an elite team with Garoppolo under center. I certainly believe though that the probability of a hypothetical win streak to end this season is much higher with Garoppolo than Beathard. And winning is not something that should be on the minds of this team at this moment in time.

But selecting at a high draft slot can present a number of advantages. Just look at San Francisco in last year’s draft. The potential of getting nearly any player the 49ers want or trading back to acquire more draft capital is far more beneficial toward the future than winning three, four games this season.

Do not try to win now San Francisco. Tank away.

Keep developing Beathard

With Shanahan’s comments last week that essentially guaranteed Garoppolo will be back in 2018, that means Beathard will probably be relegated to the backup quarterback position.

Considering the likelihood of Garoppolo returning next year is high, there is no real rush to play him this season.

Some are using the argument that the team needs to see extensive game action before they can make a decision on whether to bring him back, but it is looking like they just may be perfectly comfortable with little to no sample size. That is important to keep in mind.

And with Garoppolo leading the way, it will be important to have a competent No. 2 quarterback. The rest of this season can be used to continue to develop the rookie out of Iowa, who has shown at times to be a viable option.

This does two things. First, it provides stability and depth at the quarterback position. Second, it sets up the potential of establishing future trade bait. Beathard could play well enough the rest of this season to draw the eye of other quarterback-needy teams down the road. Either way, it is about providing insurance for the 49ers.

Next: 49ers stock report after Week 12 loss to Seahawks

I know that right now the popular sentiment is let Garoppolo play the rest of 2017. But right now, the current state of the team provides for a less than ideal situation. In the end, the smart play is to leave Garoppolo on the bench until 2018.