San Francisco 49ers: Player locks for starting positions in 2018
By Peter Panacy
Quarterback
Jimmy Garoppolo
No-brainer.
Despite being a free agent this offseason, quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo will be in a 49ers uniform in 2018. The only question is how.
San Francisco can either sign him to a long-term deal or apply the franchise tag. Either is possible, but what’s important to note is there’s no way the Niners let him sniff the free-agent market this offseason.
There are both positive and negative takeaways from Garoppolo’s stats with the 49ers. Some may argue his interception totals are a bit higher than we’d like to see. But he also accumulated more passing yards over his first three starts than Hall of Famers Joe Montana and Steve Young combined:
.@JimmyG_10 has more passing yards in his first 3 starts with the @49ers than @JoeMontana & Steve Young combined!
— NFL (@NFL) December 22, 2017
(Garoppolo 1,008; Montana 488; Young 470) pic.twitter.com/DLYLkduW4e
And the most important stat of all, the 49ers are undefeated during Garoppolo’s starting tenure.
2018 will be pretty exciting, as the new quarterback will have a much fuller understanding of head coach Kyle Shanahan’s offense.
Next: 10 49ers who might be on the roster bubble in 2018
Armed with some additional receiving talent and, hopefully, a beefed-up offensive line, Garoppolo might be on pace to emerge as one of the most promising quarterbacks in the NFL this upcoming season.
That’s pretty exciting.