No. 1: Jimmy Garoppolo’s Deep Ball?
Now having a full offseason to digest Kyle Shanahan’s complex offense, there are plenty of reasons to be excited about what Jimmy Garoppolo will be able to do this upcoming season.
And while all the signs are there Jimmy G can be the next great quarterback, there are some concerns.
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Earlier this offseason, Pro Football Focus described why Garoppolo’s deep-passing abilities were a bit inadequate. Arm strength was never one of Garoppolo’s top traits, and that seemed to reveal itself during camp.
On day three of practice, Garoppolo missed Marquise Goodwin on two deep throws. Instead, he was hitting his targets in the intermediate range with relative ease.
Granted, Garoppolo did bounce back a bit during 11-on-11 drills, per 49ers.com’s Joe Fann, hitting Goodwin with defensive back Jimmie Ward in coverage. That’s a good sign, and Garoppolo was also able to make some nice long tosses during one-on-one drills too.
While there are some concerns about this particular part of Garoppolo’s skill set, Shanahan’s offense doesn’t always require deep passing to work. Shanahan’s system is more about separation and creating yards after the catch once getting open and hauling in the pass. Garoppolo excelled in helping his receivers do this in 2017, and we should expect it to continue this season too.
San Francisco resumes training camp on Tuesday, July 31 at 1:15 p.m. ET.