Jimmy Garoppolo isn’t to blame for 49ers loss to Chiefs in Super Bowl 54
The San Francisco 49ers lost to the Kansas City Chiefs 31-20 in Super Bowl 54. Is the starting quarterback the one to blame?
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and head coach Kyle Shanahan are getting most of the blame after losing a 10-point deficit to the Kansas City Chiefs late in the fourth quarter.
There are a few pros and cons throughout the Super Bowl that people can nitpick, but let’s look at the facts:
2019 was Garoppolo’s first full season as a starter. He helped lead the the No. 2 scoring offense in the league, threw for 3,978 yards, and was tied for fifth in the league with Drew Brees for most passing touchdowns (27).
While he threw 13 interceptions, most were arguably not his fault due to his receivers not catching the ball.
Garoppolo even led four fourth-quarter comebacks this season, even if he couldn’t pull off one last miracle in the biggest game of his career. No one can explain what happened to him during that fourth quarter, as it appears as though he suddenly turned into a scared player.
On Third-and-10, with the game on the line, he missed Emmanuel Sanders for the go-ahead touchdown. These were Garoppolo’s statistics in that fateful fourth quarter:
Jimmy Garoppolo in the fourth quarter: 3-of-11, 36 yards, INT, fourth-down sack
— Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) February 3, 2020
That wasn’t the San Francisco quarterback I saw all season, so who knows what happened to him.
Shanahan has also been getting some of the slack on Twitter as well recently.
Lowest downfield attempts in the NFL. I’m not saying Jimmy is perfect but I would hope you’re not going to wait to the Super Bowl with the game on the line, 19 weeks into the season, to ask him to do something you didn’t give him any opportunity to get comfortable doing all year
— Evan WOKE Sowards (@EvanSowards) February 5, 2020
It’s been noted by many others that Shanahan put Garoppolo in an uncomfortable position late in the game. It’s also been suggested that he doesn’t trust him enough.
That’s not true at all.
If Shanahan didn’t trust Garoppolo in the biggest game of their careers, he would have run the ball a lot more, despite being down by four points. The run game was working, but so was the play action.
They ran away from that, and Garoppolo was forced to throw the ball a bit more, which was what the Chiefs wanted him to do. Shanahan should not get blamed for this game since he’s one of the main reasons the team got there in the first place.
The defense played great, but could have done better. They gave up some crucial plays in the game, as well, especially the Third-and-15 completion to Tyreek Hill on a drive that ended with a wide open Travis Kelce scoring a touchdown.
The 49ers defense did well by making Mahomes mortal and keeping him contained for most of the night. They got pressure on him, and found a way into his head, which led him to throwing two interceptions and fumbling the ball.
They got tired quickly in the fourth quarter, which allowed Mahomes to run to the outside and pick up first downs.
Next. Jimmy Garoppolo: The biggest weakness 49ers have in Super Bowl 54?. dark
With that said: No one should be getting the blame in this game. It’s a team sport, and the Chiefs proved to be the better team in the end.
Yes, Garoppolo made some mistakes by missing some reads abd getting the ball batted down by defensive end Chris Jones several times, but he could have used some help out there.
Right guard Mike Person was the one blocking Jones, and Jones had his way with him all night. It was clear to see how Garoppolo could have gotten rattled a bit, and why he had to make quick decisions.
This is a young 49ers team, and if they are able to keep most of their players together just like their staff, they’ll be back in the big dance before long.