Jimmy Garoppolo: Are 49ers using rumor mill to push the quarterback?

Jimmy Garoppolo’s future has been at the height of 49ers discussions this offseason, but those rumors could be the team’s intent overall.

This is 100 percent speculation. But it’s reasonable to assume the San Francisco 49ers are using the rumor mill to push and motivate their starting quarterback, Jimmy Garoppolo.

There’s no concrete evidence suggesting this. No proverbial “smoking gun.” Why would there be? If the Niners wanted to motivate Garoppolo, they wouldn’t come out to the media and say they were sparking up rumors about him being traded, released or whatever.

Moving Jimmy G has some merit. He’s scheduled to make $26.6 million against a shrinking salary cap in 2021, and considering he’s missed the better part of the 2018 and 2020 seasons because of injury, it’s fair to assess him as an overpaid asset who should be viewed as an OK starting option on perhaps half the teams around the league. Some will argue he’s more than that, but that doesn’t answer why head coach Kyle Shanahan and Co. have at least entertained the possibility of moving on from Jimmy Garoppolo.

One of the first documented efforts, recently reported by Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, stated Jimmy G’s name came up in the 2020 offseason trade with the Indianapolis Colts involving then-Niners defensive tackle DeForest Buckner:

"The [Colts] went with a Band-Aid last year, in [quarterback Philip Rivers], after taking a shot with Jacoby Brissett in 2019 (and that was after Jimmy Garoppolo’s name briefly came up in the DeForest Buckner trade talks with San Francisco)."

That wasn’t long after Garoppolo’s fourth-quarter meltdown in Super Bowl LIV. Not long after the Colts signed Rivers, the Buckner deal went through.

But enough of that.

What about Vice President of Player Personnel Adam Peters being on hand to scout Alabama quarterback Mac Jones and BYU quarterback Zach Wilson late in 2020? Those are confirmed reports by the 49ers. And considering both collegiate quarterbacks are near locks for first-round NFL Draft picks, what would that say about Jimmy G’s future?

How would Garoppolo feel about that after learning of the news? A guess would be not overly confident in his team’s commitment to him.

Speculative analysis on Jimmy Garoppolo future with 49ers

The Shanahan-John Lynch era in San Francisco is nothing like what it was back during former general manager Trent Baalke’s reign. No leaks, not a ton of hot rumor-mill posts from NFL insiders. That all but stopped in 2017.

Still, there’s a lot of smoke around the idea of Shanahan wanting another quarterback. He hasn’t said it. In fact, he’s even gone as far to state he “expects” Garoppolo to be the 49ers quarterback in 2021.

But Shanahan and Lynch haven’t exactly shot down the talk of possibly adding an upgrade over Garoppolo this offseason. Or at the very least, exploring the option of drafting a high-profile name.

It’s almost reminiscent of the 1980 US men’s hockey coach, Herb Brooks, threatening to cut his top players off that year’s Olympics team to find someone better, only never doing so. It was a motivating factor (thank you, Miracle).

Maybe that’s what’s happening here, too. While nowhere near as blunt, the 49ers are hoping Garoppolo gets the message his head coach isn’t 100-percent satisfied with his efforts. And with two more years on Jimmy G’s existing contract, and essentially the same cap-wise situation ready to play itself out in 2022, the motivational push could be there.

If there are two other things to consider, the first is Garoppolo hasn’t exactly been pushed by other quarterbacks on the roster. Backups Nick Mullens and C.J. Beathard don’t pose a threat, so it’s possible the Niners need someone in that capacity to potentially threaten Jimmy Garoppolo’s job, if he stays.

The other is Shanahan has a history of being brutally honest with his players. He’s been open to the media about players struggling (see former San Francisco wide receiver Dante Pettis), and additional reports from players in the locker room state Shanahan doesn’t mince words when describing his expectations.

This, however, might be a slightly different approach. If the 49ers are truly intent on keeping Garoppolo, perhaps they’re trying to push him in a way he hasn’t quite experienced since becoming a full-time starter.

Whether or not it works is contingent upon whether or not he stays.

And even that’s far from being determined.