3 things Jimmy Garoppolo needs to do to retain 49ers starting QB job

Jimmy Garoppolo is looking squarely at Trey Lance trying to take away the 49ers’ starting quarterback job, but Jimmy G can still save it.

At some point, perhaps right now, the San Francisco 49ers want to move on from quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.

This was made fully apparent when the Niners traded up to the No. 3 overall spot in the 2021 NFL Draft, then using that pick to select North Dakota State quarterback Trey Lance.

Lance still might have a ways to go before he fully assumes San Francisco’s starting role. And while the eventual transition from Garoppolo to Lance is inevitable, Garoppolo does get a vote in just when this will actually happen.

Lance, who started just one full season in college and has a total of 318 pass attempts at that level, could be closing the gap, and that’ll be a hot storyline to watch during training camp and into the preseason.

Yet Garoppolo isn’t simply going to stand aside and let Lance take over as the 49ers’ QB1 this season. Even if the Niners want that, Garoppolo has a lot riding on his immediate future, and more than just whether or not he sticks around in San Francisco for a bit longer.

Whatever team decides to employ him after the 49ers? That’s the squad for which Garoppolo is playing now.

Holding onto the starting job is now Garoppolo’s first order of business. While he might be a bit of a lame duck with the Niners now, there are specific ways he can make sure he remains the starter throughout 2021.

Here are three such ways.