NFL power rankings: Where Jimmy Garoppolo, remaining playoff QBs rank in divisional round

NFL Power Rankings No. 7: Jimmy Garoppolo, 49ers

From a pure playmaking perspective, Joe Burrow should be listed higher than Jimmy Garoppolo in our NFL power rankings.

From an experience level, though, Jimmy G slightly edges out Burrow. Slightly.

Simply put, Garoppolo wasn’t good in San Francisco’s Wild Card win over Dallas, both in terms of his final stat line and the mistakes he made, particularly in the fourth quarter. Garoppolo went a cool 16-of-25 for 172 yards, failing to toss a touchdown but getting picked off by Cowboys cornerback Anthony Brown in what eventually turned into a Dallas touchdown, all for a passer rating of 67.4, the lowest rating of any quarterback who played Wild Card weekend and advanced into the divisional round.

On top of that, Garoppolo’s miss to a wide-open wide receiver, Brandon Aiyuk, could have resulted in a 49ers touchdown that would have made a hectic final two minutes less stressful.

Related Story: Jimmy Garoppolo was not good in 49ers Wild Card win over Cowboys

Or if Garoppolo merely waited for left tackle Trent Williams to get set before that late fourth-quarter QB sneak that would have iced the game, instead it turned into a fourth-down false start that resulted in Dallas getting the ball back.

Fortunately for the Niners, they don’t need Garoppolo to shoulder the offense. It’s their strong running game and potent defense that’ll combine to be the reason why San Francisco advances.

And Garoppolo’s experience in that kind of setting, namely from the 49ers’ previous playoff run in January and February of 2020, gives him an edge over Burrow.