Jimmy Garroppolo is running the offense again in San Francisco after second-year quarterback Trey Lance suffered a gruesome ankle injury. He was carted off the field after the Niners scored a touchdown.
Lance will miss the rest of the season, making this another lost year for him early in his career. According to Tom Pelissero, the injury is not as bad as it was a couple of years ago. He won't be able to participate in the rest of the campaign.
The 49ers were the hottest team on the west coast during the off-season. It wasn't the controversy with Lance and Garoppolo, it was the talk about Deebo Samuel's contract extension and his potential trade value. One of the guys got an extension and the other restructured his contract.
Jimmy G hit a clause in his restructured contract in his first game back. Garoppolo gets a $250k bonus for playing more than 25% of San Francisco's offensive snaps. Garoppolo would get another $100k if the team wins that game.
At the end of last season, Garoppolo's position with the team was in question. Although most felt Garoppolo was still the best option the Niners had in their QB room, others felt the team needed to see what Lance had and how much he had improved from his first season. The Niners need another year to know what they have in Lance.
The team's chances of making another run in theNFC improved slightly with Jimmy G back in charge. At Pointsbet, the 49ers odds of winning the Super Bowl went from 2000 to 1800. The Niners were close to winning the Superbowl last season, thanks to Garoppolo.
Lance had a feeling out period, and the offense was still figuring out. There is familiarity with Jimmy G as they have gone to two of the last three NFC title games with Garoppolo at the helm. The Niners were on their way to victory in the Super Bowl. The 49ers gave up 21 unanswered points to the Chiefs in the Super Bowl.
There had been talk of Garoppolo possibly being in the lineup. Many analysts expect the 49ers to compete for the title. There wasn't much of a trade market for Garoppolo in the off-season.
We have seen Garoppolo hit his ceiling in San Francisco and he is a good quarterback. They should be able to make the playoffs again and challenge for the title. Jimmy G is who he has been for a long time. The Niners will be in contention in 22 if no one else of consequence goes down and Garoppolo is protected.
Lance is a young player and you don't want to see this happen to him. He was playing catch-up because he didn't play a lot of college football. Fans and the team will have to wait another year to find out what this kid can do.
Garoppolo is a free agent at the end of the season. Lance will be the man once he comes back, with no one looking over his shoulder.
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