© Kirby Lee | 2020 Feb 2
You’d think the last six months have been tough on Jimmy Garoppolo.
First there was the Super Bowl heartbreak. Had Garoppolo connected on a deep throw to Emmanuel Sanders in the fourth quarter, the touchdown pass would’ve made him the MVP. Instead, the miss was seen as proof by some that Garoppolo doesn’t have what it takes.
Adding insult to injury were the rumors that followed, linking the 49ers with then free agent Tom Brady. Brady did indeed want to join the 49ers, and John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan did indeed discuss that as a possibility, but ultimately decided they like what they have in Jimmy G.
So how does Jimmy feel about all of this? Garoppolo broke his offseason silence in an exclusive interview with Matt Barrows of The Athletic. In typical Jimmy fashion, he seems completely unbothered by the Brady rumors.
“It kind of comes with the territory,” Garoppolo said.. “It comes with the job … The one thing I can say about the whole situation was Kyle and (general manager) John (Lynch) were very honest with me the whole time. That’s their job — to put the best team together possible — and you’ve got to respect that. So as long as the honesty and truthfulness is there, I respect those guys, I love those guys. And it’s going to be a fun year this year.”
“It’s the NFL. There’s competition. Everyone’s trying to put the best team together they can. And that’s just the reality of it.”
Though Garoppolo remains the QB for now, these types of rumors are likely to persist until he wins a Super Bowl or puts together an MVP caliber season, especially considering the 49ers can cut bait with him and face little financial penalties. To his credit, Garoppolo doesn’t seem to be worried about anything other than the 2020 season.