The will-he-won’t-he saga for Jimmy Garoppolo is going strong in its second week. After suffering a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right thumb — an injury which NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported will require offseason surgery — 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan has continued to maintain that Garoppolo could play this week
He said Garoppolo had a chance to play last week, too, with mixed reports coming in on his short- and long-term status.
But on Wednesday, Garoppolo made his return to practice after suffering the injury against the Tennessee Titans on December 23. Shanahan said he threw a football on Tuesday for the first time, and did well enough to be limited in practice on Wednesday.
He said Trey Lance will still take the lion’s share of reps, but Garoppolo will do what he’s comfortable with.
According to Garoppolo, that may not be all that much. He was candid without explicitly stating if he will play on Sunday, but all the signs are pointing towards that being unlikely after his self assessment.
Here’s a roundup of Garoppolo’s breakdown of his thumb injury.
He said it’s “literally a day-by-day thing” and that he woke up feeling good on Tuesday, when he had a throwing session, but it “didn’t feel so hot” on Wednesday morning and was very sore.
Garoppolo mentioned multiple times that it’s a process and it will “take time” for him to recover. He said he will not be 100 percent by Sunday, but that he and the training staff will try to get as close as they can to to 100 percent before the game.
The likelihood that they get near 100 percent seems decidedly low. He said he cannot use his normal throwing motion, which would seem a pretty massive issue.
“It’s sore. It was a pretty good throwing session [on Tuesday],” Garoppolo said. “Trying to get the motion back and everything, trying to get it to where I want it to feel. I’m trying to get it back to my old motion… but it’ll take some time, it’s a process.”
Asked how it feels to throw with a torn UCL, he was blunt, saying that it’s a waiting process that “takes time” and involves having the “bone reattach to the other bone.”
“It, fuck— it hurts,” Garoppolo said. “It feels like the web in your hand is tearing a little bit. That’s probably the best way I can describe it. But it’s all good.”
To be clear, Garoppolo was laughing when he said “it’s all good.”
He also intimated that the best thing for the team to win be for Trey Lance to start. He indicated that if he can’t properly throw the ball, it’s not wise for him to play. It was among the many strong indications that it is not guaranteed, but likelier than not at this point that Lance will start.
“I’m gonna do everything I can to be out there with the guys. It’s a big one… But at the same time, you gotta be smart and think about what’s best for the team to win,” Garoppolo said. “I want everything in my body to be out there, but you gotta be smart at the same time.”
So, we shall see. But the smart money is on Lance starting a second-straight game, especially given that Garoppolo has played his worst football when playing less than 100 percent.
But there are other injuries that don’t involve Garoppolo. Below is the status report for Wednesday’s practice:
Will not practice:
- Azeez Al-Shaair (knee)
- Elijah Mitchell (knee) – same injury as the last few weeks
- Trent Williams (elbow) – Shanahan expects him to play Sunday
Limited:
- Maurice Hurst (calf) – First practice since December 2, when he re-aggravated his calf injury
- Dre Greenlaw (groin) – Practiced in limited fashion on December 30, then held out of practice the following day
- Talanoa Hufanga (knee)
- Jimmy Garoppolo (thumb)
- Jaquiski Tartt (ankle)
Shanahan had said Monday that he expected Emmanuel Moseley (ankle), Tavon Wilson (foot) and Mohamed Sanu (knee) to practice Wednesday for the first time since both were placed on injured reserve. All three had their injured reserve practice windows opened on Wednesday, giving them up to 21 days to be activated off injured reserve.