Is Kyle Shanahan bluffing? That seems to be the question on every 49ers fans mind. The head coach told the media for the second week in a row that Jimmy Garoppolo has a chance to play on Sunday, despite reports that are less optimistic about the QBs somewhat serious right thumb injury.
49ers beat writer Eric Branch has reason to believe Shanahan is being truthful about Garoppolo’s status, however, and explained why on Papa & Lund Tuesday afternoon.
“I initially had talked to an orthopedic surgeon when it first came out about Garoppolo’s injury and he was pretty dubious about Jimmy being able to play in the regular season,” Branch began on KNBR. “Now that we have gotten more information…about the specifics of his injury, maybe a hand surgeon can provide clarity.
“I say all that to say, based on our experts — a hand surgeon who has some Stanford education, he’s a consultant to the Anaheim Ducks of the NHL — he said based on the information that’s been provided there certainly is a chance that Jimmy Garoppolo could play.”
Branch says that the specific nature of Garoppolo’s break makes it less serious than similar injuries that QBs have sustained in the past.
“He focused on the break. He has an avulsion fracture, meaning the ligament tore a piece of the bone on the base of his thumb. So what he really focused on is the Niners have described that as just like a fleck of bone. He said that determines the severity of an avulsion fracture; how much bone is being pulled away. That is where we are talking about the stability.
“He said if it is truly just a fleck, then you do have stability; it’s not displaced. When Drew Brees had his very similar injury in 2019, he had to have surgery and miss five games, and that was because he had a displaced fracture, and just could not grip.
“Does that mean Jimmy Garoppolo is going to play Sunday? No, not necessarily. There is a calculus here: Is 80% of Garoppolo better than 100% of Trey Lance and all that. But it does sound like Shanahan when he says (Garoppolo) has a chance to play, perhaps is being truthful.”
Listen to the full interview below. You can listen to every KNBR interview on our podcast page at knbr.com/podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Catch Papa & Lund weekdays from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. on KNBR 104.5 / 680 and streaming live on KNBR.com.