Joe Buck does not think the door is closed on Jimmy Garoppolo staying with the 49ers in 2022.
The newly anointed "Monday Night Football" broadcaster was joined by fellow ESPN commentator Troy Aikman on a conference call with the media on Monday and discussed the veteran quarterback’s future prospects.
“I personally don’t think it’s a foregone conclusion that Jimmy Garoppolo just automatically gets shipped out,” Buck said. “[The 49ers are] too good. They’re too ready to win right now with the way they finished last year coming up just shy in a championship game, and now you’ve got to start the clock back over with a young quarterback.”
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Garoppolo, who is under contract with the 49ers through the 2022 season, remains on the roster following successful shoulder surgery during the offseason. Other franchises' interest in trading for the quarterback came to a halt after the discovery that Garoppolo would not be healthy enough to throw until sometime in July.
Both analysts were very complimentary of how the veteran quarterback handled the 49ers moving up to draft Trey Lance with the No. 3 pick of the 2021 NFL Draft. Aikman added he believes that Garoppolo is a known quantity who could help the team “win now.”
While Lance is clearly talented, both analysts believe that moving forward with the second-year player will include some challenges. The young quarterback appeared in six contests in his rookie campaign, including two starts, and completed 41 of his 71 attempts for 603 yards and five touchdowns.
“I don’t know the Jimmy Garoppolo situation,” Airman said. “I love what he’s been able to do. He’s won a lot of games. I don’t know how that looks. But if Jimmy is the guy playing, I think he’s proven what he’s capable of doing. And I will say I’m a big fan of his, as well, for the way that he handled everything. It was incredible.
San Francisco 49ers
“If he’s in San Francisco and he’s getting to play, I hope he plays amazing. If he gets a chance to go somewhere else, I hope he lights it up. You can just tell he’s a really good person and I’m really pulling for him.”
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The 49ers made adjustments to the contracts of George Kittle, Fred Warner and Arik Armstead to be able to carry the roughly $25 million salary of Garoppolo in 2022 and remain under the NFL salary cap. This does not seem to be something the team would want keep on the books once Week 1 arrives, but for now, it isn’t hurting the club’s 2022 budget.
Both general manager John Lynch and coach Kyle Shanahan have been open about the club’s willingness to both trade Garoppolo or keep him on the roster, but for now, the team will be patient.