The NFL is a business, after all, and coaches and general managers are paid to put the best roster on the field each and every week.
The 49ers are no different, and as NBC Sports NFL analyst Chris Simms explained to NBC Sports Bay Area's Laura Britt, the organization isn't trying to disrespect the team's current quarterback, Jimmy Garoppolo, by looking into potential upgrades at the position.
"I think Lynch, Shanahan, Laura, you know, they're aggressive, they always have been," Simms told Britt. "I think the approach for the 49ers and what they always do is they're always looking for competition or ways to get better, but I don't think that in any way shape or form is a disrespect to Jimmy Garoppolo, and I know a lot of people look at it that way.
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SIGN UP HERE "I think there's great respect in that organization for Jimmy G. Hey, how can you not look at it and go, 'Well, when he's on the field we're good and we win and go to Super Bowls, when he's not we can't win football games and we really struggle.' So they do value him, I think that's being lost in translation."
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Simms added that there is inherent respect across the organization for what Garoppolo has done since coming to the Bay Area in a 2017 trade. But quarterback is the NFL's most important position and Jimmy G's injury history has forced the organization to examine other options, especially when those potential replacements are significant upgrades.
"You're gonna be looking for other options out there, and especially when the Matthew Staffords or Aaron Rodgers of the world get thrown onto your radar, listen, I like Jimmy Garoppolo, but those are clearly upgrades," Simms continued. "They are superstar-type talents, Rodgers, other than Mahomes, is the best quarterback in football. Matthew Stafford is a top-10 talent. So they're going to be aggressive is what I'm telling you.
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"But I don't think they're just going to bring in anybody to replace Jimmy G. It would have to be something that really moves the needle and makes sense for their team and their roster and they think is clearly a better option than Jimmy G."
At this point, after what we saw the reported haul sent to the Detroit Lions from the Los Angeles Rams looked like for Stafford, it's becoming increasingly likely we'll see Jimmy G under center for the 49ers in 2021.
But winning is the most important thing in the NFL, and if Lynch and Shanahan come across the right package for a player they know immediately can come in and take the offense to a different level, they might have to pull the trigger and move on from Garoppolo.