There is no shortage of hype surrounding Jimmy Garoppolo's return to the field with the 49ers this season. Fans have been itching for the return of Jimmy G since the day he tore his ACL back on Setp. 23 against the Kansas City Chiefs.
NBC Sports NFL Analyst Chris Simms joined in on the chorus of praise for the 49ers' signal-caller. Simms joined Murph and Mac on KNBR Thursday morning and explained why he's a fan of Garoppolo.
“I think Garoppolo, Garoppolo would be, if you have extra change around, that would be like my if you have a little extra money throw that down for MVP. I think he could be that dark horse guy,” Simms said. "If they turn it around and have this year where they go to 10-6 and he is up there as far as one of the top-rated quarterbacks in football, I think he could be in that conversation.”
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SIGN UP HERE Garoppolo has been impressive in his limited number starts in San Francisco. Since being acquired by the team in 2017, the QB has competed in nine games -- including eight starts -- and has a 6-2 record in those games. Overall, he's thrown for 2278 yards and 12 touchdowns with a 64.8% completion percentage.
Simms also had kind words for Kyle Shanahan and the job he's done since taking over as head coach before the 2017 season.
"He's honest, he's a real guy. He's not like Johnny coach guy, who's always gonna give you coach speak." Shanahan's expertise on the X's and O's side of the game also stands out to Simms, as the eight-year NFL veteran explains, "He's going to test the rules of your defense."
49ers fans are certainly excited to see their team take the field and try to build on a disappointing 4-12 finish last season, due in part to the fact that the team had to utilize undrafted free agent Nick Mullens as the starting QB for much of the season.
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If Garoppolo can stay on the field and some of the 49ers recent draft selections can take a leap in their development, the future looks much brighter for the 49ers as training camp is set to begin.