Favre campaigns for ‘proven winner' Jimmy G to start over Lance

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Even though the 49ers have named Trey Lance as the team’s starter under center this season, not everyone is on board.

One of those people is Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre, who believes it would be “absolutely crazy” for San Francisco to let Garoppolo go in favor of Lance.

“My personal opinion, I would go with Garoppolo,” Favre told The 33rd Team in an interview shared on Monday. “He’s not as flashy -- not near as flashy. He wasn’t their first-round pick, and no offense towards Trey Lance, but what Jimmy has done is win. And win, win, win.

“Again, not flashy so it’s not the glamorous pick, but my goodness, the guy has won and put them in a position to go or compete for the Super Bowl year in and year out and deserves that right to keep playing.”

When the 49ers acquired Garoppolo from the New England Patriots in an October 2017 trade, he went on to post a 31-14 record as a starter over the next four years. But the 49ers have no Vince Lombardi Trophy to show for his efforts.

San Francisco lost to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIV at the culmination of the 2019 season, and after a disappointing, injury-riddled 2020 campaign from Garoppolo, the 49ers opted to trade up in the 2021 NFL Draft and select Lance third overall.

Even when Garoppolo and the 49ers went all the way to the NFC Championship Game as a wild-card team last season, there was division among the fanbase as to who should be starting -- Garoppolo or Lance. They ultimately lost out on another Super Bowl opportunity by falling to the Los Angeles Rams, and now the 49ers have been trying to trade Garoppolo since the season ended.

Coach Kyle Shanahan has made it clear that the team is Lance’s to lead now -- and Favre believes things could still work in San Francisco’s favor if everything works out perfectly.

“But I think their defense is really good, barring injury,” Favre told The 33rd Team. “Offensively, if Trey plays the way they hope and is capable of, then they’re competing right there at the end.”

Lance offers traits Garoppolo could not when it comes to mobility and arm strength, which both have already been displayed during his limited preseason action and even in games he played last year.

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Still, Favre believes Garoppolo should be the guy. The Green Bay Packers legend has his own past experience he can compare to the 49ers’ quarterback situation, of course, as his own team selected a first-round quarterback in the draft even though he still wanted to play.

Favre, a three-time NFL MVP, eventually was replaced by Aaron Rodgers, who has gone on to win four MVPs of his own. And while the situations are clearly different, Favre believes Garoppolo’s record as a starter alone should earn him the starting job.

“There’s a tremendous upside with Trey, there’s no question about it,” Favre said. “But Jimmy G has been a proven winner … Oftentimes, that gets overlooked: Is a guy a winner? And Garoppolo is definitely a winner.”

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