SANTA CLARA -- After Jimmy Garoppolo received recent glowing reviews from Robert Saleh, Kyle Shanahan expects even more from the 49ers quarterback.
Shanahan exposed his perfectionist tendencies on Friday after a frustrating practice, making it no surprise that expectations for his quarterback are heightened after a Super Bowl season. The 49ers coach agrees that Garoppolo has been improving, but that simply is what he expects from his franchise QB.
“The more you're in a system, the more you go against the same defense over and over, the more things become second nature,” Shanahan said. “So, you expect that from him. You expect that from a lot of guys who are going through camp and going versus some of the same players, the same coverages for a couple of years here.”
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That repetition forces the coaching staff to be creative on both sides of the ball in practice. Those schematic wrinkles might not be utilized once they open the regular season, but it’s necessary to keep everyone on their toes.
Shanahan also reiterated that he puts the same amount of weight in an awful practice as he does one that is flawless. While each is a learning experience, the 49ers coach has seen that a horrible session on Friday can still be followed by a dominating performance on Sunday.
Even though Shanahan is regularly frustrated at practices, he tries to stay even-keeled as much as possible, not letting five interceptions or five touchdown passes affect him either way. He knows that until Garoppolo and the rest of the 49ers’ offense face a defense other than their own, nothing officially counts.
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With that in mind, it is understandable that Shanahan will withhold judgment of Garoppolo's progress until after Week 1, when the team faces the Arizona Cardinals on Sept. 13 at Levi’s Stadium. With an extended offseason and no joint practices to break up the monotony, the first game cannot come soon enough.
“I think our whole team's pretty sharp at going against each other,” Shanahan said. “We’ve had enough of that. We're ready for that to end. So, the quicker we can go against some other people, we'll see how it's panned off.”