Bomani Jones: 49ers QB Jimmy Garoppolo 'just isn’t good'
NFL analyst Brian Baldinger recently remarked that the offense of the San Francisco 49ers hasn't been the same this season and has looked "flat" without former offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel, who was hired by the Miami Dolphins to be their head coach this past winter.
ESPN and HBO personality Bomani Jones offered a different take during a Wednesday appearance on San Francisco sports radio station 95.7 The Game when he blasted veteran quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, who returned atop the 49ers depth chart two Sundays ago after second-year pro Trey Lance suffered a season-ending broken right ankle.
"I don’t know if there’s something wrong with the offense as much as your quarterback just isn’t good," Jones said about the system utilized by head coach Kyle Shanahan without McDaniel acting as his right-hand man, per Dennis Young of SF Gate. "I know that people have a bit of an emotional attachment to Jimmy Garoppolo that I find to be peculiar, but he just ain’t it. And he hasn’t been it, and every time the world gives us that he’s not it, people jump up and say 'No, Jimmy’s a winner!' That’s not how things work, man. The dude who closes his eyes and throws an interception in the Super Bowl — that ain’t what winners do. The dude that runs out the back of the end zone — that’s not what winners do."
Garoppolo replaced the injured Lance in Week 2 and helped guide the 49ers to a 27-7 win over the Seattle Seahawks but then had a night to forget in this past Sunday's 11-10 loss at the Denver Broncos. The 30-year-old completed 18-of-29 passes for 211 yards with a touchdown, an interception and the previously mentioned safety that briefly turned him into an internet meme:
It was reported earlier this month that individuals within the 49ers and also the Los Angeles Rams believed the Niners were better off with Garoppolo back under center in place of Lance.
"You got the quarterback, he’s the leader, you’re indoctrinated with the idea that the quarterback is the straw that stirs the drink," Jones said about the stories regarding the 49ers. "I have an impossible time believing these dudes, actual football players, look at Jimmy and think 'That dude’s dope.' They can’t. Like if they were playing against Jimmy, I can’t imagine how excited they’d be."
Garoppolo and the 1-2 49ers will look to reclaim their winning ways when they host the 2-1 Los Angeles Rams in the upcoming "Monday Night Football" showdown.
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