49ers notebook: Garoppolo addresses Brady story, pass rushers try out
Kyle Shanahan in the spring called Jimmy Garoppolo on the phone to let him know Tom Brady had at least been considered after his camp expressed interest in joining the 49ers in free agency.
Nothing came of it, of course, because Shanahan and general manager John Lynch determined Garoppolo was San Francisco’s best option for the long haul. They poured over Brady’s recent film and considered the long-term ramifications of signing a quarterback that turned 43 Monday. Brady landed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in March.
Garoppolo, 28, had a chance to address the Brady story on Tuesday for the first time during a Zoom press conference with reporters.
“When all that was going on, you hear about it and things like that,” Garoppolo said. “But I really wasn’t too worried. I’m always confident in my play. I know what I put out there in (last) season and everything like that. It’s all about being confident. It’s just part of the business. I’ve seen both sides of it so I’ve been there.”
Garoppolo is the 49ers’ most polarizing player. Some point to the fact he was the only quarterback in the NFL to rank in the top five in completion percentage, touchdown passes and yards per attempt in 2019, his first full season as a starter after tearing his left ACL a year prior. That appears to be a good starting point for a franchise quarterback entering the prime of his career.
Others are quick to criticize Garoppolo for completing just 3 of 11 passes with a 2.8 rating in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl after the 49ers leaned heavily on the running game during the two playoff wins to get there.
The truth is the best quarterbacks play at the highest level year after year, and there’s only one full season to evaluate with Garoppolo. He’s largely an unfinished product which means 2020 will be big for him.
Garoppolo was asked about all that chatter and to evaluate his own play from 2019.
“I thought it was a productive year,” Garoppolo said. “Obviously, it didn’t finish the way we wanted it to. I think there was a lot of things that went well for us. A thing I always take pride in is being an accurate quarterback.”
The 49ers believe Garoppolo has a chance to take a significant step forward in his second full season under center. The opener scheduled for Sept. 13 will be start No. 29 for his career, including playoffs. NFC West rivals Russell Wilson (143) and Jared Goff (58) are far more experienced.
“I think having my first full season under my belt, coming off the ACL and everything like that, everything that went into that season, it’ll only help me going forward,” Garoppolo said. “So I think in terms of being a quarterback, I still have a long way to go, I’m still relatively young for a quarterback in terms of playing time. I think as a quarterback, you got to get out there, play, get live action like that, I think having a full season under my belt will help me going forward.”
Garoppolo’s accuracy is one of his best traits, particularly for Shanahan’s offense that emphasizes yards after the catch. His 69.1 completion rate ranked fourth among starters. George Kittle, Deebo Samuel and Emmanuel Sanders combined for 1,345 yards after the catch last season, according to Pro Football Focus.
Kittle ranked third (621) and first (873) in yards after the catch the past two seasons, respectively. Garoppolo’s accuracy and Shanahan’s scheme also play to the skill sets Samuel and rookie Brandon Aiyuk, who averaged over 11 yards per catch last season at Arizona State.
“The more accurate you are, the more yards after the catch your guys can go get for you,” said Garoppolo. “In our offense, it’s putting the ball in the right spot, putting it in the right timing of the play. It’s little things like that that go a long way in our offense. I think, I was pretty happy with everything and how it went. Like I said, we just want the last game of the season to turn out a little differently.”
49ers looking at defensive ends for depth
The 49ers could be without backup defensive end Ronald Blair III well into the season after tearing his ACL in November. It’s led to the team kicking tires on free agent pass rushers.
San Francisco on Tuesday worked out former Lion and Seahawk, Ezekiel Ansah, according to NFL Network, who played under defensive line coach Kris Kocurek in Detroit.
Ansah had 2.5 sacks in a bit role last season with Seattle and has dealt with a string of shoulder issues recently. He had 6.5 sacks in his last 19 regular season games after recording 12.0 sacks in 14 games in 2017. He was the No. 5 overall pick in the 2013 draft.
San Francisco also worked Dion Jordan, according to ESPN, the third overall pick in the same draft, who spent last season with the Raiders. Jordan has dealt with a slew of suspensions for violating the league’s policy on performance enhancing substances which were believed to be tied to Adderall.
The 49ers’ current group of defensive ends behind Nick Bosa, Arik Armstead and Dee Ford includes Kerry Hyder and Alex Barrett, who was recently released and re-signed this week. Anthony Zettel signed with the Detroit Lions after having a backup role last season.
▪ The 49ers on Tuesday finalized roster moves Lynch announced Monday, including activating defensive lineman Kentavius Street and receiver Shawn Poindexter off the active/physically unable to perform list.
Reserve running back Jeff Wilson Jr. was moved off the reserve/COVID-19 list, as was receiver Richie James Jr., who went on the active/non-football injury list with a wrist injury.
Defensive back D.J. Reed was waived after tearing a pectoral during an offseason workout. Safety Chris Edwards was also waived.
This story was originally published August 4, 2020 at 4:03 PM.
