San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo passed for a single-game career-high 381 yards during Sunday's 25-23 victory over the visiting Tennessee Titans. Once again, he was poised and showed excellent command of the 49ers offense throughout the game.
San Francisco has now won its fourth game of the season and third-straight with Garoppolo at the helm of the offense. He remains undefeated as an NFL starter with a perfect 5-0 record and the 49ers are getting better each week with him at quarterback.
"I thought we got better versus Houston and I thought we were better today," 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said. "Obviously, the guys believe in Jimmy, and they know he can make some plays. I think everyone can see that, but they're all believing in each other too. They've gotten better each week."
Garoppolo guided the 49ers offense down the football field on a seven-play, 48-yard drive to set up kicker Robbie Gould for the game-winning kick.
"It was fun," Shanahan said of Garoppolo during that final drive. "He looked poised as can be. We walk through it every day. You never really get full-speed reps during the season. That two-minute stuff, guys are just too tired. But that was a great drive at the end."
Garoppolo, as any good leader does, spread the credit around while discussing the 49ers offense's performance during that final drive.
"It was a good two-minute drill," Garoppolo said after the game. "A lot of good execution across the board. Every guy stepping up in their own way. I thought the (offensive) line did a great job today just through and through giving me time ... They got a lot of pressure. I thought they did a phenomenal job for us."
Shanahan was asked if there is anything about Garoppolo's play that has surprised him.
"Some of the off-schedule plays that he's made I think has been pretty impressive," he answered. "There's been a couple of times where it's just -- especially earlier on -- where he ends up looking the wrong way where you think it's going to be a rough outcome. He ends up just finding a way still to make a play when he's a little bit unsure.
"I think when you have that arm talent and can make quick decisions, he's always got a chance."
It appears the 49ers finally have a true leader at quarterback in Garoppolo, who has shown that he can make the teammates around him better.
"He's very composed," Shanahan said. "He doesn't seem too high or too low. I think for the quarterback position, there's a lot of thinking involved. You've got to stay poised under pressure, and you've got a lot of guys coming after you too. So you need the grit to hang in there and everything, but there's a lot of thinking that's involved. Sometimes you get a little too amped up in things, and your brain doesn't work quite as well. He does a great job of balancing both."
