The San Francisco 49ers will soon have a big decision to make. Will they sign quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, who was acquired via a trade on October 30 and has started the past three games for the 49ers, to a long-term contract or will they use the franchise tag to buy themselves another year?
Either scenario is going to cost the 49ers. However, not signing Garoppolo to a long-term contract now and having him perform even better on the football field next year could cost the team a lot more money down the road. He has won each of his three starts with the 49ers and is a perfect 5-0 as a starting quarterback, which includes two starts with the New England Patriots last year.
Whatever decision is made, Garoppolo is about to become a very wealthy man. Of course, a decision on his financial future will not be made until after the 49ers have finished the season. They still have two games remaining to close out 2017. The first will be on Sunday against a formidable opponent in the 10-4 Jacksonville Jaguars. After that, the 49ers will travel to Los Angeles to face the red-hot and NFC West-leading Rams.
Right now, the 49ers' focus is on football, as general manager John Lynch explained when asked about Garoppolo's contract during a KNBR interview on Friday morning.
"I think we all want the same thing," Lynch told Ryan Covay and Kevin Frandsen. "You have to understand where Jimmy has come from and that's the New England Patriots. If you want to send a quarterback to a finishing school, it's the best one because his attitude is, 'I'm just focused on these games.' That very much has helped just kind of steer this thing in the direction where it's gone.
"We have regular contact with his representative, and we're all looking forward to the time when we do. But right now, we're focused on Jacksonville. Jimmy very much (so). He's been living in this facility, and we're trying to win football games, and we're trying to win one football game this weekend against a very good team.
"So that's where our focus is, and I can tell the Faithful and everyone out there that I think we all want the same thing and we're going to work towards that, and I'm confident that we can do that."
You can listen to the entire interview with Lynch below.
