San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan has been saying since October that he hopes to have quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo start throwing when the team reconvenes this offseason for organized team activities (OTAs). Garoppolo suffered a torn ACL on September 23 and underwent surgery to repair the damage on October 3.
"It was a good repair, and they're very optimistic about the prognosis for his future," general manager John Lynch said the day after the surgery.
Shanahan was equally optimistic when asked about the surgery and recovery.
The head coach has held OTAs in late May and early June during his two offseasons with the 49ers. That would put Garoppolo's return to limited action at eight months after the injury.
Shanahan told reporters on Monday that is still the timetable. Standard ACL rehab takes about seven to nine months to complete, which means Garoppolo should be fine for the start of training camp and the 2019 season. Although, the Niners might be cautious with their $137.5 million franchise quarterback.
"My understanding is that he's got a real good chance to be doing stuff in OTAs," Shanahan said, "especially at the quarterback position where you don't have to be out there running routes and things like that. Hopefully, we can get him in some 7-on-7 deals and things like that, and he can be throwing the ball. So, we'll see if that works out that way."
Garoppolo passed for 2,278 yards with 12 touchdowns and eight interceptions through nine games and eight starts with San Francisco. He is 6-2 as a starter.
The 49ers seem to be in good hands with second-year quarterback Nick Mullens leading the offense for the team's remaining two games. He and C.J. Beathard will likely compete for the backup job during workouts and minicamps until Garoppolo is cleared to participate in a full practice.
Mullens, who is 3-3 as a starter, has passed for 1,754 yards with 10 touchdowns, six interceptions, and a passer rating of 96.0 in six starts since taking over the job from Beathard in Week 9.