NFL analysts took notice when San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo passed for 296 yards and earned a 131.0 passer rating against the Cincinnati Bengals during Week 2. He added 277 passing yards to his season total during Week 3's victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers and did so while displaying the tough-as-nails play that head coach Kyle Shanahan likes from his quarterbacks.
Garoppolo continues to climb NFL.com's QB Index and finds himself three spots ahead of last week's ranking, landing at No. 13. Only four other quarterbacks saw a more significant jump.
Gennaro Filice of NFL.com wrote the following of Garoppolo:
"Is this the season Jimmy G begins to live up to the $137.5 million hype? The 3-0 record and career-high 8.8 yards per attempt say yes. The five giveaways in six halves of football say no. The ringing endorsement from former-Niner-nemesis-turned-Niner-darling Richard Sherman ... well, yeah, that's still just weird to me."
While Garoppolo ranked No. 4 among NFC West quarterbacks last week, that is no longer the case. Both Jared Goff of the Los Angeles Rams (No. 14) and Kyler Murray of the Arizona Cardinals (No. 17) fell below the 49ers quarterback. Russell Wilson of the Seattle Seahawks (No. 3) remains well above Garoppolo.
The 49ers have a bye this week and won't play a game until Monday, October 7 when they host the visiting Cleveland Browns. Baker Mayfield, the Browns' quarterback, is currently ranked at No. 12 on the QB Index, one spot ahead of Garoppolo.
H/t to Patrick Tulini for the find.