The road back from his season-ending ACL injury last year was long and arduous. Jimmy Garoppolo fought hard to return to the football field, and 16 months after that career setback, the quarterback has his San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LIV competing for the franchise's sixth Vince Lombardi Trophy.
However, it wasn't enough to earn Garoppolo the NFL's AP Comeback Player of the Year award, given to a player who shows perseverance in overcoming adversity from the previous season. The honor was presented to Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill, instead.
Tannehill completed 70.3 percent of his passes for 2,742 yards with 22 touchdowns and six interceptions in 2019. The Titans finished 9-7 and won two playoff games before falling to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game.
Garoppolo passed for 3,978 yards, which ranks fourth all-time in franchise history, and threw 27 touchdowns and 13 interceptions with a passer rating of 102.0 en route to a 13-3 record and the 49ers' first playoff appearance since the 2013 season.
"The knee's come a long way; it definitely has," Garoppolo said on Thursday. "I probably haven't thought about it since about halfway through the year. It's just crazy, going through the entire process. I mean, about a year ago, I was learning how to run again."
Garoppolo is 21-5 as the 49ers' starting quarterback, including the team's two playoff victories on the way to Super Bowl LIV against the Chiefs. He is in his sixth NFL season and third with San Francisco after a mid-season trade sent him from the New England Patriots to the 49ers in 2017.
Garoppolo won his first five starts with the 49ers and was awarded a then-record five-year deal worth $137.5 million. He is signed through the 2022 season.