Throughout the 2020 NFL season, Chris Wesseling of NFL.com will rank the league's signal-callers in his QB Index. His second installment is in and now factors in some actual play from the 2020 season.
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo struggled during Week 1 against the Arizona Cardinals and looks to rebound on Sunday against the New York Jets.
Just looking at the stat sheet, Garoppolo's numbers don't look terrible. He threw for 259 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions against the Cardinals defense. However, watching the game, you could tell that the 49ers quarterback struggled to find his open receivers and make good decisions, which of course, has led to some criticism this week.
Garoppolo ranked No. 11 on Wesseling's QB Index entering Week 1. How far did he plummet after his Niners went 0-1? The 49ers quarterback now ranks No. 25.
"Garoppolo outplayed Kyler Murray until the moment he hung George Kittle out to dry just before halftime, effectively yanking San Francisco's Jenga piece, only to see the offense collapse the rest of the way," wrote Wesseling.
The NFL.com writer is referring to a high off-target pass intended for George Kittle right before halftime. The tight end, who leaped for the football, suffered what has been reported by the team as a knee sprain after a hit from Cardinals safety Budda Baker.
"Already without playmaking wideouts Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk," Wesseling continued, "Garoppolo grew jumpy in the pocket, unable to muster up an aerial attack with Kendrick Bourne, Trent Taylor, and Dante Pettis leading the receiving corps. According to PFF, San Francisco produced -0.7 expected points added per pass with three or more receivers on the field -- easily the lowest figure in the league."
The No. 25 ranking places Garoppolo below names like Drew Lock of the Denver Broncos and Mitchell Trubisky of the Chicago Bears.
The quarterback who the 49ers will face this weekend, Sam Darnold, came in at No. 32 in the QB Index.
