Fans won't see Ian Rapoport on NFL Network over the next 10 days, but the NFL insider was on KNBR Monday morning to discuss the San Francisco 49ers' stunning loss to the Miami Dolphins on Sunday. Part of the discussion surrounded the poor play of quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, who is recovering from the high-ankle sprain that forced him to miss two games.
Garoppolo's performance was enough to bench the starter at halftime in favor of C.J. Beathard. Although, head coach Kyle Shanahan said that was more to protect Garoppolo, who was sacked three times during the first half.
"You could tell he was affected by his ankle," Shanahan said after the game. "... I know he doesn't normally throw the ball that way. I think he was struggling a little bit because of it and the way the game was going I wasn't going to keep putting him in those positions and knowing we were going to have to throw it a lot to come back."
Garoppolo finished 7-of-17 for 77 yards with two interceptions and a passer rating of 15.7.
Peter King of NBC Sports believes the performance was enough to prove Garoppolo's offseason doubters right.
"The 49ers may very well not be who we thought they were," wrote King, "and Garoppolo is proving definitively that the football world was right to have significant questions about his ability during a shaky playoff run last season."
Rapoport wonders what the 49ers might do if the season continues to unravel. Could Shanahan and company look to move on from Garoppolo? The quarterback is signed through 2022, but San Francisco can part ways with him any offseason without much of a salary-cap impact.
"I don't know what's going to happen with the 49ers' season," Rapoport told Brian Murphy and Adam Copeland. "They are still a very, very, very well-coached team. If anyone can overcome the injuries and the sort of uncertainty and ups and downs, they could. But if it does turn out to be a really rough season, and they have a relatively high draft pick, it's going to be interesting to see what they do. Could they be someone who takes a quarterback? I think maybe they could.
"I remember last year when rumors about Brady came out. I was one of the first people to be like, 'Yes, obviously Brady is interested in San Francisco. Who wouldn't be? But no. They have a franchise quarterback. They are fine.' It's fascinating to look back at that now and wonder what if, especially if Jimmy G kind of goes into a little bit of an uncertain period right now."
You can listen to the entire conversation with Rapoport below.
