There was no escaping the criticism following an uninspiring performance by quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo in the San Francisco 49ers' 37-27 loss to the Seattle Seahawks. The skeptics are out in full force, and it's becoming more and more difficult to defend against them.
Garoppolo was 11-of-16 for 84 yards and an interception on Sunday afternoon before exiting late in the third quarter with an ankle injury. His backup, Nick Mullens, entered the game and threw for 238 yards and two touchdowns in the fourth quarter.
Fans learned on Monday that Garoppolo and tight end George Kittle are expected to be out indefinitely. It's just another significant hit in an already injury-plagued 2020 campaign. Kittle suffered a small fracture in his foot and could be out for the remainder of the season. Garoppolo is reportedly expected to miss at least six weeks, possibly more.
NFL insider Ian Rapoport wonders if the Garoppolo experiment in San Francisco might be coming to an end. Could head coach Kyle Shanahan be willing to move on from his quarterback?
"I know that Kyle likes Garoppolo," Rapoport said Monday on KNBR's Murph & Mac show before it became known that Garoppolo would miss significant time. "Obviously, he's stood by him. Had a chance, probably could have gotten Tom Brady this offseason. Not probably. Definitely could have gotten him. Decided against it. So, Kyle has stood by him.
"I do think they will go into the offseason and say, 'Alright, just like every other position — but of course, quarterback gets more microscopes — can we improve?' And I don't think they're going to be a bad team. To me, they'll probably end up around average — 8-8, 7-9, 9-7. But what if they have a chance to draft a quarterback? Do they ramp up the pressure and say, 'Alright, we're going to get better at the most important position'?
"I think that's probably something, to me, that they will very strongly consider if it comes up."
Garoppolo has two more years remaining on his contract after this season. Of course, the 49ers can move on from his contract without much of a salary-cap hit during any offseason. Garoppolo missed most of the 2018 season after suffering an ACL injury.
You can listen to the entire conversation with Rapoport below.