49ers general manager John Lynch continued to talk about the trade status of quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo during his media session at the NFL Scouting Combine on Wednesday, saying the team is listening to interested parties but is continuing to operate as if Garoppolo is in their plans.
Lynch spoke about Garoppolo multiple times Wednesday, both on television and to reporters at the Combine. The widespread assumption at the conclusion of the 2021 season was that Garoppolo had likely played his last game in a 49ers uniform and that the team would seek to trade him this offseason as part of their plan to eventually hand over the starting spot to 2021 first-round draft pick Trey Lance, but that obviously hasn't happened yet, so Lynch is approaching things as if Garoppolo is still part of the picture.
"Jimmy's a part of us right now," Lynch said. "A lot of people need or want quarterbacks right now, and he's obviously a guy they'd look at. Yes, we have listened, but he's a part of us."
The 49ers recently encountered a possible snafu en route to trading Garoppolo when it was apparently decided he'd have surgery to fix a shoulder injury he sustained in the team's Wild Card win over the Dallas Cowboys. The procedure has been described as "minor," but Garoppolo still isn't expected to be able to throw until July, which means any interested team would have to wait until training camp for him to start throwing with his new teammates.
"It was one of those injuries where the recommendation from multiple doctors was let's try rehab first and see if the pain and some of the other symptoms went away," Lynch said. "And that was the hope, obviously, but that wasn't the case as time went on, and I think in the last couple days had another visit where the decision was made to go ahead and have that surgery. Any time you have surgery, it's not a minor deal. Any time it's the throwing shoulder, I understand the significance. But it is described as a minor surgery, and Jimmy's going to be fine."
Lynch also praised Garoppolo's handling of the 2021 season, during which he didn't prevent any doubts over his long-term status with the 49ers from helping Lance acclimate to the NFL.
"Jimmy was raised a certain way," Lynch said. "He is a certain way, and the class that he treated Trey with in terms of helping him and his development, I thought, says volumes about who he is, who that family is. I'll forever be grateful for that because he didn't have to do that. A lot of people don't do that. He did, and still competed his tail off and held on. So it was impressive."
Garoppolo's injury doesn't make his immediate future with the 49ers any clearer, although it's still safe to assume he and the team part ways sooner or later. In the meantime, Lynch says the 49ers are focusing on Garoppolo's injury and where he stands with the team.
"He's a big part of what we've done, and like I said, he's still a part of us," Lynch said. "And until that changes, we feel blessed that he is. Right now, when we're talking about his shoulder, I'm worried about that for the Niners and for Jimmy. As far as anything else, like I said, we have had some discussions with some teams, and we'll continue to. But as of right now, he's a part of us."
