John Lynch reiterates that Jimmy Garoppolo remains a big part of 49ers’ plans, excited for future

The San Francisco 49ers on Friday restructured pass rusher Dee Ford's contract, creating an additional $9.5 million in salary-cap space. General manager John Lynch made it clear that the move doesn't indicate that a big signing is on the horizon and that the 49ers roster is "pretty much set."

Instead, it was a housekeeping move to potentially create more wiggle room with next year's cap, which is expected to decrease due to the impact of COVID-19.

"In terms of how long he's going to be here and what we're paying him, it's all the same," Lynch told reporters during a conference call on Sunday.

The move with Ford led some to wonder why something similar wasn't done with Jimmy Garoppolo, who remains the team's highest-paid player by a significant margin.

Lynch said that there is nothing to read into the lack of a move with the team's quarterback. He, once again, had to state that Garoppolo remains a big part of the 49ers' future.

"Jimmy is our quarterback, and we've stated that numerous times," Lynch said. "Jimmy is as big a part of our plans as he's ever been, and we're really excited having Jimmy Garoppolo as our quarterback going into this year."

Lynch was also asked what he's seen from Garoppolo this offseason that reassures the 49ers that the quarterback fits into the team's long-term plans.

"That position is one, I believe, they should grow each and every year because they're more experienced in a scheme," Lynch responded. "And I think we all know this scheme demands a lot of that position. Kyle (Shanahan) demands a lot from his quarterbacks.

"We all know Jimmy's history. We acquired him; he was thrown in there, into the fire. The next year, when he hadn't played a whole lot, he gets hurt. So last year was really his first year as a season-long starter, and we ended up in the Super Bowl, really close to winning the whole thing."

Lynch explained that Shanahan and the coaching staff had hoped to have another full offseason to work face-to-face with Garoppolo, with the quarterback another year removed from his ACL injury.

COVID-19 prevented that.

"We didn't have that because of what's going on in our world," Lynch continued. "But I really commend Jimmy, and I commend our coaching staff because they got better in spite of the challenges. And I think the Zoom meetings and all those things were really productive.

"Jimmy's come back and, I think, performed really well in camp, and we're excited. I just think more time in this system — it's a very demanding one — and I think the history of quarterbacks in this system, it shows kind of right around now is when they start really hitting stride, and we think Jimmy's already done that.

"We're excited to see where this goes. I'm proud of him as well for the way he's prepared himself to lead our team."