49ers practice report: Jimmy Garoppolo returns

One of the biggest criticisms about Jimmy Garoppolo has been his availability. The quarterback wins football games but has been available for an entire season just once in his career—in 2019. Garoppolo's latest injury occurred on December 4 while with the San Francisco 49ers. The veteran left a regular-season game against the Miami Dolphins with a foot injury. It was later revealed that he suffered a broken foot and would miss significant time. However, it wasn't believed to require surgery. That led to the emergence of Brock Purdy, the seventh-round draft pick that took the NFL by storm. He led the 49ers to the NFC Championship Game before suffering an injury himself. Garoppolo remained on the 49ers' 53-man roster through all that. The 49ers

Rohan Chakravarthi and Jessie Naylor break down Day 1 of the San Francisco 49ers OTAs that was available to media. The audio for the show is embedded above, while the video is available below. You can listen to "The Rohan Chakravarthi Show" from our dedicated podcast page, on

Kyle Shanahan praises his quarterback room every year. Last season, the San Francisco 49ers went through three starting quarterbacks and still made it to the NFC Championship Game. Trey Lance was the Week 1 starter but suffered a season-ending ankle injury during his second game. Eleven weeks later, Jimmy Garoppolo sustained a broken foot. That opened the door for rookie Brock Purdy to show his coaches and the NFL world that he belonged, despite being the last overall pick in the draft. Purdy guided the 49ers to eight consecutive wins before suffering a severe injury in that NFC title game matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles. Two of the quarterbacks from last season—Lance and Purdy—remain. Both are just 23 years old. They are joined by Sam

The San Francisco 49ers entered the offseason with several questions after key figures, such as Jimmie Ward, Mike McGlinchey, Samson Ebukam, and Charles Omenihu, departed in free agency, creating the possibility for position battles in organized team activities(OTAs) and training camp. While several of the starting spots are solidified, there are still a few position battles to watch, as well as depth questions that could allow younger players to compete and take 53-man roster spots at the end of the offseason. Let's break down some of those battles to watch and how they could play out for the 49ers, outside of the obvious competition at