Jimmy Garoppolo hasn’t played a lot of football. A backup in New England and hurt for most of last year, he’s started only 10 games as a pro. But he’s got Kyle Shanahan in his corner, and I think that’s a big selling point.
More so than other coaches, Shanahan knows how to attack defenses. He’s got a feel for how to find the pressure points in secondaries, consistently getting the ball downfield. He did it in Atlanta, and he’s doing it in San Francisco.
Matt Ryan won an MVP running Shanahan’s offense in Atlanta, and he averaged 13.3 yards per completion that season. You don’t average over 13 yards by checking it down; you’ve got consistently hit on chunk plays downfield.
When Garoppolo took over in San Francisco for the final five weeks in 2017, he averaged a Ryan-like 13.0 yards per completion. While he played only three games last year, he was even better at getting it downfield, averaging 13.6.
Nick Mullens took over for the second half of last year and averaged almost 13.
In the last three years, only four other quarterbacks have completed at least 100 passes and averaged over 13 yards per completion.
| GUNNING DOWNFIELD (2016-18) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Player | Comp | Yards | Avg |
| 2018 | Ryan Fitzpatrick, T.B. | 164 | 2,366 | 14.43 |
| 2018 | Jimmy Garoppolo, S.F. | 53 | 718 | 13.55 |
| 2017 | Deshaun Watson, Hou. | 126 | 1,699 | 13.48 |
| 2018 | Patrick Mahomes, K.C. | 383 | 5,097 | 13.31 |
| 2016 | Matt Ryan, Atl. | 373 | 4,944 | 13.25 |
| 2017 | Jimmy Garoppolo, S.F. | 120 | 1,560 | 13.00 |
| 2016 | Cam Newton, Car. | 270 | 3,509 | 13.00 |
| 2018 | Nick Mullens, S.F. | 176 | 2,277 | 12.94 |
| 2018 | Jared Goff, LAR | 364 | 4,688 | 12.88 |
| 2017 | Jared Goff, LAR | 296 | 3,804 | 12.85 |
| 2016 | Philip Rivers, S.D. | 349 | 4,386 | 12.57 |
| 2017 | Philip Rivers, LAC | 360 | 4,515 | 12.54 |
| 2016 | Matt Barkley, Chi. | 129 | 1,611 | 12.49 |
| 2017 | Carson Wentz, Phil. | 265 | 3,296 | 12.44 |
| 2017 | Jameis Winston, T.B. | 282 | 3,504 | 12.43 |
| 2018 | Philip Rivers, LAC | 347 | 4,308 | 12.41 |
| 2016 | Marcus Mariota, Tenn. | 276 | 3,426 | 12.41 |
| 2018 | Russell Wilson, Sea. | 280 | 3,448 | 12.31 |
| 2018 | C.J. Beathard, S.F. | 102 | 1,252 | 12.27 |
| 2018 | Josh Allen, Buff. | 169 | 2,074 | 12.27 |
| 2018 | Jameis Winston, T.B. | 244 | 2,992 | 12.26 |
| 2016 | Andrew Luck, Ind. | 346 | 4,240 | 12.25 |
| 2016 | Tom Brady, N.E. | 291 | 3,554 | 12.21 |
| 2016 | Kirk Cousins, Was. | 406 | 4,917 | 12.11 |
| 2018 | Deshaun Watson, Hou. | 345 | 4,165 | 12.07 |
| 2017 | Carson Palmer, Ariz. | 164 | 1,978 | 12.06 |
| 2018 | Baker Mayfield, Clev. | 310 | 3,725 | 12.02 |
Certainly, there’s an unknown dimension with the 49ers. At this point, I’m not sure who their No. 1 wide receiver will be (I would think they’ll probably select one early). But George Kittle is one of the best tight ends in the league, and they have a pair of other wide receivers who both averaged over 17 yards per catch last year. In supporting roles, I would think Dante Pettis and Marquise Goodwin will hit on some big plays.
I don’t think I would draft Garoppolo as a No. 1 quarterback in a fantasy league, but I like the idea of investing more heavily in the position, bringing him in as a high-end No. 2, with the expectation he’ll start plenty of games.
—Ian Allan