The 49ers at least looked at Tom Brady the last offseason. The speculation was they may have a meandering eye again this offseason.
Yet, General Manager John Lynch was pretty much as complete as he has been about the team’s beginning quarterback for 2021.
Lynch joined Clark Judge and Ira Kaufman on The Eye Test for Two podcast and said he has no uncertainty Jimmy Garoppolo will return as the team’s starter.
It accompanies a caveat: “If Garoppolo stays injury-free,” something he has not managed to do in two of the previous three seasons.
Lynch was asked: “If he is injury-free, is there any doubt in your mind that Jimmy Garoppolo is your quarterback when you line up in September?”
Lynch didn’t hesitate: “No. Not at all. I really believe that.”
The 49ers are 24-9, including the postseason, in games Garoppolo has begun since he shown up in a trade with the Patriots. They are 7-19 over a similar period when he doesn’t.
Garoppolo, however, has missed 23 games the previous three seasons with wounds. He played just six of every 2020 due to high-ankle sprains.
Be that as it may, Lynch seems as though the 49ers want to upgrade the reinforcement quarterback position as opposed to find a beginning quarterback to contend with or supplant Garoppolo.
“Being available is a big part of this thing,” Lynch acknowledged. “So we — probably as a stated goal — we have to insulate ourselves better. We’ve got to have better options if he’s not there.
“I’ve watched people go through this in their careers where they struggled early. It happened to me early, and then I went eight years without missing a practice. So I believe things can happen, and I believe they will for him. I really believe that Jimmy is our guy.”
C.J. Beathard is an unlimited free agent and Nick Mullens is a limited free agent .
Having a healthy Garoppolo is vital, however, in the event that the 49ers genuinely are focused on one more year with him. The only season Garoppolo played every one of the 16 games, in 2019, the 49ers went 13-3 and showed up, however his final quarter performance against the Chiefs cost the team a title.
“When he’s healthy, he’s played at a high level,” Lynch said. “But we probably have to add someone. We probably need to improve ourselves, so if he’s not there, we’re all right; we can win games.
“We are seriously looking forward to kind of rebooting our team and making a run at this thing next year. And I believe we’ve got what it takes to compete for a championship.”