Jimmy G injury update puts Niners in awkward position if they keep winning

Jimmy Garoppolo’s injury recovery is putting him on track to be available if the San Francisco 49ers make it deeper in the playoffs.

The San Francisco 49ers are sneaky good. After taking down the Seattle Seahawks in the Wild Card round of the NFL Playoffs, they move on and this weekend to face the Dallas Cowboys in the divisional round. There’s a world in which they can win that game, and in fact, they’re a four-point favorite in most sportsbooks as of Saturday morning.

Brock Purdy has been a massively important and inspiring story. After gaining the title of “Mr Irrelevant” thanks to being the final pick in the NFL Draft, he is probably ready to be the Niners starting QB. What a turnaround, and a massively courageous step up when the opportunity presented itself.

Purdy’s opportunity came because Jimmy Garoppolo got injured. Garoppolo wasn’t even the Niners’ first choice to start under center this year, he regained the starting position after Trey Lance got injured early in the season.

Purdy has done well and already has tied Garoppolo for playoff touchdowns thrown as a Niner… In a single game.

Now, though, Garoppolo is about ready to come back. Which begs the question: What do the Niners do?

49ers have massive decision to make at QB if they keep winning games

Jimmy Garoppolo could be ready for the NFC Championship game, but reports from Kyle Shanahan suggest it’s more likely that he’ll be next available for the Super Bowl, if the Niners get there.

If that’s the case, what do the Niners do?

The case for Jimmy Garoppolo is he’s a proven, steady quarterback. He has been a part of two Super Bowls, and started in one. On the biggest stage, there is little concern that he’ll implode. The floor is high, but the ceiling on his performance is probably not much higher than that. Again, steady.

The case for Brock Purdy, if his performance continues along the trend that it’s been on, is that he’s in a groove and performing at an extremely high level. The concern, of course, is that he’s a massive unknown as a rookie. You have to assume his implosion risk is higher than that of Jimmy G. Here, you have a higher ceiling, but a lower floor.

Then there’s the question of the future. If Purdy is your guy, do you want to start him on the big stage and affirm your commitment to him there? And if Garoppolo starts and secures a Super Bowl victory, does that change the calculus on how the franchise views his role with the team (if there is one)?

Ultimately, it’s a good problem to have. If the Niners get to the Super Bowl, they have two capable options at QB. Before they even face these problems they need to win one, perhaps two games.