Jimmy Garoppolo Expects to Have Offseason Surgery on his Thumb
SANTA CLARA -- This story keeps getting weirder.
First, Adam Schefter reported Saturday night that although Jimmy Garoppolo will miss the 49ers' upcoming game against the Houston Texans, the 49ers are "optimistic" he will return next week against the L.A. Rams.
Then Sunday morning, almost as a response to Schefter's report, the NFL Netwok's Ian Rapoport reported that Garoppolo hopes to play in the season finale, but there's no guarantee he will because his injury requires surgery.
Let's summarize: The 49ers are downplaying the injury and saying Garoppolo could play through it during the season finale, while someone else (Garoppolo's camp?) is saying the injury is worse than the 49ers are letting on and he might be done for the season and he almost certainly will need surgery.
Good to see the 49ers and Garoppolo are on the same page.
I understand why the 49ers want Garoppolo to play next week -- they've paid him more than $90 million, he played through the injury last week and the 49ers usually beat the Rams when he plays. Plus the 49ers don't know what to expect from his replacement, Trey Lance.
I also understand why Garoppolo might not want to play through this injury. He didn't play well after suffering the injury in Tennessee, the 49ers almost certainly will replace him this offseason (which starts in a few weeks), which means he'll need to be healthy for his next team.
The 49ers clearly are putting pressure on Garoppolo to return. But if they beat the Texans and Lance plays well, perhaps they'll tell Garoppolo to rest his thumb indefinitely.
Stay tuned.
