Kyle Shanahan is not Revealing 49ers Starting Quarterback Again This Week
Another week of mind games by the 49ers.
Kyle Shanahan announced Wednesday that Jimmy Garoppolo will be limited in practice. Trey Lance will take the majority of the reps as they work Garoppolo into some series throughout practice.
Being limited is a step in the right direction for Garoppolo to be able to start against the Rams on Sunday. But most importantly to Shanahan, it allows him to play jedi mind tricks with the Rams. Preparing for two quarterbacks is what he wants the Rams to do, so do not expect any news on the starter.
It is the exact same logic he used leading up to the Texans game. Shanahan wants the Rams to be guessing and to burn precious practice time preparing for both players. It's not even an opinion anymore, if it ever was, it is a fact as Shanahan said Wednesday at his presser about revealing the starting quarterback.
Shanahan is not revealing the 49ers starting quarterback again this week.
It is the exact same logic he used leading up to the Texans game. Shanahan wants the Rams to guess and burn precious practice time preparing for both players. It's not even an opinion anymore. It is a fact as Shanahan said Wednesday at his presser about revealing the starting quarterback.
"I haven't made it now, which is the truth," said Shanahan. "And I probably will make it before the game starts. And I will not tell you guys when I do that."
Keeping the starting quarterback close to chest is likely how the 49ers will conduct their weeks from here on out. It gives the 49ers a competitive advantage. There is only so much practice time throughout the week. Forcing the Rams to surrender precious time preparing for both Lance and Garoppolo will not allow them to be fully prepared.
Then again, the Rams are already familiar with Garoppolo, so you have to wonder exactly how much time they will dedicate to defending him. Still, the Rams could end up getting ready for Garoppolo anyway. Listing Garoppolo as limited in practice shows his improvement and technically gives him a real shot at Sunday. So the Rams could honor that and take no chances.
The 49ers still will exercise caution with Garoppolo throughout the week. While I doubt he receives a good portion of practice reps, he still can stall out his healing with a small sample size of practicing.
"I think we gotta be careful," said Shanahan. "I think waiting the way we did helped get him to this point. I mean, I think each day is a new experience with it, so it's gonna be mainly on Jimmy's pace and just talking to him, and making sure he doesn't push it too hard to give him a chance for Sunday."
