Garoppolo earns first start in ’17
LAKE FOREST, Ill. — For Jimmy Garoppolo, the wait is over.
It's time to show he is ready to be a franchise quarterback, and that begins against his hometown team.
Garoppolo makes his first start for San Francisco when the 49ers visit the Chicago Bears on Sunday in a game that matches struggling franchises.
“It's exciting,” he said. “It really is. I've got a lot of family and friends going. They're just as excited as I am. It's going to be a fun opportunity. Good challenge for our team.”
Garoppolo grew up a Bears fan in suburban Arlington Heights and played at Eastern Illinois. He had Brian Urlacher and Anthony Thomas jerseys as a youngster. But when he arrives at Soldier Field on Sunday, it will be his first time there for a Bears game.
He'll have quite a vantage point as the 49ers (1-10) try to pick up a rare win and hand the Bears (3-8) their fifth straight loss. He'll have quite an opportunity, too. Acquired from New England for a second-round draft pick in late October, Garoppolo finally gets his chance to be a starter after backing up Tom Brady for 3 1/2 years. He made a cameo at the end of last week's loss to Seattle and looked good.
Garoppolo replaced the injured C.J. Beathard (knee, hip) with just over a minute left and completed both passes. That included a 10-yard touchdown on the run through a tight opening to Louis Murphy on the final play.
Garoppolo started two games for New England in 2016 when Brady was suspended, and his impressive showing made him a highly sought quarterback. He threw for 496 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions in wins over Arizona and Miami.
Though he has an expiring contract, the 49ers clearly view Garoppolo as a potential franchise quarterback .
Ironically, they could have taken the QB they will be seeing Sunday with the No. 2 overall pick in this year's draft. Instead, Bears GM Ryan Pace traded up a spot with San Francisco to grab Mitchell Trubisky.
The rookie has shown a strong arm and quickness at times in his seven starts. But he has struggled with his accuracy and posted a career-low 38.3 passer rating in last week's blowout at NFL-leading Philadelphia.
“I just know the way I operate is you have to go back to work, you have to get back to the grind, gotta focus on the little things,” Trubisky said. “Keep the big picture in mind but continue to do the little things, stay focused, stick together, continue to believe in each other.”
PROTECTING GAROPPOLO: One reason the 49ers were hesitant to turn things over to Garoppolo was because of a patchwork offensive line that has been dealing with injuries to tackles Joe Staley and Trent Brown. The two have both been healthy for just one game since Garoppolo arrived.