Minicamp a success, says Garoppolo
SANTA CLARA >> Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch smiled at each other Wednesday as the 49ers’ head honchos strode off the practice field, past the “Forty Niner Way” street sign and into Shanahan’s field-level office.
A promising season and rigorous training camp await. The final offseason practice was done.
For the next 15 minutes back out on the field, however, their quarterback kept working. He kept throwing. He directed two young receivers where to go. Jimmy “5-and-0” Garoppolo delayed his summer break for more target practice with tight end George Kittle and wide receiver Kendrick Bourne.
Garoppolo called it a “very successful” first go-round in the 49ers offseason program. But not to the point he’s overplaying his or the 49ers’ outlook, not when there’s so much work to do, not after completing 8 of 19 passes in his final practice and nearly having his last throw intercepted in the end zone.
“I’ve come a long way (laughs), especially from last season cramming everything in,” Garoppolo said. “But still have a long way to go developing that chemistry between me and the skill positions, the O-line, everything.”
Locking up Garoppolo to a longterm deal in February kick-started a banner offseason. Then came: a good-looking gamble on All-Pro cornerback Richard Sherman, the arrival of multi-dimensional running back Jerick McKinnon, the offensive line’s fortification with center Weston Richburg and right tackle Mike McGlinchey, and, of course, star linebacker
Reuben Foster’s exoneration from a judge regarding domestic-violence charges.
A trendy, offseason pick rarely lives up to playoff expectations. The 49ers have done nothing to make anyone reconsider their resurrection.
“What I’m happy with when I look out on the field with our players, when I look at our coaches, we’re better,” Shanahan said. “We’re deeper. We’re faster. We move our 11 guys better together. That should happen.”
After today’s minicamp finale — a morning meeting followed by a family get-together — all 49ers aren’t due back until July 26 for training camp, and Garoppolo wisely knows what flaws he and Shanahan’s offense must immediately address.
“The big part for us as a whole offensively is just finishing in the end zone,” Garoppolo said. “Last year we got stopped short a couple of times more than we’d like to. We’ve done a good job this OTAs and minicamp of finishing in the end zone, for the most part.”
On Garoppolo’s final minicamp pass, he tried forcing a pass to Aldrick Robinson, only to have starting cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon (Richard Sherman’s protégé) nearly intercept the ball. Four C.J. Beathard incompletions later and the 49ers’ offseason program was done, at 1:50 p.m.
Well, not totally done, as Garoppolo stayed late, as he did after Tuesday’s minicamp session, when all the offense stuck around to work on listening to his cadence because of too many false starts in practice.
“It was cool to see,” Shanahan said of the post-practice work. “It’s always nice when you don’t demand anything, and you hope it’s their standard, not ours. That’s what makes it real.”
Added Garoppolo: “You want guys who care about the game, who care about this team, and I think we have a good group in there.”
Garoppolo will visit his family in their Chicago suburb this summer but otherwise plans to work out in the Bay Area with teammates, adding: “This is home now.”
• Marquise Goodwin’s breakout season last year came amid personal tragedies, and that spawned a handful of honors for the 49ers wide receiver, the latest of which came Wednesday. Goodwin won the George Halas Award from the Pro Football Writers of America, distinguishing him from other players, coaches and NFL staff who overcame the most adversity to succeed.
Goodwin thanked the PFWA and his teammates in a statement, adding: “I want all of the people out there that are struggling to remember that the reward lasts longer than the pain.”
• Linebacker Fred Warner, a thirdround pick, signed his rookie contract.