QB Garoppolo, offense look to be unpredictable at Seattle
SANTA CLARA » Running the ball 125 times during a three-game win streak explains the 49ers’ notso-secret formula for success.
“They’re just really committed to it. It couldn’t get more obvious,” Seahawks coach Pete Carroll told Seattle-area reporters Wednesday in advance of hosting the 49ers on Sunday.
And yet, the 49ers (6-5) still must strive for unpredictability as a rare road favorite at Seattle (3-8).
When it comes time to dropping back in the pocket to pass, “you don’t want to get too predictable,” Jimmy Garoppolo said Wednesday.
Any “tells” been pointed out to you in your career, Jimmy?
“I haven’t. You got any for me?” Garoppolo replied.
Actually, a few years ago, upon cornerback Richard Sherman’s defection from the Seahawks to the 49ers, he volunteered to the media that Garoppolo tends to pat the ball before a split second before releasing it, which isn’t uncommon among quarterbacks.
Now, when it comes to Sunday’s counterpart, Russell Wilson, a caller on SiriusXM’s NFL radio noted that Wilson would take his mouthguard out ahead of running plays during Seattle’s Monday night loss at Washington.
Scouts surely will scour to see if there is validity to that or any other tips. As Garoppolo noted: “Someone’s always watching.”
Garoppolo commended his coaches’ “good job of that balancing act” in mixing up play calls and keeping the offense in attack mode, something he said will require other guys stepping up to fill in this game for Deebo Samuel, who’ll miss it with a groin injury.
What’s worked great the past three weeks is the 49ers’ rushing attack. While rookie Elijah Mitchell rested Wednesday, Jeff Wilson Jr. led that corps through drills, and JaMycal Hasty got back in action after missing the past month with an ankle injury.
Mitchell’s 27-carry, fivecatch effort in Sunday’s win over Minnesota proved how valuable the 49ers think he is. Those 32 touches were the most since Frank Gore’s 32 in 2009 against the Lions. Mitchell, and his cadre of in-synch blockers, will face a Seahawks defense bruised by 43 runs (152 yards) in Monday’s loss at Washington.
Carroll praised Mitchell’s toughness and speed, though he noted that: “Anybody that runs for them really looks good, because they have a real commitment to it. They’re running the ball a ton.”
Garoppolo has thrown only 67 passes amid the three-game win streak. He acknowledged he probably would have wanted more action if he was just breaking into the league. “As I’ve gotten older, it’s just about winning,” Garoppolo said. “In this league, that’s all it is. If you keep doing that, good things will happen to you.”
For Garoppolo, Seattle trips have offered polarizing results, from clinching the NFC’s top seed in the 2019 regular-season finale in “one of the coolest atmospheres I’ve ever played in,” to exiting with a season-ending ankle injury last November.
A calf contusion also knocked him out at halftime of this past October’s 28-21 home loss to Seattle.
Garoppolo is now enjoying an uber-efficient, fivegame stretch — even more efficient than his December 2017 debut. He has a 108.8 passer rating in winning four of the past five games (93-of-135, 1,236 yards, seven touchdown passes, two interceptions).
When he won all five starts to end the 2017 season, he had a 94.0 passer rating (118-of-176, 1,542 yards, six touchdowns, five interceptions). His best five-game stretch came midway through the 2019 season (110.34 rating, 13 touchdowns, four interceptions).