USA TODAY US Edition

Kyle Shanahan: When Jimmy G has been healthy, he plays at a high level

- Nicholas McGee

Jimmy Garoppolo’s performanc­es this season may be surprising some, but they are of no shock to San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan.

Garoppolo was excellent again on “Monday Night Football” as the 49ers rolled to a 3810 win over the Arizona Cardinals in Mexico City to surge the top of the NFC West at 6-4.

He completed 20 of his 29 passes for 228 yards and four touchdowns in arguably the 49ers’ best offensive performanc­e of the season, stringing together a third successive game without an intercepti­on for the first time in his career.

For the season, Garoppolo has 15 passing TDs to just four intercepti­ons, with his outstandin­g prime-time showing seeing him spread the ball around among San Francisco’s litany of offensive weapons.

Brandon Aiyuk and George Kittle each scored a pair of touchdowns and Christian McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel each went over 100 yards from scrimmage, the latter scoring a 39-yard rushing touchdown in an emphatic display of how devastatin­g Shanahan’s offense can be.

On an internatio­nal stage, it was a reminder of how well Garoppolo can run that offense, not that the 49ers head coach needed one.

“When Jimmy has been healthy for us and he has his guys out there, he plays at a very high level,” Shanahan said in his postgame press conference.

While Shanahan singled out his quarterbac­k for praise, the efforts of the team as a whole have impressed him as the Niners have ripped off a threegame winning streak.

“They’ve really been gelling these last three weeks,” Shanahan added.

After Monday’s blowout win, to say the 49ers are gelling may be an understate­ment. This is a team teeming with talent hitting its stride at exactly the right time. The 49ers are on a roll and, with Garoppolo leading an attack of this potency, they’ll be extremely difficult to stop.

 ?? KIRBY LEE/USA TODAY SPORTS ?? 49ers quarterbac­k Jimmy Garoppolo celebrates after the 38-10 victory.
KIRBY LEE/USA TODAY SPORTS 49ers quarterbac­k Jimmy Garoppolo celebrates after the 38-10 victory.

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