The 49ers’ tune hasn’t changed: They love Jimmy Garoppolo when he’s healthy and winning. Keeping him healthy is the challenge.
So it’s imperative the 49ers do something about that these next two months.
They must fortify their offensive line with reliable, intimidating bodyguards.
Pay up. Get nasty. Own the trenches. Stay healthy. Win. It’s so simple.
When hulking guard Mike Iupati announced his retirement this week, Niner fans surely flashed back to his 2012 All-Pro days, when Iupati was part of the NFL’s fiercest offensive line. Further back in 49ers history, stud linemen complemented star quarterbacks, receivers and running backs en route to five Lombardi Trophy celebrations.
The 49ers need to regain that stature, which, in turn, would provide better security for Garoppolo – or whoever succeeds him, sooner or later.
“We very much believe in our quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. The biggest thing for him is staying healthy,” general manager John Lynch said on Wednesday’s “Eye Test For Two” podcast with NFL reporters Clark Judge and Ira Kaufman.
Lynch reiterated that Garoppolo “is our guy,” and regardless of that repeated commitment, the 49ers must make strides to prevent quarterback hits (an NFL-high 73 in 2020) and injury-causing sacks, such as Garoppolo’s ankle wrecker in Week 2.
The obvious first step is re-signing Trent Williams, an uber-athletic and powerful left tackle who arrived last April after Joe Staley’s retirement. Williams can’t be franchise tagged as part of his 2020 contract revision, and he won’t come cheap to keep.
Williams, alone, is not enough. He sure wasn’t last season. The 49ers must get creative financially and sell their title-contending worth to not just him but other linemen.
Go after Williams’ former Washington teammate Brandon Scherff, a 2020 All-Pro guard who played last year under the franchise tag last season but could hit the market. Another of Scherff’s biggest fans is former Iowa teammate George Kittle; Scherff was a team captain in 2014 en route to the Outland Trophy and becoming a first-round draft pick.
Also, make a play for center Alex Mack, a Cal product who played in Kyle Shanahan’s system with the Cleveland Browns and Atlanta Falcons.
Stingy market conditions will impact other teams besides the 49ers, so perhaps other established linemen surprisingly could come into play. The same goes for their first-round pick at No. 12 overall — perhaps the most economically feasible path to an upgrade for new offensive line coach Chris Foerster, who’s assisted that unit since 2018.
Otherwise, if Williams exits and no studs arrive, opponents aren’t going to fear a line with incumbents such as Laken Tomlinson, Mike McGlinchey, Daniel Brunskill, Justin Skule, Colton McKivitiz and Shon Coleman.
Garoppolo can’t be a sitting duck, again. Nor can whoever fills the backup and No. 3 quarterback roles, which will likely come into play again in 2021 without upgrades on the line.
MIKE IUPATI’S LEGACY
Drafted 17th overall in 2010, Iupati was a super-sized guard (6-foot-5, 331 pounds) who spoke softly and carried a big defender or two out of Frank Gore’s way.
Iupati made three straight Pro Bowls (2012-14) before leaving amid a 2015 offseason exodus with Gore, Justin Smith, Patrick Willis and coach Jim Harbaugh. After four seasons in Arizona, Iupati played the past two seasons in Seattle. “My body was telling me it was time to close the door,” Iupati told the Spokesman-Review in Idaho, where he’s retiring with his wife and four children.
The 49ers haven’t had a Pro Bowl guard since him, from a hodgepodge of Jordan Devey, Zane Beadles, Joshua Garnett, Brandon Fusco, Mike Person, Laken Tomlinson, Tom Compton, Brunskill and McKivitz.
The 49ers’ elite linemen in their Lombardi-winning days included Randy Cross, Guy McIntyre, Jesse Sopolu, Keith Fahnhorst, Fred Quillan, Bart Oates, Steve Wallace and Harris Barton. None are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, nor in the 49ers’ Hall of Fame, by the way.
WIDE RECEIVER DEPTH
In re-signing River Cracraft this week, the 49ers reminded us of the depth needed at wide receiver last season. Six different wideouts started a game, and as many wide receivers (seven) as running backs caught passes last season. Training camp injuries to receivers, starting with Jalen Hurd’s ACL tear, were a harbinger of last season’s doom.
Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk are the ideal starters. Vying for supporting roles with Cracraft are Travis Benjamin (COVID-19 opt-out in 2020), Richie James, Jalen Hurd, Jauan Jennings, Kevin White, Chris Thompson, Austin Proehl and likely more incoming veterans or rookies.
Kendrick Bourne and Trent Taylor are slated for free agency and can sign elsewhere starting March 17.
OPPOSING QUARTERBACKS
Half of the 49ers’ 2021 opponents could deploy new quarterbacks, including the Rams (Matthew Stafford), the Eagles (Jalen Hurts), the Lions (Jared Goff), the Colts (Carson Wentz) and the Jaguars (Trevor Lawrence, projected No. 1 pick).
Still to be determined is who starts for the Texans (Deshaun Watson?), the Bears (Mitchell Trubisky? Nick Foles?), the Falcons (Matt Ryan?), and, if there’s a 17th game on the 49ers’ schedule, the Bengals, whose Joe Burrow is coming off knee reconstruction.
The only foes with entrenched incumbents are the Seahawks (Russell Wilson), the Cardinals (Kyler Murray), the Packers (Aaron Rodgers), the Vikings (Kirk Cousins) and the Titans (Ryan Tannehill).
PATRIOTS’ ODDS
Garoppolo has as good (or bad) of odds (15-to-1) as Joe Flacco and Mike Glennon in becoming the New England Patriots’ next starter, with Marcus Mariota (5-to-2) and Jacoby Brissett (7-to-2) the favorites, according to SportsBetting.com. Former 49er Blaine Gabbert, Tom Brady’s backup in Tampa Bay this past season, is listed at 7-to-1 with the sixth-best odds of entering Brady’s shadow in New England.
LIGHTS OUT
The Pittsburgh Steelers say they aren’t ready to turn out the lights on Ben Roethlisberger’s 17-year career. Candlestick Park tried once, or, actually, twice. Remember when a pair of power outages delayed an eventual 49ers win in December 2011, fueled by three interceptions off Big Ben? “Electric atmosphere tonight,” tweeted Jed York.