Sanders thinks 49ers in 'good spot' with winner Jimmy G, Lance originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
While many see Jimmy Garoppolo remaining on the 49ers' roster as a detriment to Trey Lance and the team heading into the 2022 season, Emmanuel Sanders has a different view.
The former 49ers wide receiver went on "Good Morning Football" on Monday and discussed his love for Garoppolo and why the 49ers are in a better place than most believe with their QB situation.
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"Do I think Jimmy G will be with the Niners?" Sanders said. "I think Kyle Shanahan is sitting in a good place. He has a winning quarterback, but he also has his young guy. But he has to make a decision. If I'm the Niners, I'm still sitting in a good spot. I have a quarterback that took me to the Super Bowl, took them to the NFC Championship, and then you got a young guy.
"For the San Francisco 49ers, they are in a tough spot. But are they in a tough spot? Because Jimmy G is a good quarterback. He's a great quarterback, in my opinion, everybody keeps bashing on him, but he's a winner."
Sanders, who joined the 49ers midway through their 2019 run to the Super Bowl and was this close to being a Super Bowl hero in Miami, has the utmost belief in Garoppolo's ability to lead a team.
"I love Jimmy G," Sanders said. "This is a guy that I remember, going into games, I used to play with so much confidence because I knew that this guy is a winner. You go back and look at his win percentage, his win percentage is ridiculous. He's a natural-born winner. The moment he got to San Francisco, he started winning."
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The 49ers hoped to trade Garoppolo by the start of the new league year, but the quarterback's decision to undergo surgery on his throwing shoulder threw a wrench in those plans.
Both Shanahan and general manager John Lynch have said there is a scenario in which Garoppolo returns to the 49ers in 2022, but it's clear the 49ers plan to turn the page to the Lance era this offseason.
“You’ve got to make sure that you’re not hindering his development,” Shanahan said at the Annual NFL Meeting. “Trey’s working his tail off. He knows how I feel about him. He knows what our expectations are for him. And I think he’s got a lot of respect for Jimmy. But the situation is clear. We were trying to make a move to add some draft pick, and we were pretty close to it. And then Jimmy ended up getting the surgery, which changes things.
“I think Trey will understand all that. I haven’t had to talk to him about it. But I think it makes sense for all these guys. Trey’s not an insecure guy. I think the situation makes sense. There’s nothing sneaky going on about it. And he’s confident.”
The 49ers' QB situation will work itself out in due time. And even if Garoppolo remains a Niner, Sanders thinks there are worse things than having two capable quarterbacks on the roster.
