San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (10) throws against the Seattle Seahawks during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 26, 2017, in Santa Clara, Calif. (AP Photo/John Hefti)
By: Joe Lami
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The moment the 49er Faithful have been waiting for. The emergence of Jimmy Garoppolo. San Francisco’s future made his debut in the Red and Gold with just 1:11 left in Sunday’s 24-13 loss to Seattle on Sunday.
Coming in for just three plays, Garoppolo made a difference immediately, creating tons of excitement in Santa Clara. On his first play, a third-and-five, he scrambled out to his right for four yards before sliding, commenting post game that he thought he slid after the marker.
On his second play, Garoppolo picked up a fourth-down conversion once again escaping the pocket before finding Aldrick Robinson for eight yards and a first-down.
Garoppolo’s most impressive play came on the final play of the game. With just two seconds left, Garoppolo was once again able to escape pressure and fire a ball into the endzone, finding Louis Murphy for San Francisco’s only touchdown of the game.
In the minute of action, Garoppolo proved he’s everything that the Niners expect out of him. With all of his roll-outs, he immediately reminds me of Ben Roethlisberger or Aaron Rogers. His escapability and ability to keep his eyes downfield make the future in Santa Clara very exciting. With this brief glimpse of hope, it’s hard to envision Kyle Shanahan and the Niners going back to C.J. Beathard next week against Chicago.
While the Faithful have a reason to be excited about the potential of their new quarterback, the few that remained on Sunday were classless cheering once C.J. Beathard went down. It was the loudest ovation at Levi’s Stadium on Sunday and safety, Eric Reid noticed it. Commenting post-game, Reid’s pissed off at the fans for the action. He understands the excitement, but a guy just got hurt and you’re cheering.
After a dreadful first half, the Seattle Seahawks poured it on in the second half during a rainy Sunday afternoon victory over the San Francisco 49ers 24-13.
Both teams struggled in the first half, especially through the air. Russell Wilson passed for 26 yards on 19 attempts for a 32.8 rating. Unfortunately for San Francisco, Beathard wasn’t able to take advantage as he threw 10-of-20 for 109 yards and a 45.6 rating.
Each team threw a pick in the first half, but it was San Francisco’s that was costly, as Bobby Wagner picked the ball off at the 49ers’ 16-yard line. Wilson used the great field position to run in the score from two yards out.
The kicking game proved important for San Francisco in the first, as Robbie Gould nailed a field goal from 38 yards to bring the score to 7-3 at the end of two quarters.
San Francisco was completely outclassed by Seattle, as the Legion of b=Boom started to make their mark in the contest, most importantly by getting to Beathard a total of 13 times with the last one taking him out of the game.
San Francisco finished with 280 total net yards, as Beathard threw for 201 with one interception. Carlos Hyde ran the ball for 47 yards on 16 attempts as the offensive line struggled to open holes up for him.
Wilson caught fire in the second half, throwing two touchdowns to his tight ends, Nick Vannett and Jimmy Graham, finishing with 228 yards and an 86.4 rating. He also ran the ball seven times for 25 yards and showed great escapability as the 49ers’ front seven were shutout in sacks.
