QB Jimmy Garoppolo

QB Jimmy Garoppolo

Press Conference – June 12, 2019

San Francisco 49ers

Head coach Kyle Shanahan kind of explained that that one 11-on-11 snap wasn’t exactly supposed to go that way.

“Yeah, I mean it kind of caught me off guard a little bit, but I guess it was good to get started on that. That’s what it’s going to be in training camp.”

It happened yesterday, too, but you’ve obviously been behind an offensive line a lot, but when you haven’t done it in eight, nine months or whatever it’s been, is it a little bit jarring to take those practice reps and see five guys in front of you?

“Not really. I mean, I’ve done it so many times in the past that, you know, after a couple times seeing it, you more so feel those guys than actually see them. Every rep will help though going forward.”

Did you get out of this offseason program what you wanted to get out of it?

“Yeah, I think so. As a whole, the offense kept moving in the right direction. I think every day we kept getting better. I mean, we had a couple bad days here and there, but overall, we were moving in the right direction. The young guys are really coming on and the new guys are really coming on, making a splash. It’s been a good offseason I’d say.”

How do you define a bad day? Is it assignment-wise or is it just physical?

“I mean, any number of things. It could be bad throws by me, not the right assignments, whatever it is. You go out there and try to be perfect and I think that’s what a good offense does. We’ll never succeed, but that’s always the goal.”

We talked to you about a month ago and you said that the deep ball was one of the last things that came back from your knee injury. Did you feel like that improved over the last month? Did you see differences between you mid-May and now mid-June?

“I wouldn’t say huge differences. I think I’m very confident in it. It’s been coming off the hand very well, I thought. The receivers make my job so easy when you have the speed like [WR Marquise Goodwin] Quise and [WR] Dante [Pettis] and those guys, just their ability to separate from the defense makes it easy. Just put it out there far enough for them and don’t underthrow them.”

Is part of that mental just knowing that you’re going to have to step up into a pass rush more once camp and exhibitions come?

“Yeah, I’d say the mental part is probably the first step of it. Like I said before, you really don’t look at those guys. You more so feel them while you’re looking at the receivers and the defense. I think all of that will come with time. I’ll try to implement as many drills as I can during these 40 days or so. But, I think once until the bullets start flying and everything then we’ll really see.”

What’s your plan for these next six weeks?

“Bouncing around a little bit. I’ll be down in L.A. with a couple of the guys throwing. I’ve got a QB coach down there and everything. We’ve got a pretty good setup.”

Which guys are going to join you?

“You’ll see. I can’t give you all the secrets, come on.”

Is the QB coach just a part time thing or is it somebody who is going to work with you year-round?

“These next 40 days will be big, getting with him and everything. He knows the offense pretty well and it’ll really help us going forward.”

Who is him?

“[Motion performance expert] Tom House and all of his guys. They’ve got a little squad down there.”

What’s the most noticeable difference in the difference last year compared to this year, going against the defense in mini-camp last year compared to this year?

“There’s a lot of speed. They’ve got some speed out there now, for sure. On the edges, the linebackers are flying around and everything. They’ve made some good improvements this offseason and everything. Like I said before, I think they’re moving in the right direction, same as the offense. At the end of the day, you want to keep improving. You’re either getting better or worse and we want to keep getting better.”

It’s early, but can you talk a little bit about the competition between QB C.J. Beathard and QB Nick Mullens and what you’re seeing from them out there?

“Yeah, those two are battling. We’ve got a good group in that room, just very tight-knit. We all get along with each other, but at the end of the day we’re still competing for jobs and fighting every day. I think it’s a healthy competition, but it’s something that will make us all better.”

Nick Mullens said that your demeanor hasn’t changed now that you’re back on the field. Has anything changed for you fundamentally as you transition into another year and now coming back from the surgery?

“Nothing fundamentally. I think, obviously the longer I’m in this offense and able to talk to Kyle and get on the same page with him, it’s all going to become more cohesive and a smoother operation. I’d say fundamentally nothing drastically has changed.”

Dante Pettis talked about how much, not easier, but just how much more confident he is coming into his second year. Can you see the changes in him?

“Yeah. Dante, I think his body is maturing too. He’s coming out of breaks with power. His speed, it doesn’t look like he’s moving very fast, but he really is. It’s a weird thing for a quarterback to get used to. He’s different than most guys running. Where Marquise looks like he’s running really fast and he is running really fast where Dante it’s different. Being able to get on the same page as him I think these last couple of weeks and everything has been very important.”

Because he has that different movement, is it hard to adjust your timing to him? Is that kind of what it is?

“Yeah, it’s just different. It’s hard to describe unless you’re seeing it. You’re trying to throw it while he’s coming out of a break, but he comes out of a break differently than most guys. It’s so hard on a defense that you just really, he’s going to get open you just don’t want to miss him.”

With Kyle being here a third season now, there’s going to be natural evolutions in the offense and the system and things like that and then you also have a bunch of moving parts with new receivers and personnel and things like that. How is that all melding together and how did that meld together this offseason?

“I think it’s going in the right direction. Even from the first day that I got here, whether it was protections, routes, whatever it is, things have changed. And that’s how any good offense is. You’re going to adapt to the defense that you’re going against and defenses are going to do the same thing to you guys. It’s really about just staying ahead, I think. Kyle does that better than anybody, just putting us in good situations to be successful.”

With all of the new bodies on offense, is there anybody specifically that you’re looking forward to seeing the most this season?

“None specific. I think all the skill guys have done a great job. The new guys have really stepped up, and quickly too. It’s a complicated offense to learn, so for those new guys to come in and make the impact that they did, obviously had a couple of guys hurt during these OTAs and getting them back for training camp will be good.”

Have you worked with Tom House before?

“Yeah, a little bit this prior offseason. Before OTAs. Same offseason, I guess.”

A couple months ago?

“Yeah, there you go.”

I know a lot of quarterbacks have gone to him. How did you connect with him?

“My agents kind of knew him pretty well, so that’s kind of where the connection started and then I got to know him on a more one-on-one basis.”

Are there other QBs down there with you, like New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees, do those guys come through there?

“Yeah, I mean everyone has their different sessions and everything. That’s how I actually met [QB] Wilton [Speight] there oddly enough before he [signed] here. That was our first time meeting.”

WR Trent Taylor talked about how he feels faster this season. You guys obviously had some great chemistry your first season. Do you see a lot of improvement in what he’s able to do now?

“Yeah, definitely. Trent’s so savvy. It’s awesome having a guy like that in the slot. He feels space differently than most guys. He knows his strengths and he knows his weaknesses and he’s going to do everything he can to make those weaknesses better. And he doesn’t’ have many of them, but it’s just, when you have a guy like that it makes my job very easy.”

I know you’re not in the receiving room necessarily, but is there anything wide receivers coach Wes Welker has brought that reminds you of your previous stop in New England?

“He brings juice every day. Wes is awesome. Whether it’s just getting the guys rolling, he’s got some good jokes and everything. I’ll let the other guys elaborate on that. I’ll let the receivers tell you guys about those. Wes is awesome. He brings a good mindset to that room.”

Working with a quarterback coach, what is your priority there? What is it that you’re really, I’m sure you probably have a list of priorities, things you want to work on, what’s at the top of that list for you?

“I wouldn’t say there’s one thing specifically. During these 40 days you do so many different things physical, mental. You’re trying to recover at the same time getting ready for training camp. I think just having the timing of the offense down, being in rhythm with the receivers that I’ll work with and everything and just getting comfortable. It’s been a little while since I’ve been in 11-on-11 football, so just getting as comfortable as I can as quickly as I can.”