NFL Week 3 takeaways: Jimmy Garoppolo is bad, Jaguars are legit

Week 3 of the 2022 NFL season left fans confused and bewildered. A number of top-tier teams fell to lesser competition, and for the most part, the football on Sunday was underwhelming, to say the least.

There were not a lot of positive takeaways from Week 3 action, but let’s take a look at what we saw and observed around the league.

NFL Week 3 takeaway no. 1: Stop Defending Jimmy Garoppolo

The protection of Jimmy Garoppolo from many people in the media is getting quite ridiculous at this point. The number of times we have to hear people say that Garoppolo has taken San Francisco to the Super Bowl and conference championship is becoming mind-numbing. It wasn’t because of Garoppolo’s play that the 49ers were in those situations, but because Kyle Shanahan’s system carried, and a stout defense carried a below-average quarterback. Don’t forget that Garoppolo attempted eight passes in that 2019 NFC championship game.

Back to Sunday, the 49ers lost 11-10 against the Denver Broncos on Sunday night, in a game where the 49ers’ defense forced Denver into eight three-and-outs. The 30-year-old quarterback single-handedly lost the game for the 49ers. It all began when he was completely unaware of his surroundings and simply backpedaled out of the back of the end zone for a safety.

Ironically, his incompetence saved a would-be pick-six, as he threw the interception after he went out of bounds. Late in the fourth quarter, Garoppolo would force a pass in the middle of the field to Deebo Samuel in double coverage, leading to a tipped interception. At this point, the 49ers were down by one point and were near midfield only needing a field goal to take the lead with just over two minutes left in the game.

These game-costing plays were not the only thing that probably left 49ers fans frustrated. In the first quarter, the 49ers had Samuel lined up in the backfield as a running back and designed a wheel-route play that isolated Samuel with a linebacker. Samuel coasted by the linebacker, wide open down the left sideline. Instead of leading Samuel, Garoppolo threw a pass where Samuel had to completely stop and wait for the ball like he was catching a punt.

If Garoppolo had hit Samuel in stride, there is a high chance that Samuel takes it for a score. That would have given the 49ers a commanding 14-3 lead, and with how the Broncos’ offense is going, there would be a low probability of them coming back.

There were plenty of other missed throws by Garoppolo in the middle of the field because as we know, the nine-year veteran has shown no capability to throw the ball outside the numbers and down the field at a competent rate.

If Trey Lance did what Garoppolo did on Sunday night, the media would be tearing him apart. Not to mention, there have been people saying that Garoppolo wasn’t given a playbook this offseason and that he has to find his footing in this offense. One, Kyle Shanahan noted earlier in the offseason that the offense would not change with Lance under center. Secondly, Garoppolo has now been in this system for six years. If he does not have the offense down after that long, then that is a problem.

Lance was assumed to be the root for the 49ers’ offensive struggles, and that Garoppolo makes this team better. Lance may not be the solution at this moment, but Garoppolo surely isn’t the solution either.