ESPN analyst Chris Canty has made a bold prediction about the fortunes of the San Francisco 49ers ahead of the 2022 NFL season. 

Despite having a put up a record of 33-16 for the San Francisco 49ers across the regular and postseason, with one of those seasons ending in a Super Bowl appearance and last season reaching the NFC Championship game, the team have decided that it’s time for them to move away from former franchise quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.

Having picked up a number of injuries during his time there, combined with some sub-par performances when they needed him most (such as in that Super Bowl where he went 20 for 31, threw for just 219 yards and had 1 touchdown to 2 interceptions) the team saw fit to draft his heir-apparent in Trey Lance in 2021.

To move on from someone who, despite their limitations, has managed to help get the team to two conference championships in the space of three years does seem like a bit of an odd move, but the 49ers are clearly focused on the future rather than the present as reports are stating that the 49ers, even though they could have kept Garoppolo on for another year whilst Lance developed, are allowing the 30-year-old to find a new team and will facilitate trade talks for his services.

Whether or not a team comes in and makes a trade offer for Garoppolo is a different matter, he may well have to remain the team’s backup, but the writing is certainly on the wall when it comes to his playing time for the 49ers, with all signs pointing towards Lance starting the season for them.

And Chris Canty thinks that the inclusion of Lance could be what propels the 49ers forward as an organisation.

The only way is up

Speaking on ESPN’s Get Up, Canty felt that because of the restrictions the 49ers had to deal with when it came to Garoppolo at quarterback, when you throw Lance into the equation and all that he should be able to do with the ball that Garoppolo didn’t, then it could make the 49ers serious contenders this season:

Now it would need to be quite a jump for Lance to be able to take the 49ers forward, as last year he completed just 57.7% of his passes and threw more interceptions than he did touchdowns by a score of 7-5. 

So it may well be a case of ‘careful what you wish for’ with the 49ers, because having come so close on two occasions recently, to then take a major step back as you look to develop for the future, they have to be 100% sure that it’s the right decision and that he’ll lead the team to success in the future. 

Otherwise they might have just been better off improving the team around Garoppolo rather than looking to replace him so soon.