Joe Montana not sold on Trey Lance yet, says Jimmy Garoppolo is capable of leading 49ers back to Super Bowl

Joe Montana is known for his cool demeanor that helped him win four Super Bowls during the 1980s as the San Francisco 49ers‘ quarterback. He is also a straight shooter, which he displayed on several occasions during his recent documentary. 

The three-time Super Bowl MVP recently offered an honest assessment on the 49ers’ current quarterback situation. When asked about Jimmy Garoppolo and Trey Lance, Montana said that the 49ers are currently better off with Garoppolo under center. 

“I think they keep Jimmy until you find somebody else,” Montana told The Ringer’s Kevin Clark. “I don’t think Trey’s ready to play yet, myself, and after talking to some of the players. If you can keep Jimmy healthy, he plays well enough to get you [to the Super Bowl].”

Garoppolo did quarterback the 49ers to Super Bowl LIV, where the 49ers held a 20-10 fourth quarter lead before giving up three late touchdowns to Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. The 49ers are 31-14 with Garoppolo as their starter in the regular season since acquiring him via a trade with the Patriots during the 2017 season. The 30-year-old quarterback is 4-2 in the playoffs, which includes a 2-1 record during the 2021 postseason. 

Despite Garoppolo’s success, the 49ers chose to select Lance with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. He went 1-1 in his two starts this season with five touchdowns and two interceptions. 

Garoppolo — who has one year remaining on his current contract — figures to be traded by the 49ers this offseason. It is also expected that the 49ers will work with Garoppolo as it relates to finding his next team. 

“I think they’re trying to do the best for me. I’m trying to do the best for them,” Garoppolo said shortly following the 49ers’ season-ending loss to the Rams in the NFC Championship, via NBC Sports. “We’re working together on that. [We] really haven’t made too much progress on it, but I think things will start happening here pretty quickly.

“We’ve done right by each other throughout this whole relationship. They’ve been very upfront. John (Lynch) has been awesome about it, just the communication part of it. We’ll work it out one way or another. I think both sides will be happy in the end.”

The 49ers’ current situation is somewhat similar to what Montana went through three decades earlier. Despite recovering from an injury, Montana was not able to compete for his starting job against Steve Young, who was in the middle of completing his first of two MVP seasons. After a back-and-forth with the organization, the 49ers agreed to trade Montana to the Kansas City Chiefs. Montana led the Chiefs to the AFC Championship game during his first season in Kansas City, while Young led the 49ers to the franchise’s fifth Super Bowl title one year later. 

It appears that Garoppolo will have a similar exit in San Francisco, unless the 49ers heed their former quarterback’s advice.