Joe Montana: 49ers shouldn't move on from Jimmy Garoppolo quite yet

The San Francisco 49ers are almost certainly going to trade Jimmy Garoppolo this offseason, but one franchise legend believes that would be a mistake.

Joe Montana spoke with Kevin Clark of The Ringer about the Niners’ quarterback situation this week. The four-time Super Bowl champion believes his former team should wait at least another year before transitioning from Garoppolo to first-round pick Trey Lance.

“I think you keep Jimmy until you find somebody else,” Montana said, via Ali Thanawalla of NBC Sports Bay Area. “I don’t think Trey’s ready to play yet myself and after talking to some of the players. It’s one of those things that, if you can keep Jimmy healthy, he plays well enough to get you here [to the Super Bowl].”

The 49ers are obviously very high on Lance. They traded up to draft him last year, and they believe he has more upside than Garoppolo. The question is whether they would be better off sticking with Garoppolo in the short term and letting Lance learn while playing a limited role. Montana seems to think they should go that route.

Lance only played 18 games at North Dakota State, so he’s still extremely raw. Of course, Garoppolo may want to move on since his knows his days in San Francisco are numbered one way or the other.

Another 49ers legend also expressed concern recently about Lance’s inexperience. The Niners fell three points short of reaching the Super Bowl this season with Garoppolo as their starter. It’s tough to argue with the results, but Kyle Shanahan and company believe they can do better. Time will tell if their assessment is correct.