3 stats that prove Jimmy Garoppolo isn’t the answer for the Commanders

The Washington Commanders are going to have a new quarterback presiding over the offense next season.

The only questions are who it will be and how they’ll get him. Will they take to the trade market for a superstar like Russell Wilson? What about the free agent market, which has no shortage of placeholder options?

If the Commanders draft someone in the first or second round, will they be ready to start right away?If not, how will that impact how they attack the trade/free agent markets? These are all pertinent questions, and you better believe the front office is staying awake nights trying to figure out the right course of action.

That’s what makes this offseason so compelling (and equally terrifying). No one knows what’s going to happen.

With that said, Jimmy Garoppolo is clearly the name most heavily linked with the Commanders in the early goings. The 30-year-old would be a fine addition, but fans understandably have their reservations.

Here are three stats that justify those concerns.

Why Jimmy Garoppolo isn’t the answer for the Commanders

3. Can’t hold a lead in playoffs/Injury history

Garoppolo’s struggles in the playoffs are well-documented. Despite appearing in a Super Bowl, two conference championship games and boasting a 4-2 record as a starter in the postseason, Garoppolo’s limitations as a quarterback have come full circle on football’s biggest stage.

That doesn’t necessarily mean he’s a bad QB. Far from it, actually. And we know the Commanders aren’t in a position to be picky. HOWEVER, this particular stat will make Jimmy G haters sing from the rooftops.

Over the last three seasons, teams holding a 10-point lead entering the fourth quarter of a playoff game are a combined 19-2. Care to guess who was under center in both losses? One Jimmy Garoppolo.

Credit for Paul Hembekides of ESPN for digging this puppy up.

If we had to choose between giving up a second-rounder for Garoppolo or signing someone like Jameis Winston or Mitchell Trubisky in free agency, we’ll side with the latter seven days a week and twice on Sundays.

Getting beyond that, Garoppolo’s injury history is incredibly worrisome.

Dating back to his time in New England, he got injured after finally sniffing the starting lineup during Tom Brady’s Deflategate suspension. Since he got traded to the 49ers during the 2016 offseason, though, Garoppolo has started 45 of a possible 81 regular-season games in five seasons.

That’s good for a 55.5% share.

Need we say anything else?

2. Inability to navigate pressure

With pass-rushers seemingly getting faster and stronger by the year, being able to navigate pressure is a must for franchise quarterbacks.

Unfortunately for Garoppolo, he’s one of the worst in the business when the pocket starts to collapse. In the NFC Championship Game, which the 49ers lost 20-17 after leading by 10 entering the fourth quarter, Garoppolo finished 2-of-10 for 33 yards and an interception when pressured.

Is that really the QB Washington wants kicking off the Commanders era?

Garoppolo is a proven game-manager and we maintain he’s a better pocket passer than some analysts give him credit for, but his win-loss record is really the only thing his apologists have to fall back on, and it’s largely skewed given he’s played on some immensely-talented 49ers teams over the years.

One game obviously doesn’t define a player’s career, but Garoppolo has always struggled in the face of pressure. For the season, he tossed a league-high eight interceptions when pressured, five of which came in Week 18 and beyond.

See what we’re saying? Garoppolo can’t handle being flushed out of the pocket. If you have the time, go watch the playoff tape back and count how many times he nearly threw a back-breaking interception on the run.

Spoiler alert: you’ll need two hands.

1. Overwhelmed by the big moment

If the Commanders are going to give up assets for a quarterback, like Jimmy G, we’d like him to be fearless and precise in the clutch. When it comes to the 49ers quarterback, he comes up short in both departments. On top of looking unsure of himself when games are on the line, his accuracy falls off a cliff.

Despite working in an incredibly favorable system under Kyle Shanahan, Garoppolo has been an abomination in the fourth quarter of playoff games. In fact, in six postseason starts, the former second-round pick has completed 48.6% of his passes for 178 yards, zero touchdowns and three interceptions.

Those numbers equate to a 28.0 QB rating.

How about another one for good measure? In the fourth quarter of Super Bowl LIV against the Kansas City Chiefs, Garoppolo was 3-for-11 for 36 yards, zero touchdowns, one interception and a 2.8 quarterback rating. One of those misses included a deep shot to a wide open Emmanuel Sanders, who likely would’ve scored or been tackled inside the five with the 49ers trailing 24-20 with 1:33 left.

This would be a different conversation if Garoppolo was carrying the 49ers on his back, but that hasn’t been the case. We’d even go as far as to say San Francisco was carrying him along as a passenger. He was just keeping them afloat. And when the time came for him to guide the ship into the dock, he crashed it and everyone on the boat suffered the consequences.

The Commanders likely won’t be competing for a Super Bowl next season, but if their playoff fate came down needing a touchdown late in the fourth quarter of Week 18, would you trust Garoppolo to get the job done?

History suggests you shouldn’t.