James Richard Garoppolo (born November 2, 1991), nicknamed Jimmy G, is an American football quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Eastern Illinois, where he won the Walter Payton Award as a senior and set the school records for career passing yards and passing touchdowns. Garoppolo was selected in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots and spent his first four seasons as Tom Brady's backup. Traded to the 49ers near the end of the 2017 season, Garoppolo helped revitalize a 1–10 team by winning the five remaining games of the year. In 2019, he guided the 49ers to the best record in the National Football Conference (NFC) and an appearance in Super Bowl LIV. In 2021, he led the 49ers to the NFC Championship Game. His San Francisco tenure has also been afflicted by injuries, which caused him to miss most of the 2018 and 2020 seasons. He began the 2022 season as the team's backup to starter Trey Lance, but was named the starter following an injury to Lance in week 2. Early life and family...