San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo could be back in time for the playoffs after doctors concluded Garoppolo did not suffer a Lisfranc injury to his broken left foot and will not need surgery, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Garoppolo’s return will depend on just how far the 49ers make it in the playoffs, with a seven-week timetable lining him up for a potential return for the NFC divisional round, while an eight-week timetable puts him in line with an NFC Championship game.
“That’s why they’re still trying to work through it,” Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan said Monday. “Some specialists have to finalize it, so we don’t want to give you guys any false information. They’re discussing all those things, but we’re feeling like it’s starting to get better than that, so we’ll see when we get the official information.”
Garoppolo would need to clear a number of hurdles prior to making an official return, starting with his foot going through a period of immobilization for the fractures to heal. The signal caller would need to have enough mobility in the foot to run and get back to all the things that a quarterback needs to do after that immobilization period.
Then, the 49ers would have to a keep a roster spot available for his possible return.
The Niners plan to move forward with Brock Purdy as the starter and veteran Josh Johnson as the backup.
