San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch spoke with team reporter Joe Fann this morning and discussed Monday's trade for quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo from the New England Patriots. The trade, which the team officially announced on Tuesday morning, sent the 49ers' second-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft to New England in exchange for the quarterback.
"He hasn't played a lot but he has played a number of preseason games," Lynch said. "He has played in regular season games. It's never looked too big. We studied him hard. We studied him hard this offseason. We tried to do a deal this offseason and it didn't come to fruition. It presented itself now and we felt like it was an opportunity we had to jump at and we're very excited. We've talked to Jimmy and he's very excited.
"It's been a rough season. It hasn't gone like we anticipated but our team is still fighting and I think this gives everyone some energy, some juice. We've got another good player in the building at a critical position. We're very excited just to get him here and get this process going. There's a lot of learning to be done in a short amount of time. Jimmy's eager and we're eager."
Lynch went on to say the Patriots were wonderful during the trade process.
The move for Garoppolo has resulted in the release for former 49ers starting quarterback Brian Hoyer. Hoyer was reportedly initially part of the deal for the Patriots quarterback but was removed from the deal because of concerns about how it might impact future compensatory draft picks.
The 49ers also selected quarterback C.J. Beathard in April's draft. Beathard replaced Hoyer as the 49ers' starting quarterback during a Week 6 matchup against the Washington Redskins and started the two games that followed. Lynch believes that Beathard will start on Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals but head coach Kyle Shanahan makes those decisions.
"We really want to thank Brian for everything he brought to our organization," Lynch said. "He's been a true pro both when he had the opportunity to be the guy and when we made the move to move on to C.J. He's been nothing but supportive, a professional in every manner. So, we wish Brian the best going forward.
"Let me tell you this, we still love what we see in C.J. Beathard. The circumstances haven't allowed him to flourish in the way we think he can. But I think a great model for C.J. is look at Jimmy Garoppolo. He's been under the tutelage of Bill Belichick and learning under Tom Brady. He hasn't played a ton of football but is a valuable commodity in this league as evidenced by today."
You can watch the interview with Lynch, courtesy of 49ers Studios, below.
First sound from GM @JohnLynch49ers following the blockbuster @JimmyG_10 trade 🔊#GoNiners pic.twitter.com/R5GJRtJ7BZ
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) October 31, 2017