Week 11 vs. Cardinals
Garoppolo’s next big-time game came against Arizona in a contest where the 49ers needed to come back from a 16-0 deficit without Kittle, who was dealing with knee and ankle injuries.
The first big play came on a well-executed throw-back screen to wide receiver Richie James that went 57 yards. Then Garoppolo hit fullback Kyle Juszczyk for 14 yards, and two plays later found Dwelley for a four-yard touchdown.
Garoppolo’s next touchdown pass gave the 49ers a 17-16 on their first drive of the third quarter. He found Dwelley again for a five-yard score.
The 49ers’ quarterback certainly wasn’t perfect. He threw the first of two bad interceptions which led to a Cardinals field goal that put them up 19-17. Garoppolo responded with a two-yard touchdown pass to Kendrick Bourne that made it 23-19 on the next series.
Arizona answered back to go up 26-23 on a rushing touchdown by Murray. Then came Garoppolo’s second bad interception. This one was on a throw behind Dwelley that bounced off the tight end’s outstretched hand and into the arms of Cardinals safety Jalen Thompson. After a stop by the defense, the 49ers offense got the ball on their own 35 with 2:12 left.
Garoppolo went 6-for-7 for 58 yards through the air, and had a seven-yard scramble to account for all 65 yards on the drive. His final completion was a 25-yard catch-and-run to running back Jeff Wilson on Wilson’s first snap of the game. Arizona came with an all-out blitz that Garoppolo recognized and stood in against to complete the throw to a wide open Wilson in the middle of the field.
The touchdown with 31 seconds left effectively iced the game. This wasn’t Garoppolo’s best game. He went 34-for-45 for 424 yards with four touchdowns and two interceptions, but the picks were both in the red zone and on very poor reads and throws.
While the turnovers are troublesome, his sensational final drive is why the 49ers have so much faith in their quarterback. When the game was ultimately on the line, he came up with his best series of the day.