49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said earlier this month that he thinks quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo has had his best offseason since joining the team and one of Shanahan’s favorite receivers has signed on to that assessment.
Tight end George Kittle was on NFL Network Tuesday and he said that Garoppolo has responded to the arrival of first-round pick Trey Lance by stepping up his own game this spring.
“I know there was a story that came out that Jimmy Garoppolo was one of the first guys to text Trey Lance,” Kittle said, via 49ersWebzone.com. “That’s just the type of guy that Jimmy is. He’s not going to say away from adversity, shy away from a draft pick. He has a fire lit under him, and he’s excited to roll. I know Coach Shanahan said it, I think I said it too, I think Jimmy played one of his best OTAs that I’ve seen. He was just slinging it left and right, so that was fun to see.”
Kittle also praised Lance’s work last month, so he’s doing a good job of covering all of his bases when it comes to the guys who will be getting him the ball this year.