San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo undergoes ACL surgery
Thursday 4 October 2018 07:30, UK
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo has undergone surgery to repair the torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee, his coach Kyle Shanahan has confirmed.
The 27-year-old was carted off the field in the fourth quarter of the game against Kansas City Chiefs at the Arrowhead Stadium on September 23.
Garoppolo's left knee buckled just before taking a heavy hit from Chiefs cornerback Steven Nelson down the left sideline.
The Illinois native will miss the rest of the season and joins top running back Jerick McKinnon, who was sidelined with the same injury before the season began, on the treatment table.
An MRI scan on Garoppolo's knee confirmed the damage. Previous reports said the team worried about damage to Garoppolo's medial collateral ligament as well.
No further details of the injury were given, with Shanahan saying it's way too early to determine a timeframe for Garoppolo return. However, most ACL recoveries require at least seven to nine months out.
Back-up QB C.J. Beathard took over for Garoppolo with just over five minutes left and made his starting debut in a defeat to the LA Chargers at the weekend.
This is the second time Garoppolo has missed games due to injury. He sprained his shoulder in his career start in 2016 and missed two games.
In 26 career games (10 starts) with the 49ers and New England Patriots, Garoppolo has thrown for 2,968 yards, 17 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
