Jimmy Garoppolo: ‘I’m trying to win a Super Bowl’

Jimmy Garoppolo, a 31-year old quarterback entering his 10th NFL season, was asked at his introductory press conference with the Las Vegas Raiders on Friday if he still feels like he has anything to prove.

The flashy, stylish and smooth Jimmy G. did not hesitate in his response:

“Hell yeah,” Garoppolo said. “I’m trying to win a Super Bowl.”

Garoppolo, who was the San Francisco 49ers’ quarterback when they lost the Super Bowl to the Kansas City Chiefs in 2020, made it very clear that winning is important to him and he feels it’s his responsibility to set that tone now in Las Vegas. Garoppolo, who is the Raiders’ first starting quarterback since 2013 that isn’t Derek Carr, said his plan to set the winning tone is to be a genuine leader and trying to get him and his new teammates on the same page as quickly as possible,

Of course, one of the primary reasons why Garoppolo was the choice to replace Carr is his past experience with Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels, general manager Dave Ziegler and several other key members of the Las Vegas organization. They were all with Garoppolo with the New England Patriots where he was a second-round draft pick in 2014 and where he backed up Tom Brady until 2017 when he was dealt to the 49ers.

Garoppolo admitted that he may be a little rusty in terms of knowing McDaniels’ playbook. He noted that the playbook of his San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan is different than McDaniels and quipped it’s like “going from Spanish to French.” Yet, he believes he can quickly get up to speed with it again.

He said when his agents presented him a list of potential landing spots this offseason, the Raiders were attractive “right off the bat” largely because of his familiarity with McDaniels and Ziegler. Garoppolo said he basically learned the NFL game from McDaniels and then-New England assistant Jerry Schuplinski, now the Raiders’ tight ends coach. Garoppolo also admitted that McDaniels can be tough on quarterbacks, but he learned to appreciate it and it made him better.

Garoppolo said the first two new teammates to text him after he agreed to terms with the Raiders on Monday were star wide receiver Davante Adams and defensive end Maxx Crosby. he said he met center Andre James at the Raider’s facility this week and he’s looking forward to getting to know more teammates soon.

Garoppolo, who said the delay in him signing his contract was not a major issue because everyone had the goal of making it work, noted that he is a sports history buff and was pumped up to see photos of so many Raiders’ legends at the facility. He said his father, Tony, was a Bears fan in Chicago, but his father always liked the Raiders of the past too “because they were bad asses.”

“It’s time to bring the Silver and Black back to where it should be,” said Garoppolo, fittingly attired in an all black suit.

Garoppolo is also excited about moving to Las Vegas, where his grandparents used to reside.

“I’m excited, this is a special place,” he said. “I can’t wait.”