Why Throwing Mechanics are a Bigger Issue for Garoppolo than Lance

People like to focus on Garoppolo's quick release, which is pretty, but a delivery is more than just the upper body -- it's the entire body.

Steve Young called Trey Lance's throwing mechanics a "work in progress," which is a fair assessment. That's why Lance spent all offseason working on his mechanics, tightening his throwing motion and finetuning his footwork. Still, it's fair to wonder whether the 49ers can get to the Super Bowl with a quarterback who has a questionable delivery.

And the answer is yes. How do I know? They did it three seasons ago with Jimmy Garoppolo, who never sets his feet when he passes. 

People like to focus on Garoppolo's quick release, which is pretty, but a delivery is more than just the upper body -- it's the entire body, and a big reason Garoppolo releases the ball so fast is because he chooses not to set his feet. And not setting his feet costs him both velocity and accuracy, which limits the entire offense, because he can't throw downfield or near the sideline, and his ball placement is erratic at best. His high completion percentage is a reflection of all the short passes he throws, and his elite receivers who contort their bodies to catch passes that aren't thrown in stride.

In five seasons with the 49ers, Garoppolo never improved his footwork. In fact, it got worse after he tore his ACL. And he never acknowledged that he needed to work on that part of his game. That's why he's out.

Lance acknowledges that he needs to work on his delivery. That's why he has improved it from last year to now. He is the kind of quarterback who is honest about his weaknesses and determined to improve them, as opposed to Garoppolo, which is why Lance will improve when Garoppolo never has.

So while Garoppolo might have a better delivery than Lance today, he won't for much longer.