Has Jimmy Garoppolo played his last snap for the San Francisco 49ers?

That is a question being widely asked in the Bay Area following the starting quarterback's performance in a damaging defeat to the Seattle Seahawks.

The image of Garoppolo leaving the field in the fourth quarter at CenturyLink Field with an ankle problem summed up a campaign in which he has struggled to overcome his own injury and the plethora of other personnel losses that have significantly hurt the 49ers' hopes of getting back to the Super Bowl.

In a season that many saw as a referendum on Garoppolo following his part in the 49ers' Super Bowl LIV collapse, the former New England Patriot has failed to deliver a convincing argument for him remaining as the face of the franchise.

Here we assess the data to look at whether the 49ers should move on from Garoppolo come the end of the season.

More turnovers, less accuracy

Garoppolo's numbers from 2020 do not make for particularly pretty reading. After throwing for just 84 yards and a key first-quarter interception against Seattle, he has 1,096 passing yards with seven touchdowns and five picks.

He has thrown an interception on 3.6 per cent of his throws, tied for the fourth-highest percentage in the NFL.

It is also a noticeable jump from 2019 when Garoppolo threw for 3,978 yards, 27 touchdowns and 13 interceptions (2.7 per cent) and there is evidence of a decline in other areas.

Last season, Garoppolo was ninth in the NFL in Completion Percentage Over Expectation (CPOE).

CPOE is a NextGen Stats metric that compares a quarterback's completion percentage to the percentage of throws their model anticipated he would complete.

Garoppolo had a CPOE of 1.7 per cent in 2019, completing 69.1 per cent of his throws when he was expected to successfully connect on 67.5 per cent.

In 2020, that number has cratered to minus 3.6 per cent. He has a completion percentage of 67.1 per cent and has been expected to hit on 70.7 per cent.

Simply put, Garoppolo is turning the ball over at a higher rate and is significantly less accurate than he was in 2020, that is a dangerous combination for a player who has had trouble staying on the field.

A troubling injury history

Injury issues have been a theme of Garoppolo's career since he stepped into the fray for the Patriots during Tom Brady's deflategate suspension in 2016.

Set to fill in for Brady for four games, Garoppolo lasted just two before he suffered a shoulder injury.

He led the 49ers on a five-game winning streak following his trade from the Patriots in October of 2017 but his 2018 season was ended by a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

With the two games he missed because of a high-ankle sprain this season, Garoppolo has been absent for 18 games because of injury since the start of 2016.

That is the second-most among quarterbacks to have started at least 30 games in that timeframe behind only Ryan Tannehill (24), who has put his injury problems behind him and is leading the Tennessee Titans on another surge towards the postseason.

Now out indefinitely with more ankle problems, Garoppolo looks set to take the lead in that category. To use a well-worn NFL cliche, the best ability is availability and, since arriving in the Bay Area, Garoppolo has not been available enough for San Francisco.

When the 49ers come to assess Garoppolo's contract in the offseason, his relative lack of gametime compared to other starters around the league is likely to be something they consider.

Contract could be crucial factor

Garoppolo signed a five-year, $137.5million contract with the 49ers in the 2018 offseason following his five-game unbeaten run to close 2017.

However, the Niners are known for being adept at negotiating team-friendly deals and the Garoppolo contract is no exception.

The 49ers can part with Garoppolo in the offseason and save $24.1million in salary cap space, accounting for a dead cap charge of $2.8m.

In a year where the salary cap is expected to shrink to $175m because of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and San Francisco have a plethora of starters on offense and defense set to hit free agency, that extra space would be very valuable to the point where releasing or trading Garoppolo and going with a much cheaper rookie becomes an appealing move.

Garoppolo has played a substantial role in the 49ers' rise back to relevance and key games in their run to the top seed in the NFC playoffs last season were won on his arm.

Yet questions have abounded since a playoff campaign in which the running game was more prevalent and the doubters have not been silenced in 2020.

Between Garoppolo's apparent regression, his injury history and the financial flexibility letting him go would buy the 49ers, there is a strong chance that, if last Sunday was his final game of the 2020 season, it was also his last in a Niners uniform.