Las Vegas Raiders: Will Jimmy Garoppolo play vs the San Francisco 49ers?

The time has finally come for the Las Vegas Raiders to kick off their 2023 preseason schedule. On Sunday, the Silver and Black will take on the San Francisco 49ers, who just happen to be the former team of their current starting quarterback.

This week, the Raiders and 49ers had a few joint practices with each other leading up to this matchup. The Raiders got the best of the 49ers in those practices, as Jimmy Garoppolo looked great under center, and the defense really stepped up against the San Francisco passing attack.

Now comes the time when they put on the game jerseys and go to work.

Will Raiders QB Jimmy Garoppolo play on Sunday?

Garoppolo and the starters got most of their work this week during the joint practices, and coming off a foot injury and surgery, I would not expect to see Garoppolo at all this preseason. Maybe he plays a quarter or two later on to get a tune-up before the regular season kicks off, but in Week 1, I expect him to be wearing a headset for the entire game.

The veteran quarterback is way too important to this team to risk him getting injured in the preseason, and like Derek Carr last offseason, Garoppolo should remain on the sidelines the entire preseason. He would be best served helping along the rookie, Aidan O'Connell, as he tries to navigate an NFL game for the first time ever.

Also, the Raiders recently brought back Chase Garbers to the fold, and the expectation is that move was made so that Garoppolo would not be needed during the preseason.

As I write this, there has been no definitive answer from Josh McDaniels or his staff on whether or not Jimmy G will play against the 49ers. However, if I were a betting man, and by connecting the dots, I would think this is going to be an Aidan O'Connell and Chase Garbers show inside Allegiant Stadium.