Jimmy Garoppolo, facing uncertain future with San Francisco 49ers, says emotions 'hit pretty hard' after NFC title game loss

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — As quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo walked slowly to the locker room for, perhaps, the final time as a member of the San Francisco 49ers, he stopped and embraced general manager John Lynch.

Garoppolo and the Niners' latest comeback attempt had just been derailed when his last-gasp fling to JaMycal Hasty bounced off the running back's hands and into those of Los Angeles Rams linebacker Travin Howard.

A dazed Garoppolo hugged Lynch back as the two shared some comforting words following San Francisco's 20-17 loss to the division rival Los Angeles Rams in Sunday's NFC Championship Game, a defeat that stung all the more because the Niners coughed up a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter much like they did in Super Bowl LIV.

Minutes later, Garoppolo stood in front of the assembled media and elaborated on the emotions of the moment, staring directly into the reality of an uncertain future that likely ends with him playing for another team next season.

"[The emotions] hit pretty hard in the locker room," Garoppolo said. «I think these next couple of days it will really start to settle in a little bit. Emotions are high after a game win or loss, and it's one of those things you've got to be glad it happened, smile from it, and think about the good things. We'll see what happens in these next couple days, weeks, whatever, but I love this team. Just the fight and the battle in this team throughout the entire year has been really impressive. I love those guys.»

The opportunity to play one more game with the team that traded a second-round pick for him in 2017 and signed him to what was at the time a record-breaking five-year, $137.5 million contract, slipped through Garoppolo's fingers after another uneven performance