Jimmy Garroppolo addresses training camp struggles: 'I think I'm going in the right way'
Note: This story originally appeared on WEEI's website. The site has been reworked and older stories were deleted, and it's been reposted here in its entirety.
Jimmy Garoppolo addresses the media after practice.
FOXBORO – If Friday morning’s intrasquad scrimmage were a regular season game, chances are Jimmy Garoppolo would have had a more frustrated demeanor when he spoke to reporters afterwards.
Instead, though, after he completed just 14 of his 36 passes, the fourth-year quarterback downplayed his struggles.
“I mean you’re never happy about the incompletions, interceptions or anything like that,” Garoppolo said. “But you know, it’s training camp. We’ll learn from those situations. We always go back, watch the film and just diagnose what happened and what we could do to fix that.”
Garroppolo didn’t throw any interceptions on Friday, though he has seven in camp thus far. Rookie cornerback D.J. Killings appeared to pick him off to close out the first half, but it was ruled an incompletion.
He sailed some throws in the morning session, but it is important to note that he was teamed with all second and third team players. The 25-year-old says it takes some time to get adjusted.
“I think I’m going in the right way,” Garoppolo said. “It’s a grind. You’re trying different things, trying new plays. You’re with new guys, and there’s a lot of variables that go into it. But as long as we’re learning and progressing, we’ll be alright.”
Garropolo recently told Sports Illustrated that he “wants to be a starter,” and while he’s been inconsistent during training camp, he proved last season that he’s capable of playing at a higher level.
Starting in place of Tom Brady for the first two games of 2016, Garoppolo led the team to a pair of victories, threw four touchdowns and had no interceptions.
Why is it that he seems to perform better when the stakes are higher?
“I try to come out and perform the same every day, whether it’s game, practice whatever it may be,” he said. “But you know, I don’t know what it is. It just seems to work out that way.”