San Francisco 49ers head coach initially suggested Jimmy Garoppolo might play in Sunday's game against the New York Giants after suffering an ankle injury this past weekend.

However, it seems backup quarterback Nick Mullens will be lining up under center on Sunday (via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk):

“I’ll be surprised if Jimmy gets back later in the week,” Shanahan said, via Ron Kroichick of the San Francisco Chronicle. “Nick is ready to go. He got a lot of playing time with us in 2018, and that prepared him for moments like this.”

It is no surprise the 49ers are exhibiting caution with respect to Garoppolo's health.

The Niners have quite a bit of money invested in “Jimmy G,” and past history suggests a setback would be immensely harmful to San Francisco.

Garoppolo suffered an ACL injury at the start of the 2018 season. The Niners subsequently went 4-12, with Mullens making eight starts. But with “Jimmy G” healthy the next year, the Niners reached the Super Bowl.

It should be said Mullens was actually the most successful backup during the aforementioned 2018 campaign. He went 3-5 in his eight starts, throwing for over 2,200 yards and even leading a game-winning drive.

Of course, this will be a new challenge for Mullens.

The 49ers are hoping to improve upon last year's NFC title, but San Francisco has already sustained a number of key injuries. Mullens will also be without the team's top two running backs in Raheem Mostert and Tevin Coleman.

San Francisco is 2-0, but Mullens has his work cut out against the Giants as he hopes to keep the Niners on track.