In the midst of a sluggish affair against the Broncos on Sunday Night Football, 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo managed to go viral thanks to an ill-timed gaffe in the third quarter.
San Francisco began its second drive of the half on its own two-yard line following a booming 47-yard punt. On the second play of the series, Garoppolo dropped back to pass while standing in his own endzone but took one step too many and ended up stepping past the back line for a safety. The Niners eventually lost the game, 11–10.
The blunder evoked memories of a similar play by former QB and current ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky during the 2008 season, when the then-Lions signal-caller stepped out of the back of his end zone for a safety against the Vikings. For 14 years, the infamous lowlight followed Orlovsky around, but that all changed Sunday night after Jimmy G had his own “Orlovsky moment” in front of a national audience.
Reactions to the rare mistake took over social media in short order as pundits, fans and even Orlovsky himself got in on the fun at Garoppolo’s expense. Check out some of the best reactions to the moment below, including Orlovsky’s hilarious response to finally receiving long-awaited vindication after all these years:
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