Jimmy Garappolo’s Future Could Change at Any Moment this Offseason

The NFL’s quarterback musical chairs game is nearing an end in an eventful offseason, seeing a record number of quarterback transactions. Yet, Jimmy Garappolo remains a 49er.

Jimmy Garappolo - Statmuse

The NFL’s quarterback musical chairs game is nearing an end in an eventful offseason, seeing a record number of quarterback transactions. The San Francisco 49ers finished the 2021 regular season with a 10-7 record, through a multitude of injuries. Despite their resilience against the Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers, they fell short to the eventual Super Bowl LVI Champs, Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship.

This led to 49ers General Manager, John Lynch, making an executive decision on a long-anticipated move: Jimmy Garoppolo available for trade. The move did not come as a surprise, due to the team deciding to trade their last year’s 12th overall pick, 2022 first-round pick, 2023 first-round pick, and 2022 third-round compensatory pick for the 3rd overall selection, Trey Lance, last April.

Your Move, 49ers

Where do the 49ers go from here? There have already been over seven quarterback moves this offseason, with the likes of Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson, and Deshaun Watson leading the charge. The quarterback market has significantly dwindled down from what it once was. At the beginning of the offseason, it was rumored that the following teams had interest in a potential Garoppolo trade: Packers, Broncos, Buccaneers, Browns, Steelers, Colts, Saints, and Commanders.

The Packers convinced Rodgers to return, Broncos made a blockbuster move for Wilson, Tom Brady unretired to return with the Bucs, Browns one-upped the Broncos in acquiring Watson, Steelers grabbed their Big Ben experimental replacement in Mitch Trubisky, Colts recovered a veteran presence with Matt Ryan, Saints re-signed Jameis Winston on a short-term deal, and the Commanders collected Carson Wentz.

It is important to understand why some of the reported teams of interest did not complete a Garoppolo trade, after all. Reported by Dianna Russini in regards to the Colts interest, “From what I was told, there were concerns over the shoulder injury. Not so much the medical side of it but the idea of missing time in the offseason with a new team. This was a red flag.” Preliminary reports also suggested that even with the minimal dead money ($1.8m) in Garoppolo’s contract if he were to be cut, the $25m cap hit has been viewed as “unattractive” considering Lynch’s hefty asking price.

QB Market: Which Teams Remain?

After the frenzy of moves in the quarterback rooms recently, there have not been many teams to show significant trade interest in the position. With the Atlanta Falcons swiftly picking up free-agent Marcus Mariota after the Ryan trade, the few remaining teams in question of whether or not they would have trade interest are the Panthers, Texans, and Seahawks. Each of these teams pose different, unique problems to the 49ers’ attempts to trade Garoppolo.

The Panthers currently have Sam Darnold on a contract year with a $19m cap hit. Head Coach Matt Rhule may be on the hot seat for his lackluster performances the last two seasons, but would acquiring Garoppolo via trade put them over the top? Despite their interest in trading for Watson, this move would be adding another sizable, questionable contract to a quarterback room that has seen five different names in two seasons.

Texans’ General Manager, Nick Caserio has previously worked with Garoppolo during their stints in New England. In fact, Caserio played an intricate role in drafting Garoppolo to be Brady’s eventual successor under Coach Bill Belichick. The problem with reuniting the two in Houston is that the Texans believe they have something special in second-year quarterback out of Stanford, Davis Mills. Even Caserio believes so himself, claiming Mills has “certainly earned the opportunity here,” reported by HCP sports editor Stephen Forsha. Anytime an organization can take advantage of cultivating a talent of any position on a rookie contract, let alone quarterback, they do so.

The Seahawks present the easiest case as for who not to do a Garoppolo trade with. Trading in-division is frowned upon heavily amongst front office executives. Moving a potential franchise quarterback to the longtime rival organization, after their executed departures of franchise superstars, Russell Wilson and Bobby Wagner, would be a head-scratching move. Even if the Seahawks had some rumored interest in Garoppolo, the compensation would most likely have to be something that would almost certainly drive the Seahawks front office far away from negotiations. Besides, they have newly acquired Drew Lock from the Broncos and serious trade interest in the Browns’ Baker Mayfield.

Trey Lance - Statmuse

Hopes VS. Expectations

49ers’ faithful have something to look forward to under the Trey Lance era. Trading away Garoppolo is something the fanbase has expected for quite some time. Now, it is something that is hoped for in any form or fashion. The 49ers front office will be busy in the days leading up to the draft, trying to find an agreement with a team looking for a veteran play-caller. If Lynch can retrieve any form of draft compensation to go along with the major salary cap relief in a Garoppolo trade, it would be a win at this point. In the event that he is unable to pull off such trade, attention would be directed back to Lynch’s claim of having “two second round picks” on the table for Garoppolo, according to Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio.

Hope for Garoppolo to be traded out of conference for a mid-to-late round draft pick and salary cap space used to attract another free agent or extend an impact player (Deebo Samuel). Expect Garoppolo to be held onto throughout trade negotiations up until the draft and released shortly after failing to find a suitor for his services at the right price. Regardless, the Trey Lance era is officially underway.