Jimmy Garoppolo‘s end-of-season comments point to a departure from the 49ers, who have Trey Lance readying to start in 2022. San Francisco’s four-plus-season starter indicated a trade could happen soon. Regardless of the statuses of Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson, Garoppolo looms as an upgrade option for certain teams.
Possible blockbusters involving Rodgers and Wilson, along with what happens with Deshaun Watson, complicate matters on this year’s quarterback market. So will an underwhelming rookie crop. Will AFC teams eyeing Rodgers or Wilson be willing to make an early move for Garoppolo, or will they end up waiting out the higher-profile (and more expensive) options?
Garoppolo, 30, has battled several injuries since becoming a starter, but the 49ers going 2-for-2 in NFC championship berths during seasons in which their QB1 was largely available probably cannot be ignored. Garoppolo holds a no-trade clause and is seeking a team prepared to compete, further complicating matters.
In the NFC, Washington has continued to strike out on long-term QB acquisitions and did not make such a move last year. Washington did try, via a Matthew Stafford offer, prior to signing Ryan Fitzpatrick. The Commanders have Taylor Heinicke signed for 2022 — at just a $2.9MM cap hit — but will almost certainly acquire a veteran or use a first-round pick on a quarterback. The Commanders are also set to carry more than $31MM in cap space, putting them among the league’s top 10. Garoppolo’s through-2022 contract calls for a $24.2MM base salary next season, though his ’22 cap hit could be lowered via an extension agreement.
The Panthers saw their QB situation deteriorate to the point Matt Rhule‘s job was in jeopardy, and Sam Darnold is on Carolina’s books at a fully guaranteed $18.9MM in 2022. Carolina could also loom for Watson. The embattled Texans quarterback is not believed to have waived his no-trade clause for the Panthers, but they were prepared to make a strong offer prior to the Pro Bowler’s off-field trouble surfacing. If the Dolphins are truly off the Watson market, the Panthers would seemingly re-emerge as perhaps his top suitor.
Tom Brady‘s retirement puts the Buccaneers in play, and early odds place Tampa Bay as one of the most likely teams to acquire Garoppolo. The 49ers quarterback, who is coming off a season in which he ranked 13th in QBR, following his former Patriots teammate would certainly make for an interesting scenario. A Garoppolo extension would be necessary for the Bucs, who have nearly half their starting lineup set for free agency. Even without that contingent on the payroll, the Bucs are projected to be barely $5MM under the cap.
Having not solidified a Drew Brees successor yet, the Saints can be also considered a candidate. Their cap situation, per usual, is not in good shape. New Orleans is entering a second straight offseason more than $75MM over the cap. The team made this work last year but did not have a franchise-QB salary factoring into the equation, with Jameis Winston signing for backup-level dough.
The Steelers should also be considered the mix as a Garoppolo suitor. Although Pittsburgh extended Mason Rudolph, it is difficult to view the former third-round pick as a viable Ben Roethlisberger successor. Still, the early offseason word pointed to the Steelers avoiding the veteran-QB market. But a veteran would make sense given the makeup of an experienced Steelers defense. The Steelers are also armed with far more cap space than they had in 2021, being set to hold more than $30MM.
The Broncos are probably the most interesting team here, given their connection to Rodgers. A late-season amendment on potential Wilson destinations also included Denver. The team that has needed a quarterback for six years could attempt to pry Kirk Cousins away from the Vikings, considering GM George Paton‘s previous run as Minnesota’s assistant GM. Garoppolo, however, has experience in the type of offense Nathaniel Hackett is set to install. Any Denver Garoppolo offer would surely be withheld until it is known Rodgers is off the table.
As of now, the Browns are prepared to keep Baker Mayfield for his fifth-year option season. Are there any other sleeper teams to monitor here? Vote in PFR’s latest poll and weigh in with your thoughts in the comments section.
who wants Mr Glass who can’t finish a season??
I am tired of Jimmy G and all of his mistakes on the niners, but this comment is ridiculous. Mr glass? He had a hurt shoulder and thumb and finished 1 quarter away from the superbowl. 2 years ago he was in the superbowl.
So he has finished 2 of 4 seasons. He played all but 2 games this year, which was the same as Hurts and more than Russell wilson, lamar jackson and kyler murray. Only 16 QBs started more games than him this year.
Again, he is a mediocre qb but calling him Mr Glass seems a bit harsh
I take it you see his career as half empty?
Aw, pour Jimmy.
He finished the season two of the last three seasons.
He’ll probably want to go to whatever team has the best defense that can bail him out of his cringeworthy dear-in-the-headlights oldest rookie in the world mistakes.
Would love to hear your take on Carr, especially throwing the ball short of the goal line on a 4th and goal that ended up being intercepted
Carr is garbage that doesn’t mean that Jimmy isn’t also
I’m new to the NFLTR side of things but am I crazy for seeing him fit in well with Denver?
Absolutely not. If they can’t acquire Rodgers, Jimmy G would be a good fit due to his familiarity with Hackett’s scheme. At this point, Denver could just use some stability at the quarterback position, so they don’t need someone outstanding per se given the other talent on the roster.
My only concern would be the offensive line, which might decline without Munchak. On the other hand, I’ll give the team a chance to institute their zone-blocking scheme
Then trade Lock to Philly for Minshew as a backup in case Jimmy G goes down, as you’re probably going to need a two QB setup for injuries.
why on Earth does Philly make that move?
He’s a solid qb hopefully the niners don’t rue the day they drafted Trey Lance but I think they might.
Rodgers to Denver
Wilson to Commanders, new name Dan Synder cant resist a big splash
Garapollo to Steelers
Watson to Saints if they hire Eric Bienemy
Who plays QB for the Seahawks in risk scenario?
This
Whoever they draft or sign as a stop gap for 2022.
How are the Saints affording Watson?
To afford watson
Theyll ship out Thomas post June 1st saving them 15.8 mill. They wont get much back but a contender might be willing to take a chance on him. Arizona? Raiders?
Sell high on Cam Jordan whos 32 and has 3 years left. Thats another 15.8 mill
Theyll have to restructure Tayson Hill, Lattimore, Ramczyk to carve out cap space
And cut guys to save the money dinking and diming the rest
Mark Igram 2.3 mill
Winston 1.5 mill
Vannett 3 mill
To name a few
No kidding. They aren’t adding any high contracts to that team this year. I’d be shocked if Watson even plays anyway,
And what about the Bucs in this scenario? I see them as stiff competition for the Broncos to land Rodgers if he moves on.
The Saints will need to open up well over $100M in salary cap space just to acquire Watson. They are $75M over the cap now and Watson alone will require close to $40M in cap space. They might be able to get that number down to $25M with some fancy contract extension but the Saints team would need to be stripped to the bone just to fit Watson in.
Jimmy G to the Raiders after Carr gets traded. McDaniels will want someone Familiar with his offense.
That doesn’t really seem like an upgrade; just more trouble than it’s worth for someone more injury-prone. Then again it’s McDaniels, so who really knows?
The 49ers have been shopping Jimmy for over a year and it’s clear no team is interested in paying starter money ($30M or more) for him. Of course he could land almost anywhere if he’s willing to get a nice haircut.
“Garoppolo’s through-2022 contract calls for a $24.2MM base salary next season”, that price won’t scare off somebody in desperate need for 2022.
it’s clear that no one was interested in the asking price (which may have been somewhat higher before with Lance less ready)
Stupid commune because obviously if that was before he led them to his 2nd NFC championship game he has more leverage.
Ya but was he good? Special teams won the game in Green Bay Jimmy just didn’t lose vs them and Dallas. Not losing is a skill so that’s important but he doesn’t win a lot of games
Some QB’s don’t look great on paper but are leaders and winners. Jimmy G seems like that kind of QB
QBs apparently always lead a team to a championship game but isn’t it possible that occasionally the team leads the QB to such a game?
Well, teams also knew that Garappolo was going to be a free agent in the next year, so that should factor in. Plus, I don’t think Shanahan really wanted him gone just yet, at least until he felt confident in Lance.
Its called working out an extension and deferring money. Just because his base salary is 24.2 million doesn’t’ mean it has to stay that way,
Its comical when people cape for Jimmy…dude would have a SB ring if he could hit a wide open Sanders and the last 4 games, playoffs included he was throwing stupid picks trying to give the games away. Guess if he used his winning percentage people keep touting, he would be in the SB next week
The other side of this coin is that he would have a ring if Shanahan called a better game. Just as in the Pats-Falcons Superbowl, Shanahan tried to outsmart himself with some questionable third down calls and time management.
Garappolo could have played better for sure, and I’m not big on his deep ball the last few years. But he played well enough to give his team a chance. He’s not the only one who could have made one or two more plays to win. Brady won a Superbowl while only scoring 13 points. I’d say that he made a few fewer plays than Garappolo that day.
He would have a ring if his defense didn’t leave a Chief WR wide open over the middle on 4th down in the Super Bowl. That was the play that opened the flood gates.
It would be almost poetic for Garoppolo to take over in Tampa
I fail to see the point in New Orleans acquiring Garoppolo when he’s only a marginal upgrade over Winston, who is much cheaper. Lowering their cap as they transition to a new era is critical so that they don’t condemn themselves to future issues IMO
Because Garoppolo is a winner, Winston is not.
Winston was 5-2, including a sound victory over Tampa Bay, before getting hurt. I’m well aware that he had the aid of a strong supporting cast, but could the same not be said of Garoppolo? The special teams won the game against GB and he more or less lost them the Superbowl in 2019. I don’t think Garoppolo sucks by any means, but it’s really not as simple as one being a “winner” and the other a “loser”
Culpepper was a “winner” compared to Drew Brees back in 2006. How’d that decision work out for the Dolphins? Furthermore, if you’re already having cap issues, it would be best not to dig yourself into an even deeper hole for marginal gain
I would agree. Garappolo may be a slightly safer choice than Winston, but Winston certainly has a better deep ball and better zip on his throws. So in my mind, the gain would be less dramatic, especially when considering contract value. I’m not saying that Jimmy G wouldn’t be good in New Orleans, just that they may not end up with better than what they’ve got.
They need to find some people for him to throw to, more than anything.
Cousins for Jimmy swap, SF gets kirky and MN frees up some cap space.
“Garoppolo holds a no-trade clause and is seeking a team prepared to compete”
Arguably only 2-3 teams in this poll fit that criteria.
As for me, I’d love to see JimmyG go to Tampa so he could win a Super Bowl and shove it up the old GOAT’s fanny.
I could see Tampa Bay as a fit. A good defense, and the weapons on offense that could translate in a decent year for them with Jimmy G at QB. That is unless Aaron Rodgers wants to jump on the ship in Tampa.
Brewers?
Forget Jimmy G, trade for Gardner Minshew. He played great on a terrible Jaguars team. With decent players around him, he could be a star.
I think that Minshew would be great in Denver if they fail to acquire Rodgers, or in New Orleans, if they decide to let Winston go. Carolina could grab him as insurance since they’ll be holding on to Darnold and he wouldn’t push him out immediately.
But yeah, the cheaper asking price and younger age of Minshew should make an in demand candidate for teams. It’s also probably why we won’t hear as much about him until the bigger names get settled.
Better yet, trade for Jalen Hurts so Philly could let Minshew take over this year while they chase their QB in the draft this year or next.
To the Eagles for a 2nd
Only if Philly had a side deal for Hurts to recoup that pick.
Atlanta – Jimmy
Denver – Rogers
Miami – Watson – if not in jail
Saints – Tua
Tampa Bay – Wilson or Ryan
Washington – Ryan or Wilson
Jag – Bridgewater
Miami… goes with his OC