Getty San Francisco 49ers QB Jimmy Garoppolo.
Despite Joe Judge ruthlessly backing his quarterback at every turn, Daniel Jones’ future in New York continues to be a hot topic — one that will almost certainly trickle into the offseason. The 24-year-old signal-caller failed to take the third-year leap so many had hoped for when the team splurged on a reworked receiving corps this offseason. Closing out the year on injured reserve due to a neck strain, Jones turned the football over nine times over his final eight games and finished with a career-low 10 touchdown passes in 2021.
While Jones is expected to make a full recovery, impending executive changes in East Rutherford could ultimately lead to changes under center for the Giants. With an expected new general manager in place and five picks in the first three rounds of April’s NFL draft, the Giants will have the firepower to make a drastic move at the position this offseason if they so choose.
According to at least one former Giants player, should the organization sour on Jones, the team would be wise to poke around the quarterback market in Santa Clara. Chris Canty, who won a Super Bowl with the G-Men back in 2011 and now serves as an on-air talent for ESPN, believes Jimmy Garoppolo could pose as a serviceable replacement for Jones under center.
“Random thought….. Jimmy G to the Giants this offseason???” Canty tweeted. “If NYG isn’t sold on DJ, Garoppolo wouldn’t be the worst option Giants.”
49ers Plan to Trade Garoppolo
One may think that a 100.7 quarterback rating and an 8-5 record through 15 weeks of play (missed Week 5 with injury) could possibly extend Garoppolo’s tenure with the Niners beyond this season. However, much like the Patrick Mahomes-Alex Smith scenario in Kansas City a few years back, Garoppolo’s play almost has no bearing on his future in San Francisco.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the 49ers intend to trade Garoppolo this offseason and roll with 2021 first-round pick Trey Lance as their starter in 2022.
“Absent a Super Bowl run, which at this point is still theoretically possible, this is the 49ers’ plan next season: start Trey Lance, trade Jimmy Garoppolo. Not a surprise there, they’ve been pretty up front about that,” Rapoport said on November 28 during a segment on NFL GameDay Morning. “What Garoppolo is doing now is increasing the value of picks the 49ers get in a trade involving him, and they make it more likely that a place he wants to go would want to take him.”
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The good news for the Giants, should they pursue a deal for Garoppolo, he’d likely come at a fairly reasonable price. According to ESPN insider Bill Barnwell, “it would be a surprise if the 49ers were able to get a first-round pick outright for him in a trade.” Instead, Barnwell believes a third-round pick and a player (potentially Jones) could suffice. Garoppolo’s no-trade clause expires at the end of this season and he’s set to enter the final year of his five-year, $137.5 million contract.
He’s certainly no Russell Wilson and he’s not a new flashy gun-slinger from the draft. Yet, the 30-year-old Garoppolo has proven to be a capable to above-average starter during his time with the 49ers, even leading the team to a Super Bowl appearance in 2019. He boasts a winning percentage of 70.8% as a starter and has won 30 of his 43 regular season starts since joining the 49ers in 2017. As for the Giants, they have just 22 wins in their 78 games over that same span.