Getty Josh Rosen and C.J. Beathard share a hug before the January 3, 2021 road game at Seattle.
The Jimmy Garoppolo to the Cleveland Browns chatter just received a new plot twist on the morning of Thursday, July 21.
One ESPN Senior NFL insider reported that the franchise, which has been linked to Garoppolo’s trade market since trading away Baker Mayfield on July 6, is indeed giving a past San Francisco 49ers quarterback a tryout.
Except it’s not Jimmy G testing his arm strength in front of the Browns’ brass. It’s instead a former first rounder who made a brief pit stop in the Bay Area.
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Ex-49er Among 2 QBs Receiving Tryout in Cleveland
Per longtime NFL reporter Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, the Browns are indeed working out some signal-callers. But the past 49ers representative is Josh Rosen.
“The Cleveland Browns are working out quarterbacks this week, including veterans A.J. McCarron and Josh Rosen, per sources,” Fowler tweeted. “Cleveland looking to go to training camp with four quarterbacks, with Jacoby Brissett to be the QB1 depending what happens with Deshaun Watson’s status.”
Fowler pointed out how Watson still has a pending investigation into his off-field transgressions and could still miss time.
“Deshaun Watson and Jacoby Brissett could essentially be QB1s to start camp, but the larger point is the Browns will get Brissett ready to play. Lot of this up in air with no clarity yet on how much time Watson might miss,” Fowler said.
Rosen With the 49ers & Other NFL Stops
The former top-10 draft pick has played for five different NFL franchises before the age of 26.
However, his most truncated period in the league was with the 49ers.
The Ex-UCLA Bruins QB was lured into the 49ers by being signed off the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ practice squad on December 23, 2020. He was signed to a one-year deal by S.F. He walked into a QB room that became decimated with injuries — with Garoppolo and backup Nick Mullens dealing with a high ankle sprain and elbow injury, respectively. The latter 49ers quarterback was recommended Tommy John surgery.
Rosen only saw two games on the 49ers sidelines but didn’t take any snaps. The 49ers would extend him another year on February 8, 2021. But that was before the 49ers traded up to draft Trey Lance in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Then, the 49ers went on to waive Rosen on August 17, 2021. Per the NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, Rosen mentioned how he “wasn’t getting enough reps in practice.”
One week later, Rosen managed to latch on with the Atlanta Falcons — which was also where he was in the same QB room with McCarron.
Rosen was originally thought of as the franchise quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals when he was drafted in 2018, also the same class that saw Mayfield go No. 1 and witnessed Sam Darnold (No. 3) and Josh Allen (Buffalo Bills) go ahead of him…then saw Lamar Jackson (Baltimore Ravens) go 22 spots after Rosen. Allen and Jackson have since established themselves as Pro Bowl-caliber QBs who have turned their teams into perennial playoff contenders.
Garoppolo Now on AFC East Contender Radar With Past 49ers Representation
As for Garoppolo and a potential move to Cleveland, there is this new curveball: The Miami Dolphins.
Via Heavy’s Matt Lombardo, an executive told him that Garoppolo is “way more liked” in the NFL than Dolphins starter Tua Tagovailoa. Miami also happens to have Mike McDaniels as head coach, who was recently Garoppolo’s offensive coordinator with the 49ers.
“I know this,” the executive told Heavy on condition of anonymity. “Jimmy G is way more liked in league circles, as a player, than Tua is. He’s accomplished way more, and that matters at that position, almost more than anything else. And, remember, Mike McDaniel knows Jimmy really well.”