Getty Jimmy Garoppolo could find a surprising new home if he's traded to the AFC.
Jimmy Garoppolo is still on the San Francisco 49ers roster even though he won’t be the team’s starting quarterback in 2022. Trey Lance has the keys to the kingdom now and he’s already impressing in the role, while Garoppolo’s waiting to be traded.
A trade is the best-case scenario for both player and team, but the 49ers have struggled to find a suitor. One prominent analyst believes Garoppolo’s lukewarm communication skills off the field are hurting his trade value, while another NFL scribe thinks the Cleveland Browns are the most logical fit if a deal happens.
There’s another scenario, though. One where Garoppolo lands on a different AFC team that suddenly has its own worrying questions at football’s most important position.
Rebuilding AFC East Franchise Good Fit for Jimmy G
Cutting Garoppolo before Week 1 may be the Niners’ unavoidable choice, according to Bleacher Report’s Ian Wharton: “If they waive him before then, they’ll free up $25.5 million of cap space—which they could roll over to next year—and be left with only a $1.4 million dead cap hit.”
Despite the fiscal benefits of severing ties with Garoppolo outright, Wharton also noted how the 49ers “are now just waiting to see if they can shed Garoppolo’s salary and pick up an asset in return.”
Wharton mentioned the Browns, a familiar name given the uncertainty surrounding Deshaun Watson’s availability this season, but he also threw an unfamiliar team into the mix: “The New York Jets already had a scare with Zach Wilson’s knee in his preseason debut.”
It’s a left-field suggestion, but one with plenty of merit upon closer inspection. The New York Jets make a lot of sense on a number of levels for Garoppolo. Not least because of head coach Robert Saleh’s familiarity with the signal-caller.
Saleh was defensive coordinator for the 49ers during the 2019 season when Garoppolo helped lead the team to Super Bowl LIV. The former’s attempts to turn around the Jets hinge on the health of 2021’s second-overall pick Zach Wilson, who suffered a knee injury in preseason action against the Philadelphia Eagles on Friday, August 12:
Zach Wilson comes up limping after an awkward cut while scrambling. #Jets
Wilson had surgery to repair his meniscus on Tuesday and could return in four to six weeks, according to Jeff Howe of The Athletic. Howe also wrote “it’s too early” to say Wilson will be ready for the regular-season opener against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday, September 11.
The Jets have plenty of motivation to acquire a QB more recently battle tested than 37-year-old backup Joe Flacco. He’s started just five games the last two years.
Garoppolo fits the bill and he should welcome the chance to join the Jets, where he’d find a staff adept at helping him play his best football. Aside from Saleh, Jets’ offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur was the Niners’ passing game coordinator from 2017-20.
Working with coaches he knows could help Garoppolo overcame the rumored troubles he has relating to his teammates and coaches.
Off-Field Concerns Could Scupper Any Trade
Staying in touch with members of the playing and coaching staffs has been an issue for Garoppolo in San Francisco, according to Chris Simms. He told Mike Florio on an edition of Pro Football Talk (h/t NBC Sports’ Tom Dierberger): “I’m not going to name the player, but I was at an event and the player who is a long-standing player with the 49ers is like, ‘I can’t get the quarterback to call me back. I’ve called him every day for a month.’ You hear it from everybody. I’ve heard it from ex-coaches who have moved on.”
Simms thinks these problems have “had some teams kind of drag their feet and not sure if they want to go all in on the Jimmy Garoppolo trade.” It’s a theory that’s not without credence, since Simms isn’t the only one who has heard about such difficulties with Jimmy G behind the scenes.
Problems with coaches were also described to Michael Silver of the San Francisco Chronicle. Those problems stemmed from the aftermath of Garoppolo signing a contract worth $137.5 million in 2018: “Once he left that press conference, nobody heard from him for weeks and weeks. He didn’t return calls, he didn’t return texts — he basically just vanished.”
If Garoppolo’s demeanor away from the field is putting off teams who don’t know him, the Jets may be the last hope the 49ers have to strike a deal. Naturally, the Browns also have to be in the mix with Watson possibly facing a lengthy suspension from the NFL.
That possibility has ESPN Insider Mike Tannenbaum telling Get Up ESPN Garoppolo would be “an unbelievable addition” to the Browns:
.@RealTannenbaum says if he’s the Browns, he’d be on the phone with the 49ers to get Jimmy Garoppolo.
“I’m not getting off the phone until we have a deal!”
Watson was suspended six games after facing multiple allegations of sexual harassment, but the NFL appealed the decision, seeking a longer punishment. Yet, ESPN’s Dan Graziano has reported “a resolution could come today or tomorrow.”
If the Browns eventually find themselves not needing to enter the running for Garoppolo, 49ers general manager John Lynch ought to give the Jets a call. Especially since San Francisco’s situation under center is settled now Lance is ready to take over.
The third-overall pick in last year’s draft “opens up the deep game for the 49ers but it also allows them to take advantage of sideline throws that they couldn’t attempt with Jimmy Garoppolo,” per The Athletic‘s Ted Nguyen. Yet, the same source also noted how Lance has struggled with accuracy at times this offseason.
Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan are rolling the dice that Lance, a gifted but raw athlete, will be more dynamic and reliable than Garoppolo. It’s more than a modest gamble considering the latter went 31-14 as a starter, a record many of the Jets’ recent quarterbacks can only dream about.