San Francisco 49ers say they are not going to release Jimmy Garoppolo. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose … [+]
San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch spoke to the media from the site of the NFL meetings in Palm Beach, Florida, earlier this week. It goes without saying that one of the major topics of conversation was the status of veteran quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.
It was just back on February 1 that Garoppolo held a press conference shortly after San Francisco fell to the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship Game that seemed to be his last as a member of the 49ers.
Fast forward two months, and Garoppolo remains on the roster. This comes with the market of quarterback-needy teams drying out big time following some blockbuster trades around the NFL world. It’s also led to increased speculation that San Francisco might simply be forced to release the Super Bowl quarterback.
In addressing the media, Lynch pushed back against this in a big way.
“I don’t foresee that. He’s too good a player. I think Jimmy will be playing for us or will be playing for someone else,” Lynch said Monday about the 49ers potentially releasing Garoppolo, via ESPN’s Nick Wagoner. “He’s too good of a player not to be.”
That’s all fine and dandy. It’s also PR spin on the part of the 49ers’ front office. Financially, there’s no scenario in which the 49ers can reasonably roster Garoppolo and his $26.95 million cap hit for the 2022 season. That’s especially true with San Francisco preparing for 2021 No. 3 pick Trey Lance to start under center.
San Francisco 49ers Appear To Still Be Angling For A Jimmy Garoppolo Trade
San Francisco 49ers still angling for Jimmy Garoppolo trade. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Lynch covered the financial aspect of this situation when speaking to the media, ultimately indicating that they will be just fine if Garoppolo is on the books come Week 1.
“We value strength at that position,” Lynch said. “To be completely forthright, though, when you make a trade of that magnitude (for Lance), most of our options did not include Jimmy on our books. On our team. But you always have to adapt and a series of events happened that it didn’t work out. But that’s not a bad thing, though. We feel positive with it. And we’ll make it work.”
The overriding takeaway here is that San Francisco is sending a message to the limited number of teams who might be interested in Garoppolo that he won’t be available in free agency. Rather, they will have to give up draft capital. From there, said team would then have to restructure or extend Garoppolo to lower his 2022 cap number. Whether a team takes the bait remains to be seen.
A series of circumstances have come up that prevented San Francisco from trading Garoppolo earlier in the offseason. In addition to the blockbuster trades I mentioned above, the quarterback recently underwent shoulder surgery. According to Lynch, that has also played a role in Garoppolo remaining on the 49ers’ books.
“I think, ultimately, the teams that we were closest with, the surgery gave them pause and they ended up going in other directions,” Lynch said.
The idea of yielding draft picks for a high-priced quarterback who is entering a contract season and recovering from shoulder surgery can’t be considered appealing to rival teams. Even then, the 49ers’ public stance that Garoppolo will not be released does up the ante a bit.
Limited Jimmy Garoppoo Trade Market
This is the major backdrop that Lynch and Co. can’t ignore publicly. The market for Garoppolo’s services has thinned out since reports of his shoulder injury became public record.
The Indianapolis Colts were previously linked to Garoppolo. Earlier in March, they pulled off a trade for Atlanta star Matt Ryan. Both the Cleveland Browns and New Orleans Saints were also in on a potential Garoppolo trade. Cleveland pulled off a blockbuster for Deshaun Watson while the Saints re-signed Jameis Winston to be their likely Week 1 starter.
None of this takes into account the Denver Broncos making a move for former Super Bowl-winning quarterback Russell Wilson and the Washington Commanders jumping the gun by trading for a struggling Carson Wentz.
Where does this leave the 49ers when it comes to Garoppolo’s trade market? Not in a great spot. The Carolina Panthers, Seattle Seahawks and Houston Texans are three teams with remaining questions under center heading into the 2022 NFL Draft in late April. Neither Carolina or Houston appear to be interested in Garoppolo. Meanwhile, it’s foolush to believe that two division rivals in that of the 49ers and Seahawks would pull off a trade of this ilk.
In an attempt to sway the dynamics publicly, Lynch did tell reporters on Monday that a number of teams are still in contact with San Francisco regarding Garoppolo, but those conversations are “fluid.”
Outside of surprise team like the New York Giants showing interest in Garoppolo, it has to be limited to the three organizations I mentioned above as quarterback-needy entities.
Finances Of Jimmy Garoppolo Remaining On San Francisco 49ers’ Books
Will the Jimmy Garoppolo situation impact Deebo Samuel’s contract extension? (AP Photo/Jed … [+]
In an interesting development, Lynch told reporters that Garoppolo’s status did not impact the team’s NFL free-agent plans.
“Our plan was our plan and we were able to do everything we intended to do in free agency,” Lynch said. “We knew we wanted to fill that corner role, and a number of other deals that we could piece together. And that was our plan whether we had Jimmy or not.”
Some will point to San Francisco’s emphasis on signing All-Pros Deebo Samuel and Nick Bosa to massive contract extensions this offseason. Given the wide receiver market, Samuel is looking at well north of $25 million annually. As for Bosa, his next deal should surpass the record-setting $28 million T.J. Watt received annually in his extension with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Those pointing to the finances here and concluding that Garoppolo remaining on San Francisco’s books has prevented anything from happening are missing the point. Any new deal for Samuel and Bosa likely wouldn’t increase their 2022 salary cap numbers too much. Rather, the large sums would come in 2023 and beyond when the NFL salary cap is slated to increase big time with the new television deal bringing in record revenue.
With that said, it’s foolish to believe that having Garoppolo’s $26.95 million cap hit on the books for the 2022 season hasn’t impacted San Francisco’s free-agent plans. The team’s only big-ticket signing came in the form of former Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Charvarius Ward. Outside of that, the 49ers have been largely idle in free agency — bringing in second-wave options on cheap contracts.
Currently just $1.92 million under the cap, it’s hard to fathom that Garoppolo’s cap hit has not directly impacted the 49ers in free agency.
Either way, this is something San Francisco will have to solve leading up to and following the 2022 NFL Draft. In its current cap situation, this team wouldn’t even be able to sign its draft class.
None of that takes into account the dynamics that would come with Garoppolo remaining on the 49ers’ roster heading into the off-season program. San Francisco used three first-round picks and change on Lance last year. They have handed him the keys to the kingdom. Garoppolo took it like a champion last season. Expecting the same thing to ring true this summer and into training camp just doesn’t seem likely.
Regardless of what the 49ers’ brass wants us to believe publicly, the Jimmy Garoppolo situation is coming to a head here soon one way or another. That’s the simple reality.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/vincentfrank/2022/03/29/san-francisco-49ers-claim-they-have-no-plans-to-release-jimmy-garoppolo/