Jimmy Garoppolo will stay with the San Francisco 49ers for now as a backup after restructuring his deal with the Super Bowl contenders.
It had seemed inevitable that Garoppolo would be traded by the Niners after the 2021 season, with both player and franchise openly admitting the fact.
But now he will stay with the team - for now at least - as backup QB to 2021 rookie Trey Lance on a reworked deal.
Jimmy Garoppolo contract
Garoppolo’s new contract is both team-friendly and player-friendly. It lowers his cap hit from just under $27million to around $8.5million, and it will pay him a guaranteed $6.5million if he does not play, but potentially as much as $16million with incentives.
San Francisco reached a Super Bowl in early 2020 with Garoppolo at the controls, and led the Rams late in the NFC Championship game in early 2022. On both occasions the Niners eventually lost, and the team decided to draft its QB of the future in Lance last year.
The expected Jimmy G trade away from the Bay Area though never materialised in a wild offseason which saw a ton of major QBs moved:
● The Cleveland Browns gave up three first-round picks for Deshaun Watson
● Denver put together a huge package to prise Russell Wilson away from Seattle
● Matt Ryan ended his long stint in Atlanta and moved on to Indianapolis
● The Colts sent Carson Wentz to the Washington Commanders
● The Carolina Panthers acquired former #1 overall pick Baker Mayfield
Garoppolo spent the offseason rehabbing after shoulder surgery, which further complicated the plan to move him on, and now he will stay put as the Niners, 16/1 with Sky Bet to win Super Bowl LVII, go all in on a world championship.
Smart move by Niners
It is a smart move by both parties - HC Kyle Shanahan and San Fran have an experienced backup ready to step in if Lance does not turn out to be the real deal.
Garoppolo meanwhile will earn good backup money and a no-trade clause in the reworked deal means he controls where he heads after 2022 is over.
San Francisco opens its 2022 season at Chicago in Week 1 on Sunday September 11, as a heavy seven-point favourite to knock off the Bears. The Niners are 7/4 second favourites behind the Super Bowl champion Rams to win the NFC West title.
