The Patriots sent away the man who has sat behind Tom Brady for three seasons to the San Fransisco 49ers for a 2018 second-round pick. Garoppolo has not entered a game this season, but won both of his starts last season with four touchdowns and no interceptions.
Why They Did It
Garoppolo is scheduled to become a free agent at the end of this season. It was reported that he said he wants to play and would not be re-signing with the Patriots unless they start him.
Even if Garoppolo wanted to stay, it would be hard to justify paying the backup quarterback more than the starter. Brady has taken many pay cuts so the Pats can spend their money elsewhere while the young Jimmy Garoppolo wants to get paid.
Entering his fourth season, Garoppolo wants to prove himself as an everyday starter in the NFL. If he waits as a backup for too long, he may never get to prove himself.
Looking Ahead
The San Francisco 49ers are currently 0-8 and have one of the worst defenses and offenses in the entire league. The team has shown potential at times with five out of eight games ending by one possession.
The 49ers are coming up against the Cardinals, and I would be surprised if they threw Garoppolo into the fray right off the bat. Head coach Kyle Shanahan said that he can’t even promise that Garoppolo will play at all this season.
If the 49ers go the entire season without letting Garoppolo get in, then this would be a crazy move by them. Garoppolo has only played in a handful of games, so you would think they want to see how he plays before offering him a huge contract.
If the 49ers don’t play Garoppolo this season, they will ride it out with C.J. Beathard, a rookie from Iowa. This will most likely result in getting the worst record in the league and the No. 1 pick.
My Take
If the 49ers end up sitting Garoppolo the rest of the season then they made a huge mistake. Garoppolo just wants to compete. Even if it is for one of the worst teams in the league, you need to give him the keys to the car.
What kind of message would that send to him if he sits the rest of the year, and the team goes without a win? Does he want to be part of the rebuild, or would he want to re-sign elsewhere?
The 49ers might be wanting this No. 1 pick. With the season already lost, is there any point in playing Garoppolo and winning a few meaningless games?
This is why I think they may have pulled the trigger a little too late. If you’re going to make this happen, you need to get him earlier in the season to give him the time to get acclimated with the offense.
This also could be because they don’t want to risk injuring him with this horrible offensive line they have, which may be something they address in the draft.
I think no matter what happens that Garoppolo will re-sign with the 49ers because he saw what they gave up for him in a contract year. It shows that the organization has faith in him, and that goes a long way.
With so many rumors and theories circulating right now, only Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers front office know what will happen. My money is on that he will play at least a few games this season. They will win a game or two, which give the Browns the first pick in the draft.
With all that said, I wish the best for Jimmy and hope he can bring back the 49ers from the dead. The league is much better when the 49ers are competing at a high level.
Featured image by SFGate.com
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