Jimmy Garoppolo trade odds: Titans could be in market for Ryan Tannehill insurance
The 49ers have given Jimmy Garoppolo's camp permission to seek a trade.
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The San Francisco 49ers now appear completely set on starting second-year Trey Lance at quarterback in Week 1 at Chicago – barring injury – as the team has given QB Jimmy Garoppolo's agents permission to seek a trade involving the veteran. SportsLine offers updated odds on Garoppolo's next team, and while the Tennessee Titans aren't favored, they make almost too much sense as the team could seek an insurance policy behind Ryan Tannehill.
Garoppolo has a career 33-14 regular-season record and has led the Niners to one Super Bowl and two NFC title games. One reason Garoppolo likely hasn't been dealt yet is that he is recovering from offseason surgery on his throwing shoulder, but he has been given the green light to start practicing on a limited basis with the 49ers set to open camp next week and should be fully cleared in mid-August.
The team is expected to treat the 30-year-old with caution throughout the summer as obviously a setback would severely hamper any trade chances. Jimmy G's contract is scheduled to count $26.95 million against the 2022 salary cap but none of his $24.2 million base salary is guaranteed.
According to Overthecap.com, only the Cleveland Browns have enough salary-cap space to absorb that full contract, so the Niners will have to eat a lot of money to trade Garoppolo just like the Browns did when they sent Baker Mayfield to Carolina for a 2024 conditional draft pick.
Cleveland was among the favorites for Garoppolo after that trade with the expectation that Deshaun Watson was going to be suspended for at least half if not all of the coming season, but Cleveland.com's Mary Kay Cabot is reporting the Browns are still not expected to pursue a trade for Garoppolo and apparently are ready to roll with Jacoby Brissett as the starter until Watson returns – although there has been scuttlebutt about Cleveland signing Cam Newton. In addition, the Browns have recently worked out veterans Josh Rosen and AJ McCarron, among others, ahead of camp. It's hard to fully rule out Cleveland on Garoppolo, though.
Really, the only spot where Garoppolo right now could probably go be the starter is in Seattle, but it's quite rare for teams to make QB trades inside their own division. Not impossible, though, as Philadelphia memorably sent Donovan McNabb to Washington in 2010.
Houston is ready to see what second-year Davis Mills has and if he's the future, but Garoppolo could serve as a mentor. Texans GM Nick Caserio was involved in the drafting of Garoppolo in New England in 2014 when Caserio was the Patriots' director of player personnel.
The last time Tennessee traded for a once-promising quarterback who had fallen out of favor with his team was in March 2019, when they landed Tannehill from Miami. That worked out well, although Tannehill is on the hot seat this year with his poor playoff performance last winter. Tennessee potentially has a Super Bowl-caliber roster. How is Garoppolo not a better backup at worst than either Logan Woodside or rookie third-round pick Malik Willis?
Cincinnati is obviously set at QB with Joe Burrow, but he has stayed healthy in just one of his two pro seasons and his backup is journeyman Brandon Allen. The Bengals are another team ready to win now.
Frankly, Garoppolo would be an improvement at backup for the vast majority of teams, but most aren't interested in him for one reason or another. He could be solid Tom Brady insurance, but Brady likely wouldn't welcome that because of the friction from their Patriots days. Garoppolo would be an upgrade on Brian Hoyer with the Patriots, too, but there could be too much baggage there. How about behind Dak Prescott in Dallas over Cooper Rush?
Could the Niners simply release him? If they do and Garoppolo is healthy, they would pick up $25.55 million of cap space, but what if Lance gets hurt or isn't ready? San Francisco is a contender. It could take a camp/preseason QB injury for any deal to be made. We should have clarity by Aug. 30 at the latest, as that's when NFL rosters must be cut to 53 players.
Via SportsLine oddsmakers: If not the 49ers, which roster will Garoppolo be on Week 1?
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