Maybe the 49ers’ Jimmy Garoppolo era will just never end
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Screw it, why not? That’s just about the only reaction you can have to Sunday’s report that Jimmy Garoppolo and the 49ers have mutual interest in re-reuniting for a seventh season together in the bay.
“Both sides are open to him being back for the 2023 season,” NFL Network reported. And why wouldn’t they be? Trey Lance looked nothing like a franchise quarterback in his extremely brief stint as the starter. Garoppolo, for his part, has successfully avoided the chronic injuries that were his biggest problem in his first five seasons with San Francisco. Now a tenure that was announced as over after five years could extend into year seven and beyond.
Ian Rapoport’s hit on Sunday morning implied that Garoppolo — who is in line for a huge raise after playing this year on an incentive-laden high-end backup contract — would be returning as the starter, not Lance’s backup. Garoppolo and the Niners brass “haven’t discussed a deal,” Rapoport said, “but my guess is that it would be a short-term deal. … Let Trey Lance learn a little bit more before assuming the role of starting quarterback.”
The Niners could easily run it back as constructed on offense. All the major skill position players are under contract for the near future, and an offensive line that looked slapped together around Trent Williams has been more than good enough to keep Garoppolo healthy. The only issue is that Garoppolo will cost far more than the $13 million or so he’ll earn this season. The NFL is in a fallow part of its perpetual quarterback cycle; a half-dozen teams or more would kill to get the type of production Garoppolo has given the Niners this year. It only takes one look at the Jets or Saints or Colts to realize that the quarterback grass isn’t always greener.