On Tuesday, quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo underwent shoulder surgery, performed by Dr. Neal ElAttrache, a specialist who serves as the head physician of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angeles Rams.
It sounds like everything went well with the procedure, which repaired a torn capsule in his shoulder. NFL Media's Tom Pelissero reports that the expectation is that Garoppolo will be fully cleared around the start of training camp in late July.
Right now, no one is sure which NFL roster will have Garoppolo on it.
#49ers QB Jimmy Garoppolo's shoulder surgery was performed Tuesday by Dr. Neal ElAttrache, one of the nation's leading shoulder specialists. The expectation is Garoppolo is fully cleared right around the start of training camp ... for whatever team he ends up on.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 11, 2022
Matt Barrows of The Athletic notes that Dr. ElAttrache also performed Garoppolo's ACL reconstruction surgery in 2018, and the quarterback returned earlier than expected from that procedure. ElAttrache also performed defensive end Nick Bosa's ACL surgery.
For what it's worth, ElAttrache also did Garoppolo's ACL reconstruction surgery in 2018 and Garoppolo came back sooner than expected from that. ElAttrache also surgeon for Nick Bosa (played 20 games post ACL surgery) and Solomon Thomas (17 games post ACL surgery) https://t.co/gVKPe1lauM
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) March 11, 2022
While the San Francisco 49ers claim to have a plan to keep Garoppolo and last year's No. 3 overall pick, Trey Lance, on the roster, the team seeks a trade of their veteran quarterback. The move would free up over $25 million in salary-cap space, allowing the re-signing of some key players, potential extensions for Bosa and wide receiver Deebo Samuel, and more aggressiveness in free agency.
According to OverTheCap, San Francisco is more than $6.3 million over the salary cap. NFL teams must be at or below the $208.2 million salary cap by Wednesday, March 16—the start of the new league year.
Earlier this week, NFL Media's Ian Rapoport reported that the 49ers had fielded several calls from teams expressing interest in Garoppolo. However, while many view Garoppolo as the top quarterback available following Aaron Rodgers remaining in Green Bay, Russell Wilson traded to Denver, and Carson Wentz now in Washington, the shoulder surgery complicates things.
"It's complicated because Garoppolo is, of course, recovering from a torn capsule in his shoulder," Rapoport said. "Not a torn rotator cuff but a torn capsule. And there's full confidence that he'll be ready to go in time for the season, not even expected to miss any training camp. But he only had surgery this week, so teams are going to want to know everything they possibly can about the medical."