Peter King suggests this Jimmy Garoppolo trade for the 49ers

Nothing is hinting that the Carolina Panthers are even interested in Jimmy Garoppolo. However, there aren't many trade options left for the San Francisco 49ers. The team probably would prefer to get the veteran quarterback and his over $25 million salary off the books.

With the quarterback market drying up and the 49ers seemingly overvaluing Garoppolo, the team may have to swallow its pride and take a less-desirable option.

Peter King of NBC Sports has one idea involving the Panthers.

"I don't think there's a good market at all [for Garoppolo]," King told Colin Cowherd on The Herd. "I think the 49ers are best off doing one of two things: Trying to trade him for Sam Darnold straight up with Carolina because I think Carolina would view that as an improvement, or hanging on to Jimmy until somebody gets hurt [before the start of the season]."

If the Panthers are uninterested, the 49ers might have no choice but to wait until late in the offseason to see if an NFL squad suddenly finds itself in desperate need of a quarterback. San Francisco is unlikely to ship Garoppolo to the division-rival Seattle Seahawks and would like to avoid cutting the quarterback outright.

"[By] that time, Jimmy Garoppolo is going to be healthy, going to be able to throw the ball well," King explained. "There's nothing wrong with the 49ers waiting. They shouldn't hand him to somebody."

Option one might be a deal worth pursuing if the 49ers promised Garoppolo that he would be elsewhere by a certain deadline. Of course, the quarterback recently undergoing shoulder surgery has not helped the situation.

"Colin, it could be that John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan looked Jimmy in the eye and said, 'We promise we'll trade you,' or words to that effect," King added. "If they did, they might have to do something like [a deal for Darnold]. But if I were them right now, I would tell Jimmy, 'Be patient. You'll be somewhere by the trading deadline.'"