NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated isn't sure what's next for quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. The one-time face of the San Francisco 49ers franchise signed a three-year, $67.5 million deal with the Las Vegas Raiders last offseason. Less than a year later, it appears his tenure with the Raiders has ended.
Garoppolo has been suspended for two games due to a violation of the NFL's policy on performance-enhancing substances, and reports suggest that the Raiders are poised to part ways with the 32-year-old. Garoppolo saw action in just seven games this past season.
Breer reports that the Raiders became frustrated with the veteran quarterback for similar reasons as the 49ers. Head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch sought to replace Garoppolo each offseason, considering Tom Brady in 2020, exploring other options, and ultimately drafting Trey Lance in 2021. They also attempted to trade him in 2022 before finally allowing him to leave in 2023.
"Garoppolo had a reputation for being aloof in San Francisco, which would drive detail-oriented coach Kyle Shanahan nuts, particularly when, at points of the offseason, the Niners would have trouble getting ahold of him," Breer wrote in a feature for Sports Illustrated. "Some of those problems carried over to Vegas, where a group that knew him, led by GM Dave Ziegler and coach Josh McDaniels, had hoped he'd grow out of some of those tendencies."
Apparently, Garoppolo did not outgrow them. Coupled with his reputation for being injury-prone, which followed him from Santa Clara to Las Vegas, it's understandable why the Raiders were eager to move on from the quarterback.
"Add it up, and that's why I'm not sure he really fits anywhere as a backup," Breer continued. "You need your backup to be locked in, and you need him to be healthy—and there'd be concerns, again, fair or not, based on his reputation and history in both those areas."
The 49ers seem content with how things unfolded. While neither Garoppolo nor Lance emerged as long-term solutions, the team is optimistic about Brock Purdy's potential as the quarterback of the future. The 24-year-old did enough to guide the team to the Super Bowl, and the locker room has faith in his abilities.
Breer concluded, "As it is, Garoppolo's had a pretty interesting run, first as a pivotal figure in the twilight of the Patriots dynasty, where he'd been positioned as Brady's heir apparent, and then as the guy that led the Niners to a Super Bowl at the start of the Shanahan Era, only to become someone San Francisco fervently looked to replace."