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Jimmy Garoppolo may not have been the belle of the ball this offseason, but the 49ers quarterback may have had the most consequential summer in the NFL In an NFL offseason where multiple starting quarterbacks moved to new teams, Garoppolo -- the one player who it seemed was guaranteed to move -- on a one-year $6.5 million deal.The 49ers made the decision fairly early in the offseason to move on from Garoppolo and start 2021 third overall pick Trey Lance, but the activity in the quarterback market dried up interest in Garoppolo fairly quickly, as teams were waiting to see his medicals from a shoulder surgery to addre s a "capsule i sue."As a result, the Niners mi sed the boat and kept Garoppolo in town, a miraculously prescient move with , which will sideline him for the season and thrust Garoppolo back into the starting role.MORE:The story of Garoppolo's surgery is, to be frank, a strange one.He got it in March, shortly after the NFL season was over to addre s a capsule i sue that reportedly affected him at the end of last season.For the 49ers, it was busine s as usual while discu sing his recovery. Kyle Shanahan said after the surgery the 49ers expected him to be throwing again by July. But there was always an undertone as the 49ers were involved in trade talks to deal Garoppolo.Garoppolo didn't participate in OTAs and the 49ers excused him from minicamp, furthering the rumors he was going to be moved. Shanahan had also said in June he expected Garoppolo to be moved.Garoppolo was attached to several teams, none Brandon Workman Jersey of which, of course, came to pa s.Washington Commanders to land Garoppolo before trading for Carson Wentz from the Colts.According to reports from ESPN, the 49ers thought they had a suitor in the Commanders prior to Garoppolo's surgery, however, the surgery forced the Commanders to balk and they traded for Wentz instead.Pittsburgh SteelersIt's hard to say just how much interest the Steelers had in Garoppolo, they were indeed interested.MORE:While this could easily be a case of "it would make a lot of sense" as the Steelers had Ben Roethlisberger retiring and no real contingency in place, it stands to reason the Steelers were investigating all options at this time.Pittsburgh, of course, would sign Mitch Trubisky in free agency and draft Kenny Pickett to be on the depth chart ahead of Mason Rudolph.Indianapolis ColtsMuch like the Steelers, this could have easily been a "makes sense" educated gue s, but Ian Rapoport the Colts were in the running for Garoppolo after it became clear they were moving on from Wentz.The Colts had already dealt Wentz and later traded for Matt Ryan from the Falcons after Ryan was alienated from the franchise for how it dealt with the Deshaun Watson situation. Given Wentz's reported failure to lead the Colts locker room the Garoppolo rumors picked up steam, as some Niners had praised Garoppolo's leadership capabilities.Carolina PanthersThis one is almost certainly throwing spitwads at the wall to see what would stick.Garoppolo to the Panthers was heavily speculated after the Panthers mi sed on, well, every available quarterback this offseason. But it doesn't seem like a deal ever came close to materializing.No reports of any real substance linked Garoppolo to the Panthers, with some vague statements of "it could still happen" being floated out there. The Panthers ended up going with . And speaking of...Cleveland BrownsAfter the NFL settled on an 11-game Watson suspension, there was some more spitballing that Garoppolo could end up with the Browns.MORE:This, however, was treated more as a po sible contingency. The Browns had already signed Jacoby Bri sett in the event of a Watson suspension after utterly dismantling their relationship with Mayfield. Again, there weren't any real talks of this happening.Denver BroncosIt's easy to forget, but the Broncos were attached to Garoppolo very early in the offseason before the traded for Ru sell Wilson.It was abundantly clear the Broncos were in the market for a quarterback after last year, and the Wilson rumor mill was drying up fairly rapidly. The Broncos were known to want to take big swings, with Aaron Rodgers and Wilson being their top two names.If they couldn't land them, however, Garoppolo was the next tier of quarterback they could feasibly get. What that would have cost them is up for debate, but it's worth noting Garoppolo would be a substantial upgrade over Drew Lock.Seattle SeahawksWould the 49ers EVER trade a QB who took them to a Super Bowl and an NFC Championship to a division rival? Probably not. But the Seahawks must have inquired about Garoppolo's price.After Wilson moved, the Seahawks were left without a chair with a quarterback battle between Geno Smith and Lock. Although the Seahawks ended up landing on Smith as a starter, they likely looked for a band-aid at some point. However, this is purely speculative as well.Basically, every time a domino toppled over Garoppolo wasn't far behind. For the 49ers, it behooved them to keep Garoppolo in play with the surgery seemingly completely decimating his trade value. The Commanders seem to be the closest team to trading for the quarterback. But Garoppolo's surgery changed the entire landscape of the offseason.If the Commanders landed Garoppolo, it's entirely po sible Wentz doesn't get traded at all or he goes to the Steelers or Browns for a pittance. The Colts seemed determined to move off of Wentz however they could, so where he went would have shaken up where Bri sett or Trubisky ended up.The po sibilities are endle s, and the surgery completely changed the way the offseason played out. Garoppolo not being moved at all was somehow the most fascinating outcome this offseason could have produced for the 49ers. It's fortunate for them it came to pa s as well, with Lance now out of the picture for the season. Fred Lynn Jersey |
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