Jimmy Garoppolo, San Francisco 49ers.
The national media links every available quarterback still breathing to the Seattle Seahawks. It really is getting ridiculous. San Francisco QB Jimmy Garoppolo is the latest.
Last week there was the crazy idea that Seattle would trade for Sam Darnold. Why would the team want him when they didn’t want the guy Carolina replaced Darnold with, Baker Mayfield?
Naturally, with Mayfield off the market, the rumors moved on to the next obvious target in Jimmy G. The 49ers decided to move forward with 2021 first round pick Trey Lance which means they need to trade Garoppolo to another team or outright release him.
From their point of view, San Francisco would like to trade him anything they can get just to get out from under his $19.35M cap hit. From any other team’s point of view, they want to force the 49ers to release him and eat his 2022 salary. Then another team can sign him at a bargain basement price.
The Seahawks aren’t going to pay that kind of money for him, let alone give up any assets in a trade. Then the question moves to whether or not they should sign Garoppolo if (when) he becomes a free agent. The answer to this question depends on what you want from the upcoming season.
If you are in the camp that believes the Seattle Seahawks should try to win every game they play every year, then the answer is probably yes. Coach Pete Carroll’s “always compete” mantra fits this point of view. Most pundits will say the same. Everyone loves a winner, and they will point to the fact that Garoppolo took San Francisco to the Super Bowl and an NFC title game.
First and foremost, Garoppolo isn’t the most reliable player. He’s injury-prone and misses lots of games. Since landing with the Niners in 2017, he played in 46 of 80 regular season games.
Another thing Garoppolo struggles with is throwing the deep ball. Former Seahawks QB Russell Wilson liked to go vertical, with receivers like D.K. Metcalf streaking down the field and hauling in fifty-yard tosses. With Jimmy G under center, Seattle would need to change their offense and use more of a short-passing, West Coast style.
Recently, former teammate Martellus Bennett a story (corroborated by Julian Edelman) about how Garoppolo didn’t answer the call to start a game due to a questionable injury excuse. Bennett brought the QB’s toughness, leadership, and overall desire to play into question. That certainly doesn’t sound like someone the 12s want on their team.
Then there is the effect on Seattle’s status for the 2023 NFL Draft. Currently, the Pro Football Focus mock simulator has the Seahawks picking fourth overall, while Pro Football Network has them picking ninth overall. So both sites believe the Seahawks will win between 4-6 games and have a top ten (maybe top-five) pick.
Garoppolo’s overall body of work proves he’s better than both current Seattle Seahawks quarterbacks, Geno Smith, and Drew Lock. Is he good enough to take them from 4-6 to 10-12 wins? Unlikely.
No one believes that Garoppolo is such a prolific quarterback that the Seahawks not only make the postseason but leads them on a run once they get there. There is a better way to go.
If Garoppolo can’t get them to that level, bringing him in hurts the team’s future. It’s not worth losing a shot at the CJ Stroud/Bryce Young sweepstakes for at best seven wins.
The current plan should be to see what Lock can do playing a full season in Seattle. If he proves himself, then great. They resign him to a more reasonable salary than $40M per season and use the high picks on other positions.
Besides, Lock might not have as bad of a season as many expect. He and tight end Noah Fant have some history together. Fant will be the security blanket when the Seahawks line doesn’t hold up, and he could turn in a career year.
If Lock doesn’t pan out, the same way he didn’t pan out in Denver, then Seattle gets a top five pick and has a great shot at landing one of the two big fish.
Even if the Seahawks pick as late as ninth, the way PFN thinks, they can still package that pick with the first rounder they got from Denver for Wilson to move up.
What do you think about the Seattle Seahawks bringing in Jimmy G? Should they sign him and go for it this year? Or do they sit tight and use next year’s picks wisely? Let us know in the comments section below or on social media.