Within the next few weeks, the San Francisco 49ers will begin a new era with Trey Lance as the face of their franchise.
This means Jimmy Garoppolo likely will find himself traded to another NFL team after he led San Francisco to two NFC Championship Games and one Super Bowl appearance over the past three seasons.
By now, it’s well-known that Garoppolo and the 49ers have indicated publicly a divorce is in the cards. The veteran quarterback admitted as much following his brutal performance in San Francisco’s NFC Championship Game loss to the eventual champion Los Angeles Rams. In the process, he had hope that the 49ers would work with him to find an ideal landing spot.
“I was talking to John (Lynch) yesterday about finding the right destination. I just want to go to a place where they want to win.”
It now appears that San Francisco is willing to do just that. NFL Media's Jim Trotter reported the following:
“One thing I’ve been told is why this relationship worked this year, which really could have been awkward with them trading up to get Trey Lance, is that they were very transparent with Jimmy from the very beginning about what they expected and what their plans were.
And my understanding is, in the exit meeting, they told Jimmy as well [that] they will continue to be transparent here. And because he is so respected and beloved by his teammates and whatnot, that if they can do right by him in terms of landing him at a spot where he wants to be, and he has a chance to win, they will do that.”
Following the 49ers’ surprising run to the Super Bowl under Colin Kaepernick back in February 2013, the team’s brass worked with Alex Smith to find him a preferred landing spot.
In the end, Smith was dealt to the Kansas City Chiefs for two second-round picks. This came after San Francisco made the decision to move off the veteran for Kaepernick.
Fast-forward nearly a decade, and the situation is nearly identical. While those involved in the decision-making process in Northern California have changed, the belief is San Francisco will do right by Garoppolo.
Remember, he acted as a great veteran mentor to Lance this past season. He’s also highly respected within the locker room and from a broader organizational standpoint.
Where might the 49ers send Garoppolo?
If the goal is to find Garoppolo a winning situation, there are numerous options for both San Francisco and the quarterback. It might limit what the 49ers receive in compensation to narrow down the list of interested teams, but that’s what we mean by doing right by him.
The Pittsburgh Steelers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Commanders and New Orleans Saints are all quarterback-needy teams that have made the playoffs within the past two seasons. The Denver Broncos have a nucleus to be a winning team under new head coach Nathaniel Hackett.
Since it became clear that the 49ers were going to trade Garoppolo, he’s primarily been linked to the Buccaneers, Commanders and Steelers. These still seem to be the likeliest scenarios, depending on whether Tom Brady actually does come out of retirement.
With it increasingly less likely that Russell Wilson and Aaron Rodgers will be traded, there’s every reason to believe Garoppolo’s market will be robust. It’s all now about finding the right situation for the Super Bowl quarterback. Expect that to happen in short order.
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