On Monday evening, the San Francisco 49ers made a major trade, acquiring Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo from the New England Patriots for a 2nd round draft choice. Garoppolo, who turns 26 in just a couple days as I am writing this, was a second round draft choice (62nd overall) by the Patriots in 2014. He spent most of his time as a backup to the legendary Tom Brady, but he has a few starts under his belt, primarily in 2016 when Brady was suspended.
While Garoppolo is a free agent at year's end, the 49ers will try to give him an extension at some point. And if they cannot get an immediate extension done, they will franchise tag him and try to work something out later. Simply put, he is seen as the franchise QB moving forward. With that, there are many dominoes that fall and the whole plan that people foresaw the 49ers having is now changed a bit. So here are some implications that arise now due to this sudden and surprising trade.
1) No Kirk Cousins in SF:
Everyone and their mothers thought Kirk Cousins was going to wind up in San Francisco. His haste to get out of D.C (who doesn't want to leave there these days), his connections with Shanahan, and the fact that the 49ers could easily pay him what he wants with all the cap space they will have. It was a match made in heaven, until it wasn't. 49ers clearly did not want to deal with that Merry Go Round in D.C that is revolving around Dan Snyder continually tagging Kirk Cousins to death. The prospect of Dan Snyder tagging Cousins at an astronomical price of $30M+ is not out of the question given Snyder's personality and his continued pursuit of screwing everyone else over, especially if their last name is Shanahan. 49ers weren't about to do that dance with the Redskins and who can blame them. I'm so sorry, Kirk, but I hope you didn't buy your house in the Bay Area yet.
2) 2018 QB draft class falling apart:
The Quarterback class in 2018 was set to be historic. Well, this was until every QB with a pulse in this class began to have problems. The chosen one himself Sam Darnold decided to become human, Josh Rosen turned into a pumpkin after a few games, Josh Allen fell apart, and Lamar Jackson is not a QB in the NFL if I've ever seen one. Darnold and Allen may stay in school to boot as well. So the Big 12s top two QBs Mason Rudolph and Baker Mayfield may be the best bet at that position in this draft, and neither guy are good enough for the 49ers to take in the top 3, which will likely be their draft position. 49ers clearly didn't feel compelled by these options and decided to go with someone at least a bit more proven. Again, who can blame them. Now, they can use their top pick in the next draft to get someone else (who is ready for Saquon Barkley in red & gold).
3) More money to spend elsewhere:
The 49ers are set to have well over $100M In cap space in the offseason. This is an astronomical amount for those who do not know. As I mentioned before, Kirk Cousins was likely the guy the 49ers wanted initially, but then changed course for reasons I mentioned above. Now, had they signed Cousins, if he even reached unrestricted free agency, he would have likely gotten the biggest contract in NFL history as quality starting QBs do not reach the open market that often. This contract would have been upwards to $30M a season w/ a high amount of guarantees and probably a hefty signing bonus. Instead, they will go with Garoppolo, who will cost far less, either in an extension or with the first-year franchise tag. 49ers will be able to use the money saved not winning a bidding war (let's be honest, with their cap space they would have easily won a bidding war for Cousins) to spend to help in other areas, and the 49ers need help in basically every area.
The Jimmy Garoppolo trade is a big one for the 49ers. They have found their QB and have suddenly answered the biggest question people have had about them. 49ers getting Garoppolo effectively changes a lot of things they can do. The move gives them a lot of flexibility but also has the potential to shape some other organizations in a ripple effect.
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