The San Francisco 49ers made the trade that will likely define Kyle Shanahan’s and John Lynch’s time with the organization by trading a second round pick to the New England Patriots for Jimmy Garoppolo.
Major QB shakeup: 49ers trading 2018 2nd-round draft pick to New England for Patriots’ QB Jimmy Garoppolo, sources tell ESPN.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 31, 2017
At the same time, Brian Hoyer’s time with the 49ers has come to an end:
And another shoe drops: 49ers are releasing QB Brian Hoyer, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 31, 2017
The 49ers still have a pick in the second round in 2018.
49ers owned two second-round picks but the one traded for Jimmy Garoppolo is SF’s original second-round pick, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 31, 2017
Before this trade, the 49ers were often described as a potential landing spot for Kirk Cousins. And coincidentally –or not–the 49ers were described as interested in USC quarterback Sam Darnold as recently as this afternoon. After acquiring Garoppolo however, the 49ers will likely not pursue Cousins nor use a high pick on a quarterback in the 2018 draft.
49ers high on USC quarterback Sam Darnold, per report – 247Sports https://t.co/ajWEbICBi4
— Bay Area Sports (@BayAreaSports9) October 30, 2017
Jimmy Garoppolo is from Arlington Heights, Illinois and attended Eastern Illinois University where he won the Walter Payton Award, was named the 2013–14 OVC Male Athlete of the Year and 2013 College Football Performance FCS National Quarterback of the Year.
Rumor has it that then Cleveland Browns offensive coordinator, Kyle Shanahan, liked Derek Carr and Jimmy Garoppolo in the 2014 draft but ended up with Johnny Manziel.
Browns asked then-offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan to rank available QBs in 2014 draft.
His ranks? 1. Carr. 2. Garoppolo. 3. The rest.
— Jeff Darlington (@JeffDarlington) October 31, 2017
According to an ESPN article by Matt Bowen, 49ers can expect Jimmy Garoppolo to have high-upside in terms of pre-snap reads, field vision, anticipation, beating the blitz and off-schedule plays:
Sure, Garoppolo is still developing. And there will be situations where his lack of reps shows up during games. But given the five key areas we just looked at, Garoppolo should carry high value if the Patriots put him on the trade market.
Jimmy Garoppolo has the potential to be the next Tony Romo or perhaps even a franchise quarterback that is known for winning playoff games. Even though Garoppolo is in the last year of his contract and will be seeking a new, hefty one, the 49ers desperately need a quarterback, were prepared to spend money regardless and don’t end up giving up too much to make this deal.
Time will tell, but the 49ers trade for Garoppolo appears to be a significant, positive step in their brick-by-brick rebuild.
