The San Francisco 49ers are stuck between a rock and a hard place with Jimmy Garoppolo.
While the 49ers might want to trade him, it’s hard to find a team willing to pick up his contract.
However, keeping him around could cause a quarterback controversy, with Trey Lance on the roster.
But even with that possible QB controversy, Jimmy G staying with the 49ers may be necessary for both sides.
So what makes a move like this so necessary for both sides?
San Francisco Is The Best Team For Garoppolo
With all the NFL teams that need a quarterback, the current 49ers quarterback’s best move is to stay with his current team.
Those other teams would prove to be a nightmare experience for him.
They aren’t able to win games like the 49ers can.
He also knows the 49ers offense and players very well, which means staying in San Francisco gives him the best chance of success if he starts.
That offense is also one that he’s been excited to learn and play with since coming to San Francisco.
Jimmy Garoppolo on what he knows of #49ers offense, "It's a fun offense to run. It looks like it at least. I'm excited to learn it." pic.twitter.com/8fyGVHRssx
— John Dickinson (@JDJohnDickinson) October 31, 2017
Now that he’s been with the 49ers for five years, he knows that offense very well.
It would be very difficult for him to relearn an offense after spending so much time in San Francisco.
However, even the 49ers have some benefits from keeping Garoppolo around.
Keeping Garoppolo Gives San Francisco Two Options
While it might seem the only upside of keeping Garoppolo is having a good backup QB, there’s another option as well.
However, that other option goes against what they currently want with Lance.
The deal San Francisco made during the 2021 NFL Draft to get Lance shows they want him as their starting QB.
One of the interesting things to remember in the years to come will be that the 49ers could've just stayed put and drafted Mac Jones. They gave up two first-round picks for Trey Lance. Lance needs to be a lot better than Jones for that trade to work out for the 49ers.
— Michael David Smith (@MichaelDavSmith) September 12, 2021
While he can, and will, become the starting quarterback in San Francisco, the team might be better off waiting one more year.
Keeping Garoppolo around as the starting QB gives them time to work with Lance and fix any issues before getting him into games.
It wouldn’t be unheard of to make a move like this, as the Green Bay Packers kept Aaron Rodgers as backup for three years before he took over.
That additional time give him all the tools to learn the Packers offense inside and out.
The same could happen with Lance if the 49ers decide to wait.
Plus, Garoppolo is good enough to help the team make the playoffs again.
So all wouldn’t be lost if they kept him.
However, the one loss for San Francisco with keeping their current quarterback is his huge contract.
Final Take
While trading him helps them free up cap space, keeping him and reworking a deal with him could be a better option.
If they offer Jimmy G an extension where he needs to prove himself, the deal would be great for them.
It would give the team cap space while forcing Garoppolo to perform to make that money.
With preseason one month away, the 49ers have little time to make their choice with Garoppolo.
NEXT: 49ers Writer Predicts Next Step For Jimmy Garoppolo