Jimmy Garoppolo went from a top-16 NFL starter in the league, to "what team is he on again?", in a matter of seasons. The former franchise quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers was replaced by Trey Lance, only to be replaced by Brock Purdy for good two years ago. Garoppolo then signed a deal with the Las Vegas Raiders to be their new quarterback in the wake of the Derek Carr era. What a dud!
Garoppolo would do what he does which is get hurt, play poorly at times and have lapses of judgment. If he wasn't so ridiculously good-looking, he'd probably be out of the league already. The reason his name is coming up this week is that he was a post-June 1 cut for the Silver and Black. Because he received a two-game PED suspension to start next year, this frees up even more money.
Simply put, Garoppolo is the gift that keeps on giving for the Raiders. Having him be a post-June 1 cut allows for the Raiders to spread out his dead money over the next two years: $4.26 million for 2024 and $12.8 million in 2025. Factor in him having to forfeit $11.25 million in guarantees for the PED violation, and cutting Garoppolo when they did will save the Raiders more than $24 million.
Garoppolo just signed a one-year deal worth $3 million to be a backup with the Los Angeles Rams.
Very rarely do we look at the Raiders and say, "good job by you!" when it comes to how they manage the salary cap and build a roster. This should come as no surprise now with former Los Angeles Chargers general manager Tom Telesco taking over for Dave Ziegler full-time this offseason. Remember that Garoppolo was a Ziegler and a Josh McDaniels guy because of New England ties.
With the money the Raiders saved, they can address other areas of need this deep into free agency. Getting a cornerback should be at the top of the list. More importantly, they might have two better quarterbacks already on their roster in veteran journeyman Gardner Minshew II and second-year pro Aidan O'Connell. Garoppolo has been a shell of himself ever since the 2021 NFL postseason ended.
Overall, this is a prime example of why the NFL is such a beautiful thing. You have to be really bad at what you are doing to stay down forever. The Raiders are a poorly run franchise, but they have had their moments over the last few years. Getting out from under the Garoppolo contract was huge. More importantly, I think they are going to surprise some people this season. I really think they will.
