The one scenario in which a trade for Jimmy Garoppolo makes sense for the Eagles is if it also includes the 49ers’ starting defense. DeMeco Ryans, too. Maybe Deebo Samuel as well.
If you think that sounds absurd, imagine trading a first- or second-round pick for a quarterback who comes with a $27 million cap hit and isn’t appreciably better than the quarterback you already have. Quick thought experiment: Garoppolo and Jalen Hurts do one of those undercover job swap things and spend the 2021 season in the other’s cleats. Which team wins more games: the 49ers with Hurts as their quarterback or the Eagles with Garoppolo? Case closed.
The point here isn’t to legitimize the varied speculation that has emerged over the last week suggesting that the Eagles could be looking to make a big play at quarterback before the draft and that Garoppolo could be a target. Anybody with a nose for offseason stuff should be able to smell what’s likely going on. The 49ers are not committed to second-year quarterback Trey Lance and would love to recoup one of the three first-round picks they traded to select him at No. 3 overall last May. San Francisco does not seem to know whether Lance is any good, but they do know that he isn’t Garoppolo, and that looks like it might be good enough. Whatever both of their futures hold, it’s pretty clear that they can’t involve each other, which leaves the 49ers needing to either cut or trade the latter. Much of what we are hearing is just as likely to be San Francisco attempting to create a sense of demand for Garoppolo as it is to be an accurate reflection of reality. Good ol’ fashioned negotiations in the press.
