Hope everyone had a good Memorial Day weekend. I know I did. As I have done the past eight years (minus one year during the height of the pandemic) I attended a music festival.
Typically I try as hard as I can during the three-day festival to shut off the outside noise, but right in the middle of it, my phone started blowing up about a report that the Raiders had changed the contract of new Jimmy Garoppolo to allow them to cut him with no money left behind.
Having no real ability/interest in digging into this news any deeper at the time, it seemed on the surface to be a bombshell. But one that would have to wait a couple days before I was able/willing to give more attention.
Today, I finally did that. And my honest feeling about it now is…
That’s it? That’s all it was?
Seriously, this is what everyone was freaking out about?
I say this not because the situation with Jimmy Garoppolo has no bad side to it. It certainly does. He has a Lisfranc foot injury that required surgery that was performed after he signed with the team. And it puts his availability for the start of the season in question.
The thing is though, that was already known. Josh McDaniels was asked about it last week and we covered it at that time.
This report over the weekend of the Raiders revising Garoppolo’s contract is the news here. And it’s the thing that has everyone running around like their hair is on fire.
What I keep asking myself is how this contract news changes things from what we already knew. It really doesn’t as far as I see it. I mean aside from it being somewhat of good news because it simply means the Raiders covered themselves financially.
The risk was already there of Garoppolo’s surgery not going well or him not rehabbing quickly enough to be ready for the season or, worst case — and seemingly highly unlikely — scenario; the team feeling like he won’t be available at all and cutting him.
Just seeing those words in the contract has everyone like WHAT WILL THE RAIDERS DO WITHOUT JIMMY G? THEY WOULD BE SCREWED!
Yeah, they would be. Yeah, they would be left with veteran backup Brian Hoyer, rookie fourth round pick Aidan O’Connell, and undrafted roster fringe player Chase Garbers.
But, again, that possibility was already on the table with the knowledge that Jimmy G was still dealing with the injury and had to have surgery. The only difference now is, in the unlikely event he can’t go at all, the team wouldn’t be stuck paying him for nothing.
Does the revised contract make it more likely the Raiders would cut the cord if they are unsure about Garoppolo? I mean, I suppose. That seems a bit drastic though. It would require the Raiders almost hoping they can get out of Jimmy G’s contract rather than hoping he will be their starter. If that were the case, why sign him at all? Tank szn right?
The overall situation the Raiders find themselves in with Garoppolo is not ideal. No question about that. But what was the alternative? More ‘playing it safe’ and spinning their wheels with Derek Carr? Nah. Draft a QB high? All the good options were long gone. Sign a different free agent? Can you honestly think of another option that didn’t carry plenty of risks? I can’t.
We will have to wait and see with Garoppolo’s recovery. Should camp start with him still not on the field, the discussion in the media will happen again. And the moment he takes the field for the first time, the discussion will end.
Either Garoppolo will be back and they will see if he is the answer, or he won’t be back and the Caleb Williams discussion will heat up.
Same as it ever was.
