The San Francisco 49ers have a Super Bowl quarterback they no longer need. The Cleveland Browns have a playoff roster currently hamstrung by a quarterback staring down a possible full-season suspension thanks to an alleged years-long pattern of predatory sexual behavior.
If Deshaun Watson’s six-game suspension to start the 2022 NFL season is extended via the league’s recent appeal, those two teams could work out a deal.
The Cleveland Plain Dealer’s Mary Kay Cabot reported Thursday the Browns could be in the market for San Francisco’s former starter should Watson miss more than six games this fall. Garoppolo would take the reins of an offense whose other active quarterback options are limited to Jacoby Brissett, Joshua Dobbs and Josh Rosen.
#Browns will consider acquiring #49ers Jimmy Garoppolo if Deshaun Watson's 6-game suspension increases https://t.co/X7EgcPw5yI
— Mary Kay Cabot (@MaryKayCabot) August 11, 2022
Garoppolo would provide an upgrade over a stable of backups. While Brissett shined briefly in the wake of Andrew Luck’s retirement, he’s been unable to recapture that form. He’s got just a 9:7 touchdown-to-interception ratio and a 75.8 passer rating in 29 games — and 12 starts — since a knee injury derailed the Colts’ 5-2 beginning in 2019. His teams are just 4-8 in those starts.
Garoppolo, on the other hand, has been a focal point of very good 49ers teams despite his flaws as a passer. He’s been to two NFC title games and a Super Bowl in the last three years alone. Since 2019 he ranks sixth among 31 qualified quarterbacks (at least 850 snaps played) in expected points added. Brissett clocks in at 25th.
It’s not a perfect match. Garoppolo wouldn’t have the weapons that helped him flourish in San Francisco. The Niners boosted his profile by surrounding him with playmakers that could take a short pass and make it look considerably better on the stat sheet. The team has led the league in yards after catch each of the last four seasons.
The Browns’ 5.5 yards after catch in 2021 pales compared to San Francisco’s 6.6. Jarvis Landry, who led all Cleveland wideouts, is no longer with the team. Amari Cooper, the team’s new WR1, matched a career low by averaging just 3.5 yards after securing the ball in 2021.
Still, a dynamic running game and solid blocking will take the pressure off any quarterback’s shoulders. Cleveland also boasts a rising young defense that ranked seventh against the pass last fall. That group would help stem the bleeding from Garoppolo’s unfortunate flaw of making absolutely baffling throws roughly once per quarter. Few quarterbacks combine close-range passing and concerning interception rates with the efficiency of the 49er veteran.
Garoppolo may not be the quarterback the Browns had hoped to play in 2022, but he’s an upgrade over the player they may be forced to play. Cleveland has the cap space to absorb his salary in full, which would likely cut down the draft compensation the team would have to send westward in exchange. It’s the obvious fit, much like the Panthers’ acquisition of exiled former No. 1 pick Baker Mayfield was earlier this summer.
