2022 Offseason thread

[Samurai]

I must be less optimistic than the rest of you.

I imagine the Colts are going to prefer Ryan.

Falcons probably won't go for Jimmy.

At this point I'm praying Carolina comes through and takes Jimmy.

Is Ryan going anywhere now that Atlanta missed out on Watson? The Colts remain the most logical landing spot, as they're actually a playoff contender with even passable QB play. But they may be content to wait on a Mariota or Fitzpatrick instead of coughing up picks for Jimmy.

Wonder if Ryan could have the same kind of impact as Stafford did on the Rams last year.

Problem is the 49ers don't have the kind of weapons as the Rams for downfield threats, though maybe they would have made better use of Kittle.

Like I said a couple of years ago, Mike Lombardi said the 49ers should trade for Stafford.

Probably would have cost a lot less than what they traded away for Lance.

Not convinced that we don't have comparable downfield threats. Granted our receivers aren't going to challenge our Olympic 4x100 team, but their speed is certainly comparable to the Rams. Looking at 40 times, Deebo (4.48) and Aiyuk (4.5) are faster than Woods (4.51) and Kupp (4.62) and Kittle (4.52) is much faster than Higbee (4.62). (note: not including OBJ since he is not, as of this writing, under contract with the Rams). The difference is that Jimmy doesn't have the arm strength to throw deep (either straight flies and certainly not deep outs) nor did he have the time to throw those longer routes. Lance has the arm strength but it is very questionable whether our O-line can give him enough time for that with Brunskill and Compton largely impersonating matadors against strong rushers. We haven't replaced Brunskill (yet) and McGlinchey is coming off an injury, plus we have a big question mark at LG. I think our O-line will be a bigger factor in eliminating all deep routes from our playbook rather than our receivers.

[CrimsonCrew]

Aiyuk was dealing with a core muscle injury leading up to the combine, so that time likely does not reflect his true speed. In college, GPS put him at 21.97 miles, which is faster than all but three NFL players clocked the year he was drafted. I think we'll see him unleashed a little bit with Lance under center.

Granted, despite having the arm strength, Lance was not very accurate on deep balls in college.

[wco81]

I'm not just referring to the speed of the WRs but the kind of passes the 49ers have thrown to them, a lot of screen passes, short routes over the middle.

Not throwing intermediate corner patterns like Stafford was connecting with Kupp on.

[CrimsonCrew]

I'm not just referring to the speed of the WRs but the kind of passes the 49ers have thrown to them, a lot of screen passes, short routes over the middle.

Not throwing intermediate corner patterns like Stafford was connecting with Kupp on.

Yeah, but that's more a product of Garoppolo than Shanahan's offense. Matt Ryan threw downfield a lot more under Shanahan. Hell, Nick Mullens threw downfield a lot more, too.

[Dodub]

I was watching Maiocco’s podcast last night and he was discussing the possibility of them cutting Jimmy. He said that there is no chance that Jimmy can be on the team with a 25 million cap number and the team will simply cut him if they can’t find a trade partner.

[Samurai]

I was watching Maiocco’s podcast last night and he was discussing the possibility of them cutting Jimmy. He said that there is no chance that Jimmy can be on the team with a 25 million cap number and the team will simply cut him if they can’t find a trade partner.

Releasing Jimmy has always been an option. Would suck though that we couldn't even get a bag of popcorn for him instead of nothing.

[Dodub]

I was watching Maiocco’s podcast last night and he was discussing the possibility of them cutting Jimmy. He said that there is no chance that Jimmy can be on the team with a 25 million cap number and the team will simply cut him if they can’t find a trade partner.

Releasing Jimmy has always been an option. Would suck though that we couldn't even get a bag of popcorn for him instead of nothing.

I think this is pretty telling. The local media and certain groups of the 49ers fandom have been very high on Jimmy. The National media hasn’t been near as kind fo him. It appears that most teams agree with the National media, Jimmy is simply a mid tier QB at his absolute best. With his injury concerns, it makes his value next to nothing.

[thesack12]

I was watching Maiocco’s podcast last night and he was discussing the possibility of them cutting Jimmy. He said that there is no chance that Jimmy can be on the team with a 25 million cap number and the team will simply cut him if they can’t find a trade partner.

Releasing Jimmy has always been an option. Would suck though that we couldn't even get a bag of popcorn for him instead of nothing.

I think this is pretty telling. The local media and certain groups of the 49ers fandom have been very high on Jimmy. The National media hasn’t been near as kind fo him. It appears that most teams agree with the National media, Jimmy is simply a mid tier QB at his absolute best. With his injury concerns, it makes his value next to nothing.

If they do ultimately wind up releasing Garoppolo, it would certainly say something. What that is though, would be up to one's opinion.

For example, the Colts weren't able to trade Peyton Manning and they just cut him. Does that mean nobody wanted him, of course it doesn't. It just means that due to a plethora of factors, a trade wasn't able to be consummated.

For me, there are 2 main factors in play here.

1) Jimmy's shoulder surgery, was a killer and wasn't good for anybody involved. Not Jimmy, not the 49ers, and not teams interested in him. I live in Indianapolis, and the talk around here is largely in favor of them wanting to get Jimmy. However, Frank Reich recently went on record saying he wants/needs a QB that will be available the entire offseason. Colts had to endure large portions of the offseason/preseason last year without having Wentz available. Reich doesn't want to not have his QB available again. With the shoulder surgery, Jimmy is obviously out for the next couple months.

2) Despite my earlier praise of the front office awhile back for their vision/handling of the QB situation, I think they have proceeded to overplay their hand here. Deshaun Watson suddenly entering the picture substantially damaged their strategy, but that's on them they should have prepared for that. I think they kept holding out for more, trying to use leverage from other QB needy teams and now as the music is starting to stop they are running out of teams looking for a chair.

I get that they might try to hold on to him for as long as possible, hoping there might be a QB injury and a new team comes calling. But that would be relying on several things: 1) An injury like that actually happens 2) Said team would be interested in Garoppolo 3) Said team would still have enough cap to aquire Garoppolo.

I'm still holding out hope they can trade Jimmy but the hope dims a bit more with each passing day. In any event, there really is no way they can hold him for too much longer. At the very least he needs to be gone by the time the first organized team function occurs, which I believe is rookie mini camp.

Jimmy is too likable/respected of a guy by his teammates and has had too much success here. If he's around the team, it would be nothing but a distraction and there would be internal conflict throughout the team where some would be pushing for Garoppolo to be QB1 again.

We're past that point now, its time to dance with Lance.

[thesack12]

At least we got our return man. Ray-Ray McCloud signed a 2-year deal for up to $10.4M. Led the league in punt return yardage a season ago and can also return kickoffs (35 returns for a 22.2 average last season). Also caught 39 passes last season as a WR. Also a threat as a runner on jet sweeps. Seems kinda more of a gadget guy than someone you can count on as a WR1 or WR2 but he should be a weapon for us behind Deebo, Aiyuk and Jennings. Could also be a weapon giving a blow for Deebo who will need to take plays off throughout the game because of how much he is used as a RB.

Although, on the surface that seems steep for a return man, I like it.

This team has been plagued with thoroughly un-inspriring special teams play for years. I've been quite vocal with my disdain of Richie James et all, and their knack for constantly leaving yards on the field. It will be nice to see that area of the game (hopefully) being more prioritized and more productive. Especially with, as mentioned, he can return both kicks and punts which is a nice boost of his value.

This pickup also means that they don't have to stress about finding a returner in the draft. While it wouldn't have been a huge factor, that should open up the overall draft board slightly.

I also agree that Shanahan will probably be able to scheme up McCloud to be more useful than just in the return game. Obviously not the same exact skilset, but I can see Kyle using McCloud in a lot of the ways he envisioned using Jet McKinnon before he took up permanent residency on IR for basically his entire tenure with the 49ers.

[Jikkle]

The only thing we know with the Jimmy G saga is they haven't gotten a great offer for him.

Impossible to say if they have a decent offer on the table but are holding out for more or pretty low offers that they are hoping a small bidding war will increase the offers a bit. At this point I doubt they have a 2nd or 3rd on the table and are holding out for more but can't say it's impossible either.

Clear that teams don't view him as a high-end or long-term starter or he would've been traded already regardless of what else is happening in the QB market.

I'd say as long as he's off the team one way or another by the time offseason workouts start it's fine but if they are going to hold onto him until training camp so he can get healthy and they can offload him then it'll be an issue.

[Dodub]

Either Lynch is an absolute magician or he is using the media to lie for him in one last act of desperation.

It’s reported that a team is offering 2 second rounders which I have a really hard time believing.

[CrimsonCrew]

Either Lynch is an absolute magician or he is using the media to lie for him in one last act of desperation.

It’s reported that a team is offering 2 second rounders which I have a really hard time believing.

Pretty hard to believe. If someone offered us two second rounders, we should take it IMMEDIATELY. I would jump at a single second-round pick at this point.

I just can't make sense out of this on several fronts. If it's true, why haven't they accepted it? And if it's just a negotiating ploy, I don't understand the thought process in saying it's two second rounders. Beating two second rounders would take a first rounder, and there just isn't a team out there at this point (or maybe any point) that is going to do that. If this is a ruse to stir up the market, he would have been better off saying they had an offer for a third. Then maybe someone offers a second. With this purported offer, there isn't anywhere realistic to go.

I've come around a bit to the idea that circumstances have just been pretty F-ed in regards to their efforts to move him, rather than gross mismanagement (though I'm definitely still open to that view). The injury/surgery threw a wrench in things, and this QB market has been the most active we've seen in a LONG time (ever, so far as I can remember). But this sort of rumor, if started by the team, could just blow up in their face and make them look silly. If they cut him after putting out that there was an offer of two seconds, they just look inept. And only slightly less so if they trade him for, say, a fourth (which would still be a good move at this point, IMO, if that's all we can get).

Real head-scratcher, but let's hope there's some truth to it and they're closing in on a trade.

[CrimsonCrew]

That said, one positive takeaway is that there are apparently still teams sniffing around Garoppolo.

[CrimsonCrew]

Ryan to the Colts. That's a bit of a shock. We might be well along the road to cutting Jimmy. Crazy.

[CrimsonCrew]

To expound upon this a bit more, the Colts made sense for Jimmy as they are a playoff-ready team who had nothing whatsoever at the QB position. Now that they are off the market, all the other teams except maybe the Saints are basically in a rebuild situation and will not have the same sort of interest in an experienced but physically limited player. Better for them to pursue the upside of a Mayfield or a draft pick. I just don't see where the market for Jimmy will develop at this point, and certainly don't see a bidding war for him.

Again, given the injury, it's tough to say just how poorly they've handled this. But it's hard to look at some of the other moves teams have made and not think that there was a market for Jimmy, it just wasn't quite what the Niners thought it would be and they're going to be stuck with their d***s in their hands.

[CrimsonCrew]

And the Saints are re-signing Winston. There goes the trade market. Don't see what we do with Jimmy now. Maybe the Panthers get super desperate and offer...anything?

[Dodub]

Saints take Winston, Falcons take Mariota, Panthers are the last hope.

[Samurai]

The true last hope is hoping a starting QB for a contender slips in the shower and tears up his knee. They then kneel before Lynch and offer up everything they have and beg Lynch to not laugh at them for passing up on Jimmy earlier.

OK, guess we might as well just release him now and start focusing on other free agents with the Jimmy money.

[GS Warriors 1]

I sort of banked Carolina as drafting a QB after the failed Watson pursuit. If Carolina does get Garoppolo, it probably says that this is the weakest QB draft class in years.

[CrimsonCrew]

Hard to see this as the Niners not completely misjudging the market. I can't shake the feeling that they banked on a Garoppolo trade to partially offset the Lance trade when they made it, and let that judgment affect their approach to the trade market this year. They should have jumped at a second or third, and instead, they seem to have gotten greedy.

It's possible that there never was a trade market, but I find that awfully hard to believe in such a depressed QB market (at least prior to the blockbuster trades).