"His latest injury happened at the worst possible time" - NFL insider reveals why 49ers haven't traded Jimmy Garoppolo
With the new league-year officially beginning almost a week ago, Jimmy Garoppolo still remains a San Francisco 49er , and it comes as a surprise to many.
Garoppolo was a hot quarterback candidate to be traded this off-season, and even last season, his name was brought up in trade talks. As the quarterback carousel is in full effect and almost over, many wonder when and if Jimmy G will be traded and to whom.
One of the biggest questions is, why haven't the 49ers traded Garoppolo yet? Aside from all the other dominoes falling, Garoppolo's shoulder injury that he suffered late into the season is making teams back off in acquiring him.
Garoppolo suffered a shoulder injury during the 49ers' Wild Card game against the Dallas Cowboys. He was already playing with a torn ligament in his thumb that he suffered during Week 16. Garoppolo played through that injury during the team's impressive playoff run, and unlike the thumb, the shoulder required surgery.
Following the end of the season, the quarterback waited some time to get the surgery done. Earlier this month, he had successful surgery on the shoulder, but his timetable remains a big question.
#49ers QB Jimmy Garoppolo underwent shoulder surgery today, sources say. All went as expected (i.e. "successful surgery"). The plan and hope is Garoppolo is throwing well ahead of training camp. Only question is which team's camp it'll be.
Shortly after the surgery, 49ers GM John Lynch addressed the situation.
Lynch said:
"The shoulder, I never like saying minor when someone is having surgery," Lynch continued, "but it's a capsule issue in the back of his shoulder that you can try to rehab, but if it doesn't get well, the rehab. Then, you go to the alternative route. And that's what they've decided to do. So, it's going to take some time, but he's going to be fine."
The Indianapolis Colts were interested in Jimmy Garropolo but backed off due to his shoulder injury
According to ESPN's Diana Russini, the Indianapolis Colts backed off of trading for Jimmy G due to the status of his shoulder.
It appears the #Colts didn’t trade for #49ers QB Jimmy Garoppolo due to concerns over his shoulder injury, per @diannaespn https://t.co/1ZR4Uu0xwo
While it is expected that he will be fine for the start of the regular season, the problem with it is that he will likely miss the entire offseason program for a new team. This steered the Colts away from inquring about him.
Another hurdle to overcome is passing a physical upon being traded to a new team. There have been instances where players have been traded or signed to a new team, and the deals/trades don't go through if a player can't pass a physical. If Jimmy G were traded right now, he might not be able to pass a physical, which means a trade couldn't go through.
Maybe later on in the season, when Garoppolo is healthy and throwing fine, he will be traded to a team who still has quarterback issues.