Why the 49ers could have done more to signal faith in Jimmy Garoppolo this offseason
The 49ers’ faith in Jimmy Garoppolo this offseason has only gone so far.
Yes, general manager John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan came to Garoppolo’s defense at the scouting combine amid criticism for his brutal fourth quarter in the Super Bowl.
“We’re extremely proud of Jimmy and committed to Jimmy moving forward. He’s our guy,” Lynch told reporters in February.
Added Shanahan: “I thought there was much (pressure) and he just took it, handled it all year and got better throughout the year. I was very impressed with him.”
San Francisco maintained that commitment to Garoppolo by not actively pursuing Tom Brady despite being atop the future Hall of Famer’s list of preferred destinations before joining the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
But the 49ers haven’t signaled faith in Garoppolo beyond 2020, indicating he’ll need to keep the team in Super Bowl contention or risk the organization going another direction.
How do we know this?
Salary cap space is at a premium for San Francisco this offseason for the first time since Jim Harbaugh’s tenure. The lack of space was a reason the team traded away DeForest Buckner and allowed Emmanuel Sanders to sign with the New Orleans Saints, a top competitor in the NFC.
The 49ers could have restructured Garoppolo’s contract, converting a portion of his base salary to signing bonus while clearing more cap room to work with.
But doing so would have ensured Garoppolo’s financial future with the team beyond 2020. Converting salary to bonus money means more guaranteed dollars in future seasons. The 49ers have just under $14 million in cap space, according to Overthecap.com, with much of it needed for the incoming draft class.
As things currently stand, Garoppolo has no guaranteed salary remaining in the final two years of his contract in 2021 and 2022. The team could save $25.5 million in cap dollars by releasing him next spring with a palatable $1.4 million dead cap hit. Garoppolo had his $15.7 million in base salary for the coming season guaranteed on Wednesday by remaining on the roster.
The 49ers have made it clear they’re in the business of restructuring some of their largest contracts. They reworked the deals of linebacker Kwon Alexander and center Weston Richburg midway through last season to create more flexibility this spring. Running back Jerick McKinnon’s contract was also remade, giving him a chance to compete for a roster spot despite missing the last two years with recurring knee issues.
Lynch in February was asked about restructuring Garoppolo’s contract in light of doing it with Alexander and Richburg.
“It’s something at our disposal,” he said. “We were a little tighter (cap-wise) than years past. Those guys were amenable to it and so it worked for both sides. So, I think there’s a number of guys we could possibly do that with. I think we’re in a good spot right now. We’ll probably hang tight.”
Hanging tight means seeing what happens in 2020 before making any concrete decisions beyond that.