Jimmy Garoppolo trade to Browns is possible (just not likely)

The rumor mill surrounding Jimmy Garoppolo and his future with the 49ers is swirling up again, and the Browns have somehow emerged as a destination.

The San Francisco 49ers weren’t able to trade quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo during their most recent best opportunity, the 2022 NFL Draft. Instead, general manager John Lynch and Co. retained the hope for a market picking back up on the Niners’ proverbial lame-duck signal-caller.

While injuries, a hefty salary and offseason shoulder surgery didn’t help matters much, it’s looking as if Garoppolo’s trade market is going to be pickup up again.

For starters, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported Garoppolo is on schedule to start throwing again soon before training camp begins, and that’ll be a huge component to any other team willing to make an offer to San Francisco.

There’s another major element in all of this, too, the reported movement between the Seattle Seahawks and Cleveland Browns for quarterback Baker Mayfield.

If talks are heading up between those two teams, Garoppolo could have another suitor in the Browns, right? Especially if Cleveland’s perceived starting quarterback this season, Deshaun Watson, does end up receiving a yearlong suspension for off-field allegations of sexual misconduct.

Possibly. But we shouldn’t automatically classify this as probable.

Why Browns won’t trade for 49ers QB Jimmy Garoppolo

The Browns are arguably being punished for reaching on Watson before whatever settlements, both off the field and within the league in terms of suspensions, are taken care of. Their relationship with Mayfield has probably soured beyond repair, meaning it’ll have to be Watson or a contingency plan elsewhere.

Yet that contingency plan probably isn’t going to include Garoppolo.

Last week, ESPN’s Jake Trotter (h/t Bleacher Report) noted that backup quarterback Jacoby Brissett would be Cleveland’s QB1 if Watson winds up being suspended, not Mayfield:

"The Cleveland Browns are still bracing for a significant suspension to their starting quarterback. If the NFL does suspend [Deshaun Watson], expect the Browns to enter training camp with Jacoby Brissett, not Baker Mayfield, as their starting quarterback. While Mayfield remains on Cleveland’s roster, I’ve been told he has no intention of playing for the Browns again. Cleveland has no plans for this to happen either. Instead, in the event of a Watson suspension, look for the Browns to move forward with Brissett, the former Indianapolis Colt, as the starter at quarterback."

Read More: 3 choices 49ers have with Jimmy Garoppolo (and why each makes sense)

This sure sounds like Cleveland would be far more comfortable going with a player who has already spent the offseason with the team. And it wouldn’t cost the Browns anything, at least in terms of trade capital, to simply promote Brissett to a starting job if Watson is out indefinitely.

Garoppolo would cost up to $25.5 million in post-trade salary for 2022, per Over the Cap, and even Cleveland wouldn’t want to absorb that. Sure, Garoppolo might be forced to take a drastic pay cut, or the 49ers could agree to pay a portion of his salary (not likely).

OTC does have the Browns at over $42 million in cap space, for what it’s worth, though.

Still, signs are pointing to Cleveland wanting to go with other options instead of Garoppolo, meaning the Niners’ trade market for him might not be quite as lucrative as it may appear.