Jimmy Garoppolo, 3 others 49ers should have on trade block

The 49ers are still seeking a trade partner for Jimmy Garoppolo, but they should strongly consider putting these three other players on the block, too.

NFL trades can be weird.

A year ago, the San Francisco 49ers engineered a trade with the Denver Broncos that sent depth linebacker Jonas Griffith to the AFC West in exchange for a sixth-round NFL Draft pick and a seventh-round pick swap.

This offseason, the Niners are trying to move quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo via trade, yet there haven’t been any legitimate suitors as of yet.

It’s weird to think a team wanted to trade for Griffith, but none want to trade for Garoppolo.

Yes, money and injuries can be major X-factors in pulling off any trade, and there is a slew of other things that get in the way, too. But, as fans saw with regards to the Griffith trade, it’s possible to move any player on any roster if another team is even remotely interested in striking a deal.

Who knows if general manager John Lynch will execute any trades between now and Week 1, especially with training camp and the preseason yet to pan out. But that doesn’t mean he should shy away from placing these four players on San Francisco’s trade block right away.

49ers trade-block player No. 4: Jimmy Garoppolo

Again, the obvious.

The 49ers have had Garoppolo on the trade block all offseason and have publicly stated such. However, perhaps in light of his offseason shoulder surgery and would-be $25.55 million post-trade base salary, per Over the Cap, teams aren’t biting.

The Niners could theoretically retain Garoppolo as an awfully expensive backup to his heir apparent, quarterback Trey Lance, but that comes not only at the risk of committing big dollars to a benched player but also inviting the same media circus back that surrounded the quarterback controversy last year.

San Francisco should want to avoid that.

The market for Jimmy G might be thin or even nonexistent right now. However, all it would take between now and Week 1 is for another team to not be thrilled with its quarterback situation in camp or a starter to suffer a serious injury.

Markets change fast, and that appears to be what the 49ers are banking on with regards to Garoppolo being on the trade block.