Jimmy Garoppolo trade is being held up by this one X-factor

The 49ers are running out of time to trade Jimmy Garoppolo, and this one crucial nugget could be the simple reason why no deal has surfaced yet.

Earlier this offseason, we could look at a number of crucial reasons why the San Francisco 49ers couldn’t trade veteran quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.

For starters, the injury factor in the wake of offseason shoulder surgery delayed him from throwing until training camp. And, at least according to the Niners themselves, this got in the way of some assumed trade discussions.

On top of that, the offseason quarterback carousel spun around in ways San Francisco couldn’t have predicted with many quarterback-needy teams going with contingency options instead of trying to lure away a 30-year-old oft-injured Jimmy G.

With only days to go before the 2022 preseason kicks off, Garoppolo is back throwing again and cleared from his injury. And there are teams now emerging with some serious quarterbacking problems, particularly the Cleveland Browns amid Deshaun Watson’s looming yearlong suspension, the New York Giants with Daniel Jones struggling, and the entire crop of Pittsburgh Steelers signal-callers not precisely lighting up practices.

So, why hasn’t Garoppolo been traded yet?

Turns out, he has a pretty good say in this.

Would-be Jimmy Garoppolo trade hinges on money… again

Garoppolo is scheduled to earn $24.2 million in base salary this season, according to Over the Cap. That number becomes guaranteed if he’s on the 49ers’ roster for their first game of the season, Sunday, Sept. 11, against the Chicago Bears.

A lot can happen between now and then, of course. But, of the teams mentioned above, those having problems with their own quarterbacks, only the Browns have enough cap space to absorb Garoppolo’s base salary via trade:

Cleveland Browns: $49,062,175
Pittsburgh Steelers: $9,795,599
New York Giants: $5,329,472

This is where things get interesting.

Sure, Garoppolo’s camp could agree to a restructured deal as part of a trade, lessening his 2022 cap number and potentially adding either void years or an extension. Yet those three teams aren’t likely to engineer that kind of move. The Browns wouldn’t with Watson presumably coming back in full for 2023, while the Steelers are hoping rookie signal-caller Kenny Pickett is in full force by then, too.

Likewise, Giants head coach Brian Daboll will likely be honing in on his personal replacement for Jones.

And would Garoppolo want to take a pay cut? Probably not. As NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco broke down, Garoppolo can effectively choose where he wants to go if there are any discussions about decreased salary even if there’s a lack of a no-trade clause existing on his current deal:

"Although Garoppolo does not have a no-trade clause in his contract, he can still determine where he goes by declining to negotiated a reduced contract with all teams but the one he wants to join.Another team could still have a significant injury at quarterback, but Garoppolo still can likely determine whether he wants to play for that team. They only way he will not determine his next employer is if another team is willing to pay his full scheduled salary.And that seems as that’s an unlikely scenario at this point."

The Niners, too, could agree to take on some of Jimmy G’s salary, which isn’t unlike what Cleveland did when it traded quarterback Baker Mayfield to the Carolina Panthers after acquiring Watson.

However, with only $1.4 million in dead money, if released outright, San Francisco probably wouldn’t go that route either.

So, again, Garoppolo’s pending trade is back to hinging on the financials, which are awfully complicated heading into the preseason.

dark. Next. 30 greatest players in 49ers franchise history