49ers can have last laugh with soon-to-be former Raiders QB Jimmy Garoppolo

A lot changes in 12 months. The 49ers and Jimmy Garoppolo parted in some slightly acrimonious circumstances, but the 49ers have come out of it looking vindicated.

It goes without saying that the 2022 season was one that was unpredictable in the extreme for the San Francisco 49ers, especially at quarterback.

Jimmy Garoppolo had run his course as the Niners' starter as Trey Lance was ready to assume the mantle of franchise quarterback. It was widely expected Garoppolo would be traded or cut, but instead retooled his contract to become the backup.

It was a distracting situation to say the least.

We know what happened next: Lance got hurt, Garoppolo got hurt, the season seemed lost until a rookie by the name of Brock Purdy came and took the league by storm. The team got to the NFC Championship that year, and the 49ers faced a tricky choice.

Read More: It's official: Chiefs' Steve Spagnuolo is a fan of Brock Purdy


Part of that choice did not involve Garoppolo. He would immediately bolt for the Las Vegas Raiders and hadn't played a game for the team before he went on to criticize the quarterback situation in San Francisco, calling it "weird" and refusing to expand beyond that. It should be noted this was after the 49ers made the choice to move on from Trey Lance to the surprise of some, and trade him to the Dallas Cowboys to the surprise of everybody.

It wouldn't be fair to say Garoppolo was scoffing at Purdy as a player, but certainly he was critical of how he and Lance were treated.

Admittedly, Lance is a victim of poor circumstances more than anything else, but a year later, it's clear that the 49ers have come out of this looking like roses.

Garoppolo is now poised to be imminently cut from the Raiders after being benched midseason and failing a drug test. Lance is a backup on the Cowboys without much prospect of starting, while Purdy showed 2022 wasn't a fluke by having a Pro Bowl season (the first 49ers quarterback since Jeff Garcia to do so) and taking the team to within one drive of a Super Bowl in his full season starting in 2023.

The situation might be weird, but the 49ers were proven right all along.

The Niners are in a great spot with Brock Purdy under center and you can make the most of these good times with an instant bonus waiting for you at DraftKings. You'll get $150 in bonus bets if you deposit $10 or more and then bet $5 or more on any wager. Sign up with DraftKings with this Niner Noise link today.