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The fact that the 49ers have reportedly tried to trade for quarterback Matthew Stafford confirms what many have suspected for months. As quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo enters the final years of his contract, with a relatively small cap associated with trading or cutting it, all options are on the table as the 49ers determine who their quarterback is for 2021.
The 49ers have just $ 2.8 million in unallocated signing bonus fees stemming from the contract given to Garoppolo three years ago. He has a base salary of $ 24.1 million for next season, none of which are currently guaranteed – and none of which are guaranteed at any time before the start of the regular season.
So the 49ers can treat Garoppolo like any other potentially available quarterback option that might be available to them. Whether it’s pursuing a free agent who might become available or negotiating for an option established at the job, the 49ers can do whatever they want.
Last year they considered adding quarterback Tom Brady. They decided to stay with Garoppolo. The fact that Brady defeated the Buccaneers in his first year with the team in the Super Bowl surely makes the 49ers wonder if they made the right choice.
Yes, the eruption of injuries suffered by the 49ers this year would have made it very difficult for the 49ers to thrive even with Brady. Yet Garoppolo once again failed to show the kind of durability that characterizes true franchise quarterbacks like Brady, who without a stroke of luck in Week 1 of the 2008 season would be in the middle of a streak. two decades of presentation and performance. , every week.
Garoppolo has missed 23 games in three full seasons with the 49ers. While he performs well when he is able to play, the inability to play becomes a major factor in the 49ers’ ability to justify continuing to roll with Garoppolo.
So what are they going to do? A commercial offer for Deshaun Watson remains possible, although the price will surely be high. Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins, the player 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan speculated the team would sign as a free agent in 2018, but for Garoppolo trade, could be available in a trade. It’s not news that Shanahan would be interested in the player he and his father drafted nine years ago. The news will come if / when the Vikings decide to leave Cousins - and if / when the 49ers decide to absorb a contract that pays out $ 56 million fully guaranteed over the next two years.
The Vikings should first be prepared to trade cousins. Before the Vikings do, they should be ready to absorb $ 20 million in dead money for 2021. They should also be convinced that they have another viable option at the quarterback.
If it wasn’t for Cousins, who would be the Vikings quarterback? Cam Newton? Andy Dalton? Mitchell Trubisky? Ryan Fitzpatrick? Jacoby Brissett? Jameis Winston? Alex Smith?
Minnesota could try to trade for Deshaun Watson, if he was ready to play there. But that would require multiple first-round draft picks (probably three) and maybe more.
Although Cousins played well for three seasons at Minnesota, the Vikings only have one playoff appearance during his tenure with the team. However, in the absence of someone they would trust enough for 2021, they would potentially take a step back, especially since they currently have no offensive coordinator.
The Vikings made a total move when they signed Cousins. There isn’t a similar all-in move they could make this year, unless they go ultra all-in for Watson. Would a trade for someone like Sam Darnold make a difference in a year that likely puts coach Mike Zimmer and general manager Rick Spielman in the hot seat? The Vikings choose too low to get one of the top incoming rookies, and fully trusting a freshman would come at significant risk.
From a continuity standpoint, especially if Klint Kubiak becomes the next offensive coordinator, it makes sense to keep Cousins. Barring a highly unlikely decision by Tom Brady to seek a trade or release from the Buccaneers and Brady’s willingness to continue his career in his mother’s home state, there is no clearly viable option that will help the Vikings to do enough in 2021 to keep the power structure in place for 2022.
Even a trade with the 49ers that would bring Jimmy Garoppolo to Minnesota wouldn’t be enough to guarantee the Vikings will be competitive. While there’s no reason to think the Vikings will suddenly become dominant if Cousins gets a fourth season, putting all the eggs in a different basket might be the fastest way to pop all of those eggs.
So while many Vikings fans may be ready to move on, the coaching staff and the front office should keep Cousins out, if they hope to keep the possibility of the Vikings hitting the reset button at bay afterward. the coming season. Only Cousins minimizes this risk.
By 2022, things could be very different. But 2022 might as well be 2032, as far as the Vikings are concerned. Despite the hard cap that appears to lie on Minnesota’s chances of fighting at a high level in 2021, people who need to get as close to that cap as possible next season will likely decide that Cousins gives them the best chance at it. make.
So where does that leave the 49ers? That remains to be seen, as the coaching carousel begins to spin, thanks to the kickoff that Saturday night’s news of a Lions-Rams quarterback trade provided.
No matter where things end, it’s obvious the 49ers have already started exploring all of the available options.
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