Niners lock up Garoppolo with Record Deal

If you're a long lost relative of Jimmy Garoppolo's, now's the time to come out of the woodwork as the newly dubbed franchise quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers just got paid. After helping turn a struggling 1-10 49ers team into a team that finished the 2017 season riding a league-best five-game winning streak to finish the season 6-10 as Garoppolo remained undefeated in his seven career starts, two things were very apparent following San Francisco's season-finale win over the division rival L.A. Rams on New Years Eve. 1. 49ers GM John Lynch had plans of keeping Garoppolo in a Niner uniform for many years to come and 2. Jimmy G. was due for a big payday. Lynch delivered on a promise he made back on January 2 when he assured Niner fans after the season that Garoppolo wasn't going anywhere, by inking him to a 5-year, $137.5 Million contract. The deal which includes $48.7 Million guaranteed, makes Garoppolo the highest paid player in NFL history on a per year basis as the 26-year old QB who will only be 31-years of age when his contract expires, will earn an annual salary of $27.5 Mil and $86.4 Mil. in the first three years of his deal.

While an extension was rumored to be in the works according to 49er brass, nobody expected a deal to get done this fast as Lynch won over the 49er faithful yet again by wasting little time to lock down their guy through the 2022 season. Lynch knew signing Garoppolo long-term was a huge step in the right direction as far as establishing the groundwork for a team that's been in rebuild mode since the departure of former head coach Jim Harbaugh following the 2014 season, as well as a major selling point in attracting free-agents who are scheduled to hit the open market to the Bay Area. However, he also knows that there's still lots of work to be done to get the team to where it needs to be in order to accomplish their ultimate goal of hoisting that sixth Lombardi trophy.

Despite inking Jimmy G. to his new lucrative deal that will pay him a record $27.5 Million a year, eclipsing the previous mark of $27 Mil. set by Detroit Lions QB Matthew Stafford who agreed to his deal just a year ago, the signing which will undoubtedly have an effect on the market for QB's moving forward, will likely be a bargain down the road with free-agent quarterback Kirk Cousins seeking an expensive contract that is expected to leapfrog him over Garoppolo in dollar signs. And Cousins' deal will likely be left in the dust soon after by the continued QB carousel as Matt Ryan, Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees are all due for new contracts as well. Even after adding Garoppolo's contract to the books, GM John Lynch will still have north of $100 Million in cap space available for this offseason if they choose to bring in a new toy or two on offense for Garoppolo to play with and build around their newly paid franchise QB, or perhaps bolster the offensive-line to keep Garoppolo's jersey clean or some much needed depth on defense. Lynch made it very simple in an interview with Michael Silver of the NFL Network following the team's press-conference as to why free-agents should choose to buy in and join the team, "It's 75 degrees and sunny outside, we got Jimmy Garoppolo, come and join us."

After just seven career starts, all of which were wins including five with the Niners and two in New England, Jimmy G. who dazzled on the field with his new team despite little time to adjust to a new offense, will now get a full offseason to study head coach Kyle Shanahan's complex system. Considering how foreign Garoppolo was to the system and how quickly he was thrown into the mix following the injury to QB C.J. Beathard, I'd say he did a pretty good. After getting the nod to start in weeks 13-17, Garoppolo impressed the coaching staff by throwing for 1,542 yards, third in the league during that span behind only Phillip Rivers' 1,567 and Jameis Winston's 1,584. Though the sample size remains small at just seven career starts, Garoppolo's stats are nothing to scoff at as he's led his offense to the most points per game (28.3) over the last 25 seasons with a minimum of seven starts, edging a former 49er great in Steve Young (27.6) and tying him with his former Patriots teammate and mentor Tom Brady (28.3). In addition to being just one of five QB's to win his first seven NFL starts since the 1970 merger, his 2,038 passing yards in those seven career starts are 4th most since 1970, behind only Kirk Cousins, Cam Newton and Billy Volek.

It seems like just yesterday that San Francisco acquired Garoppolo from the Patriots via trade back on October 31 for a 2018 second-round pick in April's Draft. The deal which sparked growing rumors of turmoil and dysfunction in the Patriots locker room and front-office as to why New England would deal Garoppolo, not to mention for as small a return as a single second-round pick, was praised by many on the 49ers end who went out and grabbed their man while other teams remained hesitant. For what it's worth, San Francisco's odds to win the Super Bowl next season have risen exponentially, having jumped out with the 10th best odds at 20/1. While a lot can change from now until the start of the season, I think it's safe to say the Niner Empire aren't the only ones buying in on Jimmy G.


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