Garoppolo, 49ers complete long-term record deal
Jimmy Garoppolo could have waited and cashed in even more than he did after other quarterbacks re-set the market.
The San Francisco 49ers could have used a franchise tag instead of making a long-term commitment to make sure Garoppolo was worth a hefty investment after only seven NFL starts.
But both sides wanted this resolved quickly, and did so with a contract that will pay Garoppolo a record $27.5 million per season over the next five years.
“This is where I want to be, honestly,” Garoppolo said at a news conference Friday. “I wanted to get this deal done as fast as possible. It will only help our team going forward going into free agency.
... I wanted to be here. I was excited to be here.
I’m happy we got it done as fast as we did.”
Garoppolo’s
$137.5 million contract has the richest annual value in NFL history, topping the deal Detroit’s Matthew Stafford signed last year by $500,000 a season.
The deal includes nearly $49 million that is full guaranteed, more than $74 million guaranteed for injury and more than $86 million that will be paid out over the first three seasons.
The franchise tag could have been a safer option for both sides, leading to more money for Garoppolo if he kept playing at the high level he showed this past season and more protection for the 49ers if he didn’t reach that level.
But neither side was eager to go that direction.
“We became convinced we had that as an option, but we didn’t want to use it,” general manager John Lynch said. “We wanted to make Jimmy a 49er for a long, long time. Do you have to have some faith for that? Absolutely. But he earned that faith we had for him. I know it wasn’t a super long time but we felt we had a really good grasp on the talent and that was only confirmed when he got here.”
San Francisco acquired Garoppolo from New England before the trade deadline for a 2018 second-round pick.
As soon as he took the field a few weeks later, he immediately turned around a franchise that started the year with a 1-10 record.
Garoppolo took over as starter and led San Francisco to five straight wins to end the season.
He completed 67.4 per cent of his passes this season, averaging 8.8 yards per attempt with seven TDs, five interceptions and a 96.2 rating.
Among quarterbacks with at least 100 attempts last season, Garoppolo ranked first in yards per attempt, fourth in completion percentage.
His 308.4 yards passing per game in his five starts also would have led the league had he played a full season.
Now he will have a full offseason to completely learn coach Kyle Shanahan’s offence, which could lead to even more production.
Garoppolo has won all seven starts in his career, including two in New England to start the 2016 season when Brady was suspended for his role in “Deflategate.”