Many pundits believed Jimmy Garoppolo would be on a different team by now, but the quarterback remains on the 49ers. When speaking with reporters today (including Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle), GM John Lynch revealed some details about trade negotiations, noting that the 49ers were discussing a deal in late February that ended up being derailed by Garoppolo’s surgery.

Now, with the quarterback carousel mostly complete, Lynch admitted that the front office is holding still on the Garoppolo front until a trade materializes. The GM even noted that Garappolo could enter the season on the 49ers roster, and he rejected the notion that the organization would release the veteran QB.

“I don’t foresee that,” Lynch said. “He’s too good a player. I think Jimmy will be playing for us or will be playing for someone else. He’s too good of a player not tyear’s draft. o be.”

Naturally, this wasn’t the intended plan after the 49ers gave up a boatload of picks to draft Trey Lance during last year’s draft. Lynch admitted as much when speaking with reporters.

“We value strength at that position,” Lynch said. “To be completely forthright, though, when you make a trade of that magnitude (for Lance), most of our options did not include Jimmy on our books (in 2022)…But you always have to adapt and a series of events happened that it didn’t work out. But that’s not a bad thing, though. We feel positive with it. And we’ll make it work.”

Albert Breer of SI.com provides some more insight into the QB situation, noting that Garoppolo’s shoulder has been the biggest factor in the 49ers’ trade difficulties. The plan was to trade the veteran after the “big quarterback dominoes fell,” but the injury changed things.

With Matt Ryan being traded to the Colts, the list of potential landing spots for Jimmy Garoppolo has gotten smaller. The move will likely have an impact on his trade value, although the 49ers reportedly have a relatively strong market for Garoppolo already. 

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According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, 49ers general manager John Lynch “is telling interested teams that he has an offer in hand of two second round picks” for the outgoing quarterback. That would constitute twice the price San Francisco paid to acquire him from the Patriots in 2017. More notably, it would outstrip the compensation from the Ryan and Carson Wentz deals.

It has been thought the 49ers would move on from Garoppolo, 30, once they drafted Trey Lance third overall last year. Not surprisingly, then, they were reportedly fielding trade calls on him earlier this month. Any move would be complicated not only by the rest of the market, but also Garoppolo’s recent surgery as well as his contract status. He carries a cap hit of just under $27MM for one more season on his current deal.

Florio lists the Seahawks as a potential trade destination. The Colts were long thought to be interested in the former Patriot, but the acquisition of Ryan eliminates them from contention. With the Falcons and Saints signing Marcus Mariota and Jameis Winston, respectively, they are likewise doubtful to be interested. Seattle added Drew Lock in the Russell Wilson deal, but the NFC West squad is one of a dwindling number of teams – another potentially being the Panthers – facing questions about its starting QB.

If the 49ers do indeed have a noteworthy offer available to them, one of the last dominoes in this year’s QB market could fall in the near future.

TUESDAY, 8:25pm: NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport tweets some additional details on Garoppolo’s impending surgery, noting that the QB will go under the knife “to repair a torn capsule in his throwing shoulder.” Garoppolo won’t throw for 16 weeks but should still be ready for the start of the next season (assuming everything goes as planned).

TUESDAY, 3:48pm: The latest update on Jimmy Garoppolo relates not to teams interested in trading for him, but rather his health status. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the veteran quarterback will undergo shoulder surgery soon (Twitter link). 

[Related: Latest On Trade Market For Garoppolo]

Schefter adds that he is expected to be on the shelf until the summer. However, he also reports that the procedure “is not expected to impact his trade status” and that Garoppolo is still “likely to be traded this month”. One of the most notable aspects of the news is the fact that it is his shoulder being operated on, as a result of an injury suffered during the team’s Wild Card victory.

In a follow-up, Schefter adds that Garoppolo will not need surgery for the thumb injury he had sustained earlier in the year. It had been reported one month ago that the latter ailment was going to require surgery, but that appears to no longer be the case. In any event, this news adds to the already lengthy list of injuries Garoppolo has dealt with in his career, including a shoulder issue back in 2016.

Nevertheless, Schefter reiterates that there is “significant interest” in Garoppolo from “multiple teams”. The 30-year-old went 9-6 in the regular season, and helped lead the team back to the NFC Championship game – the second time the 49ers went that deep during his time there. He has one year remaining on his current contract, at a cap hit of just under $27MM. According to Schefter, he is expected to be able to resume training in late June or early July. What team he is a member of by that time remains to be seen.