Put simply, the San Francisco 49ers have landed a coveted new quarterback.
The 49ers acquired highly-touted New England Patriots backup Jimmy Garoppolo on Monday night in exchange for San Francisco's 2018 second-round pick. Garoppolo will be a free agent this offseason, but the 49ers will have tons of cap space to make him their QB of the future.
The benefit of making the deal now is that Garoppolo will get game reps in Shanahan's system this season, which should accelerate the learning curve for 2018 and beyond. Lynch told 49ers.com that the 49ers pursued a trade for Garoppolo this past offseason but nothing came to fruition. Now San Francisco has its guy.
That likely means the 49ers won't be a part of the sweepstakes for a certain Washington Redskins quarterback. It also suggests that the team will use its draft capital elsewhere. At 0-8, the 49ers are likely to have a top 10 pick for the third-straight year.
Garoppolo, who turns 26 on Thursday, was drafted in the second round of the 2014 NFL draft out of Eastern Illinois. In 17 appearances (two starts), he's posted a 2-0 record with 690 passing yards, five touchdowns, no interceptions and a rating of 106.2.
"We are thrilled for Jimmy to join the 49ers family," Lynch said in the team's official release. "Jimmy is a player we have researched extensively since Kyle and I joined the 49ers. I am extremely pleased this came together today, and we all think it is a big win for our organization. Albeit in limited game action, Jimmy has displayed the
characteristics and traits that we believe are vital to being a successful quarterback in this league. He has had the rare opportunity to sit and learn from a future Hall of Fame quarterback in a championship atmosphere. We look forward to Jimmy joining the team tomorrow and hitting the ground running."
It is unknown at this point how soon Garoppolo will be inserted into the starting lineup. Lynch also shared that C.J. Beathard is likely keep the job for the time being. There won't be a rush to throw Garoppolo into the fire behind a patchwork offensive line in an unfamiliar system.
What's fascinating about it all is that the Patriots had been hesitant to move Garoppolo in the past. Many believed he was the heir-apparent to Tom Brady, although that was going to get tricky once Garoppolo became a free agent.
Of note, the team still has a second-round pick after acquiring the New Orleans Saints second-rounder in a deal during the 2017 NFL Draft.
The NFL's official trade deadline is Tuesday at 1 p.m. PT.
