The Las Vegas Raiders just signed Derek Carrs’ replacement. It’s former New England Patriots and San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. The two have agreed to terms on a 3-year, 67.5 million dollar contract with 34 million of that money being guaranteed.
Jimmy G’s Reunion With HC Josh McDaniels
The 31-year-old quarterback was drafted by New England Patriots in 2014, where he worked with Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels. Garoppolo will be returning to a system that he is familiar with, and this could be a huge reason why McDaniels would rather work with his former Patriots quarterback than Derek Carr. We saw the relationship between Carr and McDaniels deteriorate around week 8 after losing to the Jaguars and blowing another double-digit lead. Goroppolo didn’t see much playing time with the Patriots being that he was the backup to Tom Brady, so it will be interesting to see how Josh McDaniels calls plays with Jimmy G starting under center.
The Obvious Issues With Garoppolo
After Garoppolo’s departure to San Francisco, the 49ers have made two playoff appearances, but injuries have continued to have an impact on his career, having 3 season-ending injuries in the past 5 seasons. The Raiders are still likely to pick a quarterback in the draft to be the future of the franchise. The former backup, Jared Stitham, just signed with the Denver Broncos, so the team will need a serviceable backup if they are to have such an injury-prone starter.
Jimmy Garoppolo is a good quarterback and can win games, but he will need to stay healthy to do that. The Raiders will still look to get a young quarterback in the draft and Jimmy G will be the right guy to mentor whoever that may be.
