NFL Rumors: 49ers FA Jimmy Garoppolo Eyes Contract Worth $25M per Year in Free Agency

Veteran quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is reportedly seeking a contract that will pay him $25 million per year in free agency.

According to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated, Garoppolo may be willing to sign a contract with a lower base salary that includes incentives that could get him close to $25 million annually.

Jimmy G has spent the past six seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, but he is expected to sign elsewhere in free agency since the Niners have Trey Lance and Brock Purdy at quarterback.

If Garoppolo does sign a deal for $25 million per season, he would tie Geno Smith of the Seattle Seahawks as the 16th-highest-paid quarterback in the NFL, per Spotrac.

Garoppolo's value is difficult to put into financial terms since his numbers with San Francisco left plenty to be desired while the team's success did not.

He posted a 38-17 record as a starter during the regular season and also a 4-2 playoff record, as the Niners reached the NFC Championship Game three times and the Super Bowl once during his tenure.

The biggest issue with the 31-year-old is his inability to stay healthy. The 2019 season was the only one in which he played every regular-season contest.

He missed all but three games the year before that and all but six games in 2020. Garoppolo did rebound to start 15 games in 2021, and San Francisco excelled.

In each of the three seasons in which he started double-digit games, the 49ers made it to at least the NFC Championship Game.

Garoppolo began 2022 as the backup to Lance, but when Lance suffered a season-ending injury, Garoppolo took over and played well, going 7-3 as a starter.

He completed 67.2 percent of his passes for 2,437 yards and 16 touchdowns with four interceptions, and his quarterback rating of 103.0 was his best ever in a season in which he started more than two games.

Unfortunately for Garoppolo, a foot injury cut his season short, and Purdy, a rookie seventh-round pick, took over, leading San Francisco to the NFC Championship Game.

Jimmy G's best statistical season remains 2019 when he threw for a career-high 3,978 yards and 27 touchdowns and helped the 49ers reach the Super Bowl.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport (h/t NFL.com's Grant Gordon) reported last week that the Carolina Panthers, Houston Texans and Las Vegas Raiders could have interest in Garoppolo.

The Panthers may no longer be part of that list, though, after trading with the Chicago Bears for the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft to presumably pick their next quarterback.

Both the Texans and Raiders have links to Garoppolo. New Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans was the 49ers' defensive coordinator in 2021 and 2022 and joined the team when Garoppolo did in 2017. Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels was the New England Patriots' offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach when Garoppolo was Tom Brady's backup from 2014 to 2016.

The Texans are likely to draft their quarterback of the future at No. 2 overall, but Garoppolo could bridge the gap, whereas he would perhaps be a longer-term solution for Vegas.