The Indianapolis Colts found their next quarterback Monday, sending a 2022 third-round pick to the Atlanta Falcons for Matt Ryan. That move took an often-speculated landing spot off the table for Jimmy Garoppolo.
In an offseason full of quarterback transactions, the San Francisco 49ers have yet to move Jimmy G. According to ESPN’s Dianna Russini, Garoppolo’s surgically repaired shoulder steered Indianapolis away.
The Colts had “concerns” regarding his shoulder injury, per Russini. However, they weren’t worried so much about his in-game availability as much as they feared bringing in a new quarterback unable to immediately hit the ground running.
Garoppolo underwent successful shoulder surgery earlier this month. While the 30-year-old is expected to be ready for training camp, he won’t throw until the summer.
Indianapolis reportedly saw this as “a red flag.”
So why didn’t the Colts go after Jimmy G?
Form what I was told, there were concerns over the shoulder injury. Not so much the medical side of it but the idea of missing time in the offseason with a new team. This was a red flag.— Dianna Russini (@diannaESPN) March 21, 2022
San Francisco general manager John Lynch said Garoppolo waited to have the procedure in hopes of repairing it through rehab instead. However, he said Garoppolo should be OK going forward.
“Anytime you have surgery, it’s not a minor deal,” Lynch said, per USA Today‘s Kyle Madson. “Anytime it’s the throwing shoulder, I understand the significance, but it is described as a minor surgery and Jimmy is going to be fine.”
Last season, Ryan fell short of 4,000 passing yards (3,968) for the first time since 2010 and tallied his fewest passing touchdowns (20) since his 2008 rookie campaign. However, availability isn’t a concern for the 36-year-old, who has missed one game in the last 12 seasons.
That appears to have motivated the Colts to acquire Matty Ice ahead of Jimmy G, taking one prominent trade partner off the table for the 49ers. They’re aren’t many quarterback-needy teams left, and it’s possible the few remaining may harbor the same unsettledness that caused Indianapolis to look elsewhere.
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