The 49ers gambled with Jimmy Garoppolo. At least, in a sense.
San Francisco could have traded Garoppolo last offseason following the NFL draft but chose instead to bring the 30-year-old veteran back, hoping to rebuild his trade value and get a first- or second-round pick for him this offseason.
Garoppolo was solid down the stretch last season, but his limitations were evident down the stretch as the 49ers fell short of the Super Bowl, losing in the NFC Championship Game to the Los Angeles Rams. Couple that with Garoppolo's shoulder surgery and the recent moves on the QB carousel, and it appeared the 49ers' chances of finding a trade partner for Garoppolo were thinning.
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But the Indianapolis Colts might present the perfect opportunity for the 49ers to offload Garoppolo.
On Wednesday, the Colts reportedly traded quarterback Carson Wentz to the Washington Commanders for two third-round picks. The Colts finding a way to rid themselves of the Wentz headache and get draft capital in return was a masterstroke by general manager Chris Ballard.
It also leaves Indianapolis in desperate need of a quarterback to lead a team with all the pieces to be a Super Bowl contender.
With no first-round pick, the Colts will have to get creative to find a quarterback who can lead them back to the playoffs or else they risk wasting another year of a roster that is ready to win now.
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Indianapolis could look to Marcus Mariota or Mitchell Trubisky on the free-agent market, but Garoppolo is likely their best option to come in and win right away.
Head coach Frank Reich has yet to have the same quarterback for consecutive seasons. Garoppolo proved during his time with the 49ers that he can win a lot of games when given a good running game and receivers who can rack up yards after the catch.
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The Colts have one of the best running backs in the league in Jonathan Taylor, a talented young receiver in Michael Pittman Jr., and a head coach in Reich who is an excellent offensive mind.
Garoppolo's leadership ability also is likely to place him high on the Colts' list of targets. It's clear that Wentz's time in Indy went south because he wasn't a leader that his teammates rallied around. Five years in San Francisco has shown that Garoppolo is the type of person his teammates believe in and will follow no matter what. The Colts' organization has always been one that places a high emphasis on those kinds of intangible traits, and it's likely they will be even more sought after following the Wentz flop.
Despite his warts, Garoppolo had several clutch moments for the 49ers, something the Colts didn't get out of Wentz last season. Garoppolo's contract would basically slot into the space vacated by Wentz's cap hit, so a deal makes sense financially for Indy as well.
With the Houston Texans and Jacksonville Jaguars among the dregs of the NFL, the Colts only need to worry about topping the Tennessee Titans in the soft AFC South.
Mariota and Trubisky both bring athletic upside that Garoppolo doesn't. But the Colts can't afford to gamble after they missed the playoffs last season when Wentz melted down in Week 18 against the Jaguars.
Garoppolo isn't an elite signal-caller, but he is everything a team like the Colts needs to wash the Wentz taste out of their mouth, return to the postseason, and get back on the right track as a franchise.