If Jimmy Garoppolo did not agree to take a massive pay cut to remain with the 49ers as Trey Lance's backup, another NFC West rival reportedly was lurking to scoop up the veteran quarterback.
The Los Angeles Rams.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Sunday, citing sources, that if the 49ers released Garoppolo -- a route they were expected to take after failing to find a trade partner this offseason -- the Rams would have attempted to sign him as their backup quarterback behind Matthew Stafford.
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San Francisco reportedly was not aware of the Rams’ interest until after the pay cut was agreed upon.
"It was going to be such a Rams move to make," a member of the 49ers organization reportedly told ESPN. "Sean McVay and Kevin Demoff would have been basking in it."
The Rams’ current backup signal-caller is John Wolford, who has made one career start. Garoppolo would have been an immediate improvement on the depth chart, an area Los Angeles might have been focused on after Stafford underwent elbow surgery in the offseason.
The move also would have given the Rams intel on San Francisco, where Garoppolo has won 31 regular-season games the past five seasons.
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There were rumors that the Seattle Seahawks had interest in Garoppolo if the 49ers released the veteran quarterback. That reportedly worried San Francisco before the two parties agreed to the pay cut.
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“As he saw the other situations out there, and I think it seems like everybody was just waiting for us to cut him before they could see how much they could get him for,” coach Kyle Shanahan said on Aug. 30. “But once the last Saturday preseason game happened, and no one got injured, Jimmy thought this was his best situation."
The 49ers and Rams will match up in Week 4 and Week 8 this season.