Opting to forgo the franchise tag, the San Francisco 49ers signed Jimmy Garoppolo to a five-year contract worth up to $137.5 million. The deal makes Garoppolo the NFL’s highest-paid quarterback, yet gives the Niners the option of terminating the contract early without significant salary cap implications.
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is now the highest-paid player in the NFL. Every “franchise quarterback” contract raises the financial bar, and with a slew of quarterbacks the likes of Drew Brees and Kirk Cousins soon to ink their own deals, Garoppolo won’t hold the top spot for long. But for now, a quarterback with just seven career starts — and a rookie contract that averaged less than $1 million per year — holds the NFL’s most expensive contract, at $27.5 million per season.
However, now that details surrounding Garoppolo’s five-year, $137.5 million contract have emerged — thanks to Adam Schefter of ESPN — it appears that the 49ers may have gotten the better end of the blockbuster deal. In designing Garoppolo’s contract, general manager John Lynch — and the 49ers’ “salary cap architect” Paraag Marathe — took advantage of the team’s excess salary cap space by front-loading the contract, which will give the 49ers the option of terminating the deal early without significant salary cap implications.
Before we delve into the specifics of Garoppolo’s contract, let’s review some of the components of the contract and how they affect the salary cap. Garoppolo’s contract includes five different avenues for payment: base salary, signing bonus, workout bonus and two types of roster bonuses — a per-game roster bonus, and what Schefter calls a “guaranteed” roster bonus, but is more likely simply an offseason roster bonus. The distinction between the two is an offseason roster bonus is applied to the salary cap in the year it is earned, while a roster bonus that is guaranteed at the signing of a contract — and paid soon after the contract signing — is prorated over the life of the contract. Provided that this lump-sum bonus is indeed an offseason roster bonus, Garoppolo’s base salary, workout bonus, and both roster bonuses will be applied to the salary cap in the year that they are earned. Garoppolo’s signing bonus, while paid now, will be prorated over the five years of the contract for salary cap purposes.
Now, let’s take a look at the specifics of Jimmy Garoppolo’s contract, and how they affect the salary cap and the San Francisco 49ers’ options for the future.
$48.7 million of Garoppolo’s contract is guaranteed: the $7 million signing bonus, the $28 million roster bonus, the 2018 base salary of $6.2 million, and $7.5 million of the 2019 base salary, with the prorated signing bonus counting $1.4 million against the 49ers’ salary cap for each of the next five seasons. Why does the contract include a signing bonus at all? It allows Garoppolo to receive some money immediately, as he will likely need to wait over a month before the NFL’s 2018 league year begins to receive the $28 million roster bonus. In addition to the previous contract guarantees, the remainder of Garoppolo’s 2019 base salary and $15.7 million of his 2020 base salary is guaranteed for injury, and the quarterback can receive future injury guarantees if he meets certain criteria the prior season.
2018
Roster Bonus: $28 million
Base Salary: $6.2 million
Signing Bonus: $1.4 million
Workout Bonus: $600 thousand
Per-game Roster Bonus: $800 thousand
Total: $37 million
It’s difficult to imagine a scenario where the 49ers would give up on Garoppolo after just one full season, but if they decided to trade the quarterback after the 2018 season, the 49ers could do so for just $5.6 million in dead money, although the one-year rental would cost the team over $40 million.
2019
Base Salary: $17.2 million
Signing Bonus: $1.4 million
Workout Bonus: $600 thousand
Per-game Roster Bonus: $800 thousand
Total: $20 million
Garoppolo’s $20 million cap hit in 2019 is the lowest of his five-year contract, and will rank in the bottom half of the league’s starting QBs. Reading into this, 2019 may be the season Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan believe the 49ers will be best suited for a Super Bowl run. With Garoppolo’s salary bumping back up the following year, the 49ers could cut him after the 2019 season, resulting in just $4.2 million in dead money.
2020
Base Salary: $23.8 million
Signing Bonus: $1.4 million
Workout Bonus: $600 thousand
Per-game Roster Bonus: $800 thousand
Total: $26.6 million
Garoppolo will count $26.6 million against the cap in 2020, which will rank back in the top half of starting NFL quarterbacks. Since cutting Garoppolo after the 2020 season would cost the team just $2.8 million in dead money, this contract is essentially a three-year deal with two option years that would cost the 49ers approximately $27 million a season.
2021
Base Salary: $24.1 million
Signing Bonus: $1.4 million
Workout Bonus: $600 thousand
Per-game Roster Bonus: $800 thousand
Total: $26.9 million
In 2021, Garoppolo’s $26.9 cap hit will likely be a middle-of-the-pack number for a starting quarterback, and less than most “franchise quarterbacks” in the league. Cutting Garoppolo after the season would cost the 49ers only the last prorated portion of his signing bonus — $1.4 million.
2022
Base Salary: $24.2 million
Signing Bonus: $1.4 million
Workout Bonus: $600 thousand
Per-game Roster Bonus: $800 thousand
Total: $27 million
The 49ers hope that at $27 million against the cap, Garoppolo will be “underpaid” in 2022. If all goes according to plan, Garoppolo — who will turn 31 during the 2022 season — will be in the prime of his career, and ready to cash in on his second contract with the team.
Do you want to learn more about San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo’s record-breaking deal? Check out Monday’s Locked on 49ers Podcast with guest Jason Fitzgerald, who literally wrote the book on NFL player contracts — Crunching Numbers.
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About the Author: Chris Wilson
