Jimmy Garoppolo and Sean McVay have always talked when their paths have crossed. After their two games a year as division rivals. After joint practice between the Raiders and Rams a year ago.
“He’s always just been a very perceptive guy,” Garoppolo said Tuesday. “He sees a lot of things, he sees it well, he sees it for what it is. That’s a big part of how I got here.”
On Tuesday, Garoppolo officially signed a one-year deal to join the Rams as the backup to quarterback Matthew Stafford, after a free agency that played out a little differently than the one that occurred a year ago.
When his contract with the San Francisco 49ers expired last offseason, he quickly found a new starting job with the Las Vegas Raiders, signing a three-year, $67.5 million contract and reuniting with former coach Josh McDaniels. By Halloween, McDaniels had been fired and Garoppolo benched after throwing seven touchdowns and nine interceptions in seven games.
The Raiders released him last week, and Garoppolo said he had to be more patient during this free agency. He waited to see how things played out with open starting jobs, though those were filled by other options, or will be filled in next month’s draft.
He said he had other options, but he was impressed by the Rams’ backup opportunity. A talented roster, a destination city, a familiar coaching staff and, of course, McVay.
“Talking to Sean really sealed the deal on the phone,” Garoppolo said. “He had a vision, talked me through and really just explained what he saw my role as and just his football knowledge. I’ve heard it from so many different players and coaches, but to be here firsthand and get to experience it, that’s what I’m really excited about.”
The football pairing is natural. Garoppolo spent seven seasons in San Francisco under head coach Kyle Shanahan, the offensive coordinator during McVay’s formative career stop in Washington when both coaches developed many of their offensive philosophies. He knows McVay’s system intimately even if he hasn’t played a practice with the Rams.
And his roots with the coaching staff run deep. Tight ends coach Nick Caley was an assistant in New England when Garoppolo backed up Tom Brady. Offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur was passing game coordinator in San Francisco during Garoppolo’s best season as a starter – 2019, when he threw for a career-high 3,978 yards and 27 touchdowns.
Garoppolo said he felt that support system has been important for other veteran quarterbacks who have backed up Stafford the last two seasons. Baker Mayfield turned his time in Los Angeles into a starting audition in Tampa Bay and, following a playoff win, a three-year, $100 million contract.
“What Baker did, that was tremendous, incredible. Sean’s a phenomenal offensive mind. A lot of the guys around here are,” Garoppolo said. “It’s not all going to be done by you. You gotta have people around you to put you in a good position, call the right plays, all those little things. I saw this opportunity and I got excited. It just seemed right.”
Garoppolo will get the full offseason regimen in before he has to serve a two-game suspension for violating the league’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs. He said Tuesday that the positive test was the result of a mistake in obtaining a therapeutic-use exemption when he first arrived in Las Vegas.
“It’s a weird one but it is what it is,” Garoppolo said. “I think, attack OTAs, attack training camp, let those first two games pass by. … You gotta deal with it and keep moving on, stay positive.”
And if he’s called upon, Garoppolo will get the chance to prove he still has what it takes to be a starter in the NFL.
“I’m excited to start this new journey. I don’t know exactly what is in store for me, but yeah, maybe reset, reinvent, whatever you want to call it. I’m just excited to get back on the football field,” Garoppolo said. “I know myself as a player, I know where I stand. So, things will work themselves out.”
