Every NFL team’s most surprising cut candidate

Las Vegas Raiders — Jimmy Garoppolo

This one is a doozy, but the Las Vegas Raiders could shock the world by cutting their quarterback signing before he takes a regular-season snap. Garoppolo signed a three-year, $72 million deal to replace Derek Carr this offseason. It was a strange decision at the time since Jimmy G seems like a lesser version of Carr in the first place, but the injury situation makes this that much stranger. The fact that Josh McDaniels might be on the hot seat makes this all very puzzling.

Garoppolo got foot surgery in the offseason and hasn’t been cleared for workouts yet. If he can’t pass a physical, the Raiders could opt to get out of the deal entirely. That seems likely since the Raiders don’t want to deal with a hobbled quarterback. There’s a chance they could settle for one of the quarterbacks who get cut. However, they might get stuck with Brian Hoyer as the starter, making their situation the worst in the league under center.

Despite the fact this has been in the headlines for a few weeks now, fans would be very surprised if the Raiders let this happen. Las Vegas could have traded up to take Bryce Young or CJ Stroud, something that was in the rumor mill. The Panthers wildly outbid everyone to take Young, and the Texans chose to take the Ohio State QB at number two.

Instead, the Raiders stayed put, put all their chips on Garoppolo, and now they are invested in his health. It would be pretty strange to do all that and then leave yourself with Brian Hoyer under center, but it might be better than locking into a contract for a QB on one leg.