Jimmy Garoppolo rejoins NFC West after signing with 49ers rival

The Las Vegas Raiders underwent an overhaul across the organization. The team fired head coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler, replacing them with Antonio Pierce and Tom Telesco entering the 2024 league year, respectively. The Raiders also cut bait with the quarterback they signed just one year ago.

Jimmy Garoppolo was released by the Raiders at the start of the league year, one year after signing a three-year, $72.8 million contract. What played a part in that was a two-game suspension for the start of the 2024 season for violating the NFL's performance-enhancing drug policy. Even with the suspension, Garoppolo found a new team.

Garoppolo is heading back to the NFC West, but won't be suiting up for the San Francisco 49ers again. Instead, he will join the rival Los Angeles Rams on a one-year contract, where he will back up quarterback Matthew Stafford.

Jimmy Garoppolo rejoins NFC West, but signs with Rams

Garoppolo had spent the majority of his career with the 49ers after being traded by the New England Patriots in 2017. From there, he helped lead the 49ers to Super Bowl 54 and the NFC Championship Game twice. His last playoff game with the 49ers as an active starter happened to be in the 2021 NFC Championship Game...against the Rams.

This past season, Garoppolo was initially the starter for the Raiders, but was benched after the team's Week 8 loss to the Detroit Lions, which resulted in the firings of McDaniels and Ziegler. Pierce, who was serving as the interim head coach at the time, benched Garoppolo in favor of rookie Aidan O'Connell.

In seven games, Garoppolo threw for 1,205 yards, seven touchdowns, and nine interceptions while completing 65.1 percent of his passes.

Now, Garoppolo is set to don the blue and yellow uniform of the Rams this upcoming season. Last season, the Rams made it a priority to have a backup behind Stafford. Last year, the team brought in former second-overall pick Carson Wentz. Now, they bring in another proven veteran in Garoppolo. Of course, he won't be available for the first two games due to his suspension.