Jimmy Garoppolo's Raiders future in doubt after shocking NFL suspension

The Jimmy Garoppolo era in Las Vegas is effectively over.

The NFL is suspending Garoppolo for the first two games of the 2024 season because he violated the league's Performance Enhancing Substances policy, Adam Schefter dropped in a surprise report on Friday.

Garoppolo isn't going to appeal that suspension and the Las Vegas Raiders aren't going to sit around and wait for him to be eligible to play. They are expected to release the quarterback before his $11.25 million roster bonus triggers in mid-March.

The idea of Garoppolo not being on the Raiders roster isn't as shocking as his suspension for PEDs. His time in Las Vegas has been anything but merry. It started off on the wrong foot when he failed his physical with the team after signing a three-year, $67.5 million deal.

Despite the concerns with his foot, Garoppolo started the season for the Raiders but things didn't exactly go to plan. He was 3-3 as a starter with nine interceptions and just seven touchdowns before he was benched at the end of October in favor of rookie Aiden O'Connell.

PED suspension makes Raiders plan for Jimmy Garoppolo more obvious

There was skepticism that he'd be the Raiders long-term option at quarterback despite two years remaining on his deal.

The suspension just gave Las Vegas the last incentive they needed to move on, reducing the financial hit of doing so.

This parting of ways felt inevitable. Ian Rapoport reported after news of the suspension broke that the Raiders had been in the market to replace Garoppolo. So this development won't change their plans. It only makes it easier.

According to Spotrac, the suspension likely voids Garoppolo's guaranteed money, dropping his dead cap hit to $17 million. His dead cap number was going to be $27 million before the suspension.

The next stop for Garoppolo is unclear but it seems certain he'll have to accept a job as a backup somewhere willing to wait out those two games. There are QB-needy teams out there. However, it's tough to imagine any of them pinning their hopes on starting a 32-year-old with a significant medical question mark who was just popped for PEDs after being benched for a rookie.