NFL fans are going to look back on the 2022 offseason as one highlighted by blockbuster trades. We've already seen the likes of Russell Wilson, Matt Ryan, Davante Adams, Tyreek Hill and Khalil Mack moved, and we still have several months before the start of the regular season.
While this year's biggest trades have likely passed, more wheeling and dealing could happen in the coming weeks and months. As roster holes and surpluses begin to reveal themselves in offseason workouts and injuries inevitably occur, trades often follow.
Which players could be on the move next? Let's dive into some of the latest trade buzz and try deciphering which rumors are worth buying and which are pure smoke.
Buy: 49ers Hoping to Move Jimmy Garoppolo Before Training Camp
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is one player many expected to be traded this offseason. He's set to earn $27 million in 2022, and the 49ers have 2021 third overall pick Trey Lance waiting in the wings.
Garoppolo is still a 49er, though, despite the fact that San Francisco has apparently entertained fair offers. According to Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio, general manager John Lynch was "telling interested teams" that he had an offer of two second-round picks for Garoppolo on the table in March.
However, offseason shoulder surgery has prevented teams from flipping the switch on a trade.
"The biggest problem, as one league source explained it on Saturday, is the shoulder surgery Garoppolo underwent earlier this month," Florio later wrote. "No one will trade for a quarterback with a $25 million compensation package after he underwent surgery to repair the labrum in his throwing shoulder, the source explained."
Once Garoppolo is healthy enough to be on the field, the 49ers will reportedly revisit his trade market.
"Garoppolo's shoulder is slated to get the all-clear in late June or early July, at which point the Niners will again seek a trade partner," ESPN's Nick Wagoner wrote.
There's nothing sketchy here. Garoppolo has always been an offseason trade candidate, and if the 49ers can move him before camp—thereby eliminating any potential quarterback controversy—they will.
The big question is whether San Francisco will find a buyer at a price it deems acceptable. With notable quarterback trades and the draft already in the rearview, Garoppolo's market may be limited enough that the 49ers are better off keeping him.
Buy: Panthers Wanted Browns to Take on Majority of Mayfield's Contract
The 49ers can likely count the Carolina Panthers out of the Garoppolo market.
"The Panthers want no part of [Garoppolo's] $26.9 million salary, and the 49ers haven't shown a willingness to take to carry those payments in a trade," Jonathan M. Alexander of the Charlotte Observer wrote.
Carolina, however, was interested in acquiring Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield. Money was reportedly an issue there, too, as Mayfield is due $18.9 million in 2022. Alexander wrote the following:
"The Panthers had conversations with the Browns during the draft last month, according to two sources with knowledge of those discussions. But those conversations didn't get far because the two parties couldn't agree on the right price. In a trade, Carolina wanted Cleveland to pay the majority of Mayfield's $18.9 million guaranteed salary, somewhere in the range of $13-14 million."
This feels like an unreasonable ask by Carolina—depending on the compensation, of course—but it's believable. The Panthers are set to pay Sam Darnold the same $18.9 million on his fifth-year option, and Mayfield is coming off of surgery to repair a torn labrum.