Why the 49ers Need to Trade or Release Jimmy Garoppolo by March 16

The 49ers have 12 more days to try to trade Garoppolo. After that, they have to bite the bullet and release him.

12 days.

That's how long the 49ers have to find a trade partner for Jimmy Garoppolo or release him. One or the other. They can't afford to keep him past March 16.

That's because the NFL's new league year starts at 1:00 p.m. Pacific on March 16. And at that exact time, every team in the league must be under the salary cap. And the 49ers currently are more than $1 million over the cap.

Of course, there are plenty of ways the 49ers can sneak under the cap by March 16. But if they want to be major players in free agency, if they want to sign a quality starting cornerback and an offensive tackle who can start if Mike McGlinchey's rehab from quad surgery takes longer than expected, if they want to re-sign some of their own free agents such as Laken Tomlinson or D.J. Jones, they'll need to create lots of cap room. And by far the easiest way for the 49ers to create lots of cap room is to get rid of Garoppolo.

If they trade him, they'll instantly get more than $25 million in cap space. But trading him will be difficult, because he's not that good, he's very expensive and soon he will have surgery on his throwing shoulder. A team would be nuts to trade for him.

If the 49ers release Garoppolo and he can't pass a physical, they'll have to give him a $7.5 million guarantee, which they can recoup after he signs with another team, which could take a while. Which means they'd create roughly $18 million in cap space if they release him, and then another $7.5 million in cap space when he signs elsewhere. Think of all the players they could sign with that money.

The 49ers have 12 more days to try to trade Garoppolo. After that, they have to bite the bullet and release him. Keeping him any longer would be foolish.