When the Raiders signed Jimmy Garoppolo during the 2023 NFL offseason, they had hoped he would be an upgrade over nine-year starter Derek Carr.
Instead, he proved to be a downgrade. And once Josh McDaniels was fired less than halfway through his second season with the Raiders, Garoppolo's time as Las Vegas' starter came to an abrupt end.
Garoppolo was benched in favor of fourth-round rookie Aidan O'Connell ahead of the Raiders' Week 9 contest against the Giants. O'Connell has comported himself well in his NFL action to date, posting 522 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions against a 64.9 completion percentage in limited action.
If O'Connell can continue to play at a solid rate and show growth, then it seems likely that he will continue to start for the Raiders moving forward. And if he struggles, he might still simply serve as a bridge to the offseason at which point the team can reassess its quarterback situation.
Either way, Garoppolo's future in Las Vegas doesn't look bright. Thus, there are questions about whether the team will look to offload him during the 2024 offseason. The team probably will do that; however, Garoppolo's contract will be an obstacle in making that happen both via trade and if he's released. Here's why: So, when can the Raiders move on from Garoppolo? It all depends on whether the Raiders are comfortable absorbing a large dead-cap hit to part with him. If the Raiders release Garoppolo during the 2024 NFL offseason, they will save just $199,000 against the cap. As such, it would be preferable for the team to trade him, as the Raiders would save more than $11.4 million against the cap if Garoppolo is dealt before June 1. However, there are questions about whether a team would surrender a significant draft asset to acquire the oft-injured, struggling and overpaid veteran signal-caller.
As such, if the Raiders can't move on from Garoppolo via trade, they will have a decision to make about releasing him, as they won't generate significant cap savings on a release until 2025.
Below is a breakdown of Garoppolo's three-year deal and how much cap savings the Raiders could get by cutting him each season, per Spotrac.com.
(Note: This contract contains void years. So, some of Garoppolo's guaranteed money will count against the salary cap in 2026 and 2027 despite the fact that he is not under contract for those campaigns.)
| Year | Base salary | Bonuses | Cap hit | Dead cap hit | Cap savings (if cut) |
| 2023 | $1,165,000 | $5,567,000 | $6,732,000 | $55,305,000 | -$27,018,000 |
| 2024 | $11,250,000 | $17,267,000 | $28,517,000 | $28,318,000 | $199,000 |
| 2025 | $22,500,000 | $6,017,000 | $28,517,000 | $12,801,000 | $15,716,000 |
| 2026 | — | $4,267,000 | $8,534,000 | $8,534,000 | $0 |
| 2027 | — | $4,267,000 | $4,267,000 | — | -$4,267,000 |
That said, there is one way that the Raiders can move off Garoppolo during the 2024 offseason while still generating some cap savings. It just involves spreading out his dead-cap hit over multiple years instead of one.
What is this measure? It's known as a post-June 1 release, and NFL teams are able to designate a select number of players within this category to assist their salary cap situations.
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