The Jimmy Garoppolo era is officially over in San Francisco, and a cult-hit fan artist “Drawing Jimmy G every day until he gets traded” has also declared her project is drawing to a close.
NFL free agency does not officially begin until Wednesday at 1 p.m. PT, but the so-called “legal tampering period” already started Monday morning. That means deals are already happeningand we obviously had mixed emotions when ESPN broke the news around 11 a.m. Monday that Jimmy Garoppolo was agreeing to a deal with the Las Vegas Raiders. That set up a big decision for cult-hit Portuguese artist Rita Carvalhowho’s famously been “Drawing Jimmy G every day until he gets traded” and posting each day’s drawing on Twitter. With Garoppolo’s time with the 49ers now officially finished, Carvalho has announced on Twitter that she will not draw Jimmy G anymore.
Her time drawing Jimmy G was expected to end a while ago. But when the 49ers could not find a worthwhile trade deal last spring and summer, and Trey Lance did not inspire confidence in the preseason, the 49ers offered Garoppolo a cheapie one-year deal and he took it. (He appeared in 11 games this season and was 7-3 until he broke his foot).
But when the 49ers restructured Jimmy’s one-year deal, Carvalho still kept drawing Jimmy G every day. And even though he was technically not traded, and is leaving the 49ers via free agency, it still seems a good time to bring closure to this project.
As seen below, this silly saga started one year ago this Friday, on March 17 of 2022. Since then Carvalho has drawn Jimmy G as Prince, as a Teletubbyor as the Drake in a puffy jacket meme.
From a football standpoint, Jimmy G going to the Raiders would have made for a fun rivalry if the Raiders were still in Oakland. Now they’re in Las Vegas, though, so the Raiders are just another NFL team.
Going forward, 49ers intrigue will be the training camp battle between Brock Purdy and Trey Lance. And in other legal tampering period news, should you care, the Niners also agreed to a deal with Jets-Panthers castoff quarterback Sam Darnold for that “third quarterback you hope you never see” position.
The Last Drawing is available NOW on my shop! ❤️????
Thank you so much for all the support you have given me the last 404 days, I could not be more thankful ????????Link in bio ☝???? pic.twitter.com/hBp3KKisR5
— Rita Oak (@ritaoak_art) March 13, 2023
Related: Jimmy Garoppolo Will Not Be Traded, Staying With 49ers One More Year [SFist]
Image: SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA – NOVEMBER 27: Jimmy Garoppolo #10 of the San Francisco 49ers warms up prior to the game against the New Orleans Saints at Levi’s Stadium on November 27, 2022 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
