GM. This is the Daily Breakroom. Making you smarter in sports in less than 5 minutes. Get your lawyer on speed dial because we’re talking about legal tampering.

Here we go.

Legal Tampering Begins

There are two guarantees in life…. The NFL wants our attention and the NFL has our attention. Don’t question it, that’s definitely how the saying goes.

The NFL likes to keep things confusing so we talk more about the confusion. Entering the room….. tampering. Tampering is simply known as contacting players or coaches who are currently under contract with other organizations. You normally can’t speak with the other parties until their contract expires. If a player or coach has a contract expiring in 2023, it will expire at 4pm EST on Wednesday, Mar 15, which is when free agency in the NFL actually opens.

What happens if you illegally tamper in the NFL? The NFL could fine teams for illegally tampering. Seem excessive? Maybe, but the NFL can also take away team’s draft picks for tampering. Crazy, Right!?

So…what’s legal tampering? To keep it simple again, the NFL basically allows teams to reach out to coaches and players who have no offers from their current teams and have a contract expiring. This is two day window that started yesterday at Noon. If a player or coach comes to a verbal agreement during this legal tampering window, it’s expected they’ll officially sign with the new team once free agency opens tomorrow.

Has there been any negotiations during this legal tampering time?

We’re glad you asked! We’re going to jump into some moves right now.

Jimmy G to the Raiders

The San Francisco 49ers had their hands full of QBs this year. When starter Trey Lance was hurt in the 2nd game of the season, they went to backup Jimmy Garoppolo. Jimmy G then got hurt in week 13 and the 49ers brought in 3rd stringer and rookie Brock Purdy. Purdy was playing like a veteran at the end of the season and during playoffs, but Purdy got hurt in the NFC Championship game and the 49ers had zero quarterbacks.

Now that the season is over, the 49ers have 3 potential starters and have decisions to make. Jimmy G has been somewhat unreliable during the year as he’s a bit injury prone and his contract for the last 5 years was pricey. The 49ers ultimately decided to let him walk into free agency and Jimmy G has found a new home.

Garoppolo is heading to Las Vegas to join the Raiders. He agreed to a three year, $67.5 million deal and he’ll be reunited with his former New England OC, Josh McDaniels, who is the head coach of the Raiders.

The QB carousel doesn’t end there.

Sam Darnold Signed by the 49ers

QB moves are always complicated. Teams need backups, but they also need salary cap room. Trey Lance will be the starter come week 1 in SF and Brock Purdy may still be recovering from surgery. Here comes an additional backup, Sam Darnold. Darnold is expected to sign a 1 year deal with the 49ers after spending time with the NY Jets and Carolina Panthers. If Darnold ever needs to play and Kyle Shanahan can get production out of him, then Shanahan really will solidify himself as one of the best offensive coaches in the NFL.

The Bears Are Hungry

The Chicago Bears really mailed it in last season. They were 3-14, the worst team in the league. They got the #1 draft pick which they just traded for picks and a star WR and they also have the most money to spend out of any team….. and they are definitely spending it.

The Bears are hungry for success this season and signing the big names. The Bears are expected to sign ex-Bills LB Tremaine Edmunds to a 4-year, $72 million deal. They also agreed to a 3-year, $19.5 million deal with former eagles LB T.J. Edwards. Both linebackers are good in coverage and that’s something the Bears will need as they were last in points allowed as a defense last season.

A Head Scratcher From Jason Kidd

Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic has been out with some tightness in his thigh and on Monday night Kyrie Irving sat out with soreness in his foot. It’s no surprise that without their two stars the Mavs lost to the Memphis Grizzlies 104-88. The Mavs are now under .500 for the season and when asked about the loss, Mavs head coach Jason Kidd replied, “How do we measure success?… Some would say by your record, but I think at the end of the day, if we can get healthy, we feel that we can do a lot in the playoffs.”

I think we all understand what Kidd is trying to say but I’m not sure he’s realizing that the Mavs are half a game away from being out the play in tournament for playoffs. They better hope Luka and Kyrie can make it back to the court soon and stay healthy for a playoff run.

Scores from Monday

We’ll round out the day with some important Monday scores from the NBA and NHL.

NBA

The Utah Jazz lost to the Miami Heat 119-115. The Jazz loss helped move the Lakers back into play-in tournament position as the Lakers are now back to the 9 seed.

The Golden State Warriors defeated the Phoenix Suns 128-112. The Warriors have made a quite a push to get back in the playoff race and they sit 1.5 games behind the Suns, who are the 5 seed currently.

NHL

The Dallas Stars are maintaining their Central Division lead as they defeated the Seattle kraken 5-2. Six players for the Stars had multiple points in the win.

That’s all for today. Thanks for reading and have a great Tuesday.

-The Daily Breakroom Team