Raiders get good news on Jimmy Garoppolo’s physical

After spending an anxious offseason hoping for the best with the health of new quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, the Raiders got decidedly good news Sunday.

Upon reporting to training camp with the team’s veteran quarterbacks, Garoppolo passed his physical and has been cleared to start camp unabated.

Garoppolo will be on the field with no restrictions when the Raiders have their first full-team practice Wednesday.

Garoppolo, coming off a foot injury he suffered in December with the 49ers, didn’t pass a physical upon agreeing to a three-year, $72.75 million free-agent contract with the Raiders in March.

During the physical, team doctors discovered the injured foot required surgery. As a result, the Raiders changed the structure of Garoppolo’s contract by converting an $11.25 million signing bonus into actual salary and hinging the entire contract, including a $33.75 million guarantee, on his ability to pass his physical.

The Raiders remained steadfast that everything would work out, but from the outside looking in, it looked like risky business.

Granted, the amended contract meant the Raiders could void the deal without penalty had Garoppolo not been able to pass the physical. But that protection did little to solve a bigger issue: If they had to walk away from Garoppolo, their starting options were limited to veteran Brian Hoyer, a career backup who has mostly served as a tutor to younger prospects during his career; Aidan O’Connell, a fourth-round pick from Purdue; and Chase Garbers, an undrafted free agent who spent almost all last season on the Raiders’ practice squad.

Coach Josh McDaniels expressed confidence during minicamp in June that the Garoppolo situation would play out OK, saying “I have no anxiety. Feel pretty good about it.”

When pressed for a reason, McDaniels said: “I have very good information that tells me that we’re going to be fine.”

There had been positive developments recently. Garoppolo was spotted with teammates at T-Mobile Arena watching the Golden Knights during the Stanley Cup Final, and he visited with troops at Nellis Air Force Base this month.

In each case, he was in good spirits and moving around fine. That said, there is a big difference between walking around and being fit enough to play in the NFL.

So while there was confidence from McDaniels, until Garoppolo passed the physical, there was apprehension.

Hence the Raiders’ relief when Garoppolo reported to the club’s practice facility in Henderson on Sunday and passed the physical. And just like that, a potentially dark cloud that had been hovering since March cleared up.

Now begins the business of football, and for Garoppolo that means catching up as he integrates himself into the offense. The foot injury prevented him from participating in the club’s on-field work during organized team activities and minicamp. While he was in the building during the offseason program doing everything else, he lost valuable time to build chemistry and timing with his new teammates.

The sigh of relief Sunday was indicative of the understanding that Garoppolo and the offense will be on the field together for the start of camp. Had Garoppolo not been able to take the physical Sunday, he was a candidate to start camp on the Physically Unable to Perform list.

As it relates to Garoppolo’s contract, the Raiders now have flexibility to amend the structure of the deal if they need to create salary cap space. By converting the $11.25 million signing bonus to actual salary, it pushed his 2023 base salary from $11.25 million to $22.5 million — all of which counts against this year’s cap.

They can now reconvert some of that actual salary into a bonus, thus lowering the base salary and cap hit by whatever amount is needed. The Raiders have $2,818,740 in effective cap space, the third least in the NFL.

They are scheduled to host free-agent cornerback Marcus Peters on Monday, with the idea of signing him if the visit goes well. That would further reduce their cap space.

Contact Vincent Bonsignore at vbonsignore@reviewjournal.com. Follow @VinnyBonsignore on Twitter.