Patriots: 3 former Pats New England can bring back this offseason
By Jerry Trotta
1. Jimmy Garoppolo
The Patriots are currently searching for their third starting quarterback in as many seasons, and the latest buzz suggests they’ll bring in another veteran instead of selecting one of the top prospects in the early rounds of this year’s draft.
Assuming that’s the case, why not pursue Jimmy Garoppoo this offseason? It remains to be seen what the 49ers intentions are for the former third-round pick, but we like to think that they’d jump on the opportunity to improve — somebody like Deshaun Watson would make sense — if it was presented to them.
49ers star Jimmy Garoppolo would be the perfect solution at QB for the Patriots.
The consensus understanding among insiders is that San Francisco’s front office isn’t entirely sold on Garoppolo. This could provoke them to release him, and the terms of his contract would allow them to do so without breaking a sweat. For context, the 49ers would only have to swallow $2.8 million in dead cap if the 29-year-old was jettisoned.
If it comes to that, we really see no reason why the Patriots shouldn’t look to sign Garoppolo. His proneness to injury is a cause for concern, but that would only lower his price tag, which is something that would benefit New England in the grand scheme of things, given how many other upgrades the roster needs.
The bottom line is that Garoppolo’s familiarity with both the system and culture makes him a perfect quarterback candidate for the Patriots. He’s gained a reputation around the league for being nothing more than a game manager, but people weren’t saying that when he led the 49ers to the Super Bowl in his first full season as the starter two years ago, were they?
