In the Tom Brady sweepstakes, Peter King is keeping arguably the wildest possible result on the table.
Despite coming off a season in which they reached the Super Bowl, the San Francisco 49ers have been suggested as a potential landing spot for Brady, who can officially become a free agent March 18. Brady, of course, is a Bay Area native, and joining the Niners potentially could make for a fairytale ending to his storied career.
Coinciding with Brady’s impending free agency this offseason is San Francisco being eligible to opt out of Jimmy Garoppolo’s contract with just a minor salary cap hit. The 49ers conceivably could sign Brady and cut bait with Garoppolo, who then would have the opportunity to head back to Foxboro.
While not everyone in the football world is taking this chatter seriously, Peter King is at least keeping an open mind to it.
“The temptation is to give this thought zero credence, but I don’t because all the Niners would have to say is, Jimmy Garoppolo’s our quarterback now and for the future, and we will not be making a change. But they haven’t said that,” King wrote in his latest Football Morning in America column for NBC Sports. “And there is no offensive mind in the NFL more confident in himself and his offense—and rightfully so—than (Kyle) Shanahan. Whereas I would say, Why take Brady for a year or two instead of Garoppolo for the next 10 years? Shanahan MIGHT say, Gimme Brady, and I’ll worry about next year next year.”
If the 49ers actually are interested in kicking the tires on Brady, they won’t have to wait much longer to speak with him. The league’s legal tampering period opens March 16, a date that is expected to deliver some answers about Brady’s future.
