FOXBORO, Mass. — New England Patriots quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo grew up as a Chicago Bears fan, so it’s probably a good thing he’s not emulating the quarterbacks he cheered for as a kid.
Instead, Garoppolo studied his current teammate, Tom Brady, and one of the Bears’ chief rivals. Garoppolo is practicing against his former favorite team this week with the Bears in town for training camp before their preseason matchup Thursday.
“Well, Tom is one of them, obviously,” Garoppolo said. “And you know, even though I’m from Chicago, I always liked Brett Favre growing up. Yeah, I thought he was a heck of a quarterback, and so you know you watch so many guys. I was addicted to football as a kid, and it’s just fun to watch guys, I mean everyone’s different, has a different throwing technique and everything, and you just learn things from each one of them.”
The Bears’ starting quarterbacks from the time Garoppolo was born in 1991 until he was drafted by the Patriots in 2014 were Jim Harbaugh, Peter Tom Willis, Will Furrer, Steve Walsh, Erik Kramer, Dave Krieg, Rick Mirer, Steve Stenstrom, Moses Moreno, Shane Matthews, Cade McKnown, Jim Miller, Chris Chandler, Henry Burris, Kordell Stewart, Rex Grossman, Craig Krenzel, Chad Hutchinson, Jonathan Quinn, Kyle Orton, Brian Griese, Jay Cutler, Todd Collins, Caleb Hanie, Josh McCown and Jason Campbell.
“Yeah they went through a little bit of a dry spell there, but no I just always liked Favre, his toughness and everything,” Garoppolo said. “He was a heck of a player.”
Brady praised Garoppolo on Sunday, saying he’s earned the respect of everyone within the Patriots’ organization.
“It’s awesome,” Garoppolo said. “You know, Tommy is a guy that I look up to and I’ve learned a lot from him. And, you know, it’s always a privilege to hear something like that from a guy that you respect like that.”
Patriots head coach Bill Belichick echoed Brady’s sentiments.
“I think that happened day one when he came here,” Belichick said. “I think he has always done that. I don’t think it’s been any different this year. I think he has grown this year, but I don’t think his approach has been any different, and I think he does have that. I’d agree with that.”
Thumbnail photo via Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports Images
