Is a Garoppolo return to Foxboro far-fetched?
For myriad reasons, Ian Rapoport is skeptical that the San Francisco 49ers are going to move on from Jimmy Garoppolo.
The Niners quarterback has been in trade rumors periodically, most often getting linked to the New England Patriots. San Fran traded up for the No. 3 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft and all but certainly will take a quarterback, meaning Garoppolo could be the odd man out.
And Rapoport indicated Thursday that the phone hasn’t been ringing off the hook for Garoppolo’s services.
“It doesn’t seem like there’s a ton of suitors,” Rapoport said on “NFL Total Access.” “Maybe the Patriots, but I haven’t gotten the sense that they’ve made any contact on Garoppolo at all. So it certainly seems like more of a waiting period to see if anything’s going to happen.”
Rapoport also points out that Garoppolo is the 49ers’ starter, and keeping him around might be beneficial in case the quarterback they draft needs a little time to develop. Still though, that’s a pretty-expensive insurance policy, as Garoppolo still is owed north of $51 million across the next two seasons.
As for the Patriots’ role in all of this, there are conflicting reports. As of Thursday morning though, the rumor was that they’re in no rush to trade for Garoppolo.