Las Vegas will be home to a New England Patriots reunion in 2023, as Raiders newcomer Jimmy Garoppolo will join head coach Josh McDaniels in an effort to turn the franchise’s fortunes around.
Garoppolo was introduced as the Raiders’ new quarterback Friday, signaling the start of a new era in Vegas after long-time signal caller Derek Carr departed for the New Orleans Saints this offseason. The presser was meant to kick off the future, but before anyone did that, the 31-year-old took a trip down memory lane.
During his introductory news conference, Garoppolo told the story of how he first met McDaniels, detailing his pre-draft visit with the Patriots in the spring of 2014.
“I don’t know if it was planned, but I swear he planned it — Tom Brady walked in,” Garoppolo said, per ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez. “And I thought it would throw me off a little bit because I had never met him before, and a little starstruck. But yeah, he walked out, and Josh kept going with the teaching. That was our first interaction.”
The Garoppolo-Brady relationship was a successful one for the Patriots, who won two Super Bowls in the backup’s three seasons in New England. Eventually, however, reports of strife would come after Garoppolo was traded away.
In the years between Garoppolo and McDaniels’ unions, the quarterback went 40-17 while passing for 14,289 yards, 87 touchdowns and 42 interceptions while completing 67.6% of his attempts in 74 games — leading the San Francisco 49ers to an appearance in Super Bowl LIV. McDaniels won another Super Bowl with the Patriots before eventually departing for Las Vegas last season.
Now, they’ll finally get the chance to have a quarterback-offensive play-caller relationship on a full-time basis.
