Curran: Why a Jimmy Garoppolo reunion could make sense for Patriots originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
The 2024 New England Patriots are all about fresh starts. New head coach. New head of personnel. A new way of operating under Jerod Mayo and Eliot Wolf after 24 years of Bill Belichick.
But it might make sense to bring back a familiar face at arguably their most important position.
The Athletic’s Vic Tafur recently listed nine potential destinations for veteran quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, who is expected to be released by the Las Vegas Raiders after receiving a two-game suspension from the NFL for violating its performance-enhancing substances policy. Among those destinations is New England, where Garoppolo spent his first three-plus NFL seasons before a mid-season trade to the San Francisco 49ers in 2017.
The Patriots have options at quarterback. They own the No. 3 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, which guarantees them the opportunity to draft one of USC’s Caleb Williams, UNC’s Drake Maye and LSU’s Jayden Daniels. They could also pursue a trade for Justin Fields if the Chicago Bears decide to draft Williams.
But suppose New England isn’t enamored with Fields, or sees more value in trading down to stockpile draft assets than taking a QB at No. 3. Would it make sense to pursue Garoppolo as a “bridge” starter or high-level backup?
Our Patriots Insider Tom E. Curran believes so, and laid out the case for a Jimmy G. reunion Monday on NBC Sports Boston’s Arbella Early Edition.
“I love it,” Curran said. “I love it for a few reasons. There is one big drawback to it (the two-game suspension), but when you look at what strengths Jimmy has — and I know there’s cons — he’s accurate, mostly, he gets the ball out so fast, which you kind of need to do. He is a tremendous teammate, which you absolutely have to have. He’s in a ‘prove it’ season. Because of the injuries and because of the performance, he is going to be a low-cost option, which is desirable as well.
“So, all of…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/curran-why-jimmy-garoppolo-reunion-205844869.html
Author : NBC Sports Boston
Publish date : 2024-02-27 21:02:24
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.
