A Jimmy Garoppolo-Patriots Reunion Could Be In The Cards After Release

Getty Image / Candice Ward

It seemed like just yesterday the New England Patriots used a second-round pick on Eastern Illinois quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to be the heir-apparent to Tom Brady. In fact, it’s been a decade since he was drafted by Bill Belichick.

Of course, Garoppolo was traded by the Patriots during the 2017 season after it became very clear that Tom Brady was still at the top of his game. But, now, with Garoppolo being a free agent after being released by the Raiders, a reunion makes a lot of sense.

Garoppolo was released on Wednesday by Las Vegas as a cap casualty as the new league year officially begun. He signed a 3-year, $67.5 million deal last offseason with the Raiders after being injured and losing his job to Brock Purdy in San Francisco.

Don’t get me wrong, Garoppolo wasn’t great by any means. The Raiders went 3-3 in his starts before being benched, but he threw 7 touchdowns against 9 interceptions and threw for just over 200 yards per start. That’s not good at all.

So, why would the Patriots want him? Simply put, their current quarterback depth chart is even worse than the level Garoppolo has played at. Former first-round pick Mac Jones flamed out and was traded to Jacksonville last week. Second-year player Bailey Zappe is a guy who should be fighting for a roster spot, not handed the keys to an NFL franchise. They do have the third-overall pick in next month’s NFL Draft, and many expect them to take a quarterback with that pick.

But, the franchise needs a complete rebuild. It has to be tempting for New England to trade that pick and look to use the capital acquired to help new head coach Jerod Mayo build a winner once again in New England. That’s where Garoppolo comes in, as he could be a stopgap starter while the Patriots limp to 3-5 wins again next year and then start to truly rebuild in earnest.

Of note, Garoppolo will be suspended the first two games of next season for a violation of the league’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs.

Who knows. Maybe Jimmy Garoppolo will actually be the one to resurrect the franchise and lead them to post-Brady glory, just as we all thought a decade ago.