According to Jason Cole of B/R, one team with a “strong need at quarterback” is concerned that Josh McDaniels could pursue a trade for Patriots backup QB Jimmy Garoppolo should he land a head-coaching job.
This team reportedly believes McDaniels has placed a premium on bringing Garoppolo along with him to build around with hi next team, especially if the team doesn’t have a long-term option already in place.
As of now, McDaniels has interviews scheduled with the 49ers, Rams and Jaguars.
Los Angeles the No. 1 overall pick on Jared Goff last year, so it’s safe to assume that McDaniels wouldn’t attempt to trade for Garoppolo if he took this job.
Jacksonville currently has Blake Bortles as their starting quarterback but the team has said publicly that they wouldn’t force him on their next head coach. However, Cole reports that some candidates have some concerns about the Jaguars’ commitment to Bortles and how this could impact the situation long-term (NFLTR).
That leaves the 49ers, who have major questions at quarterback and are widely expected to move on from Colin Kaepernick next year. If McDaniels is set on bringing Garoppolo along with him, San Francisco seems like the most likely candidate, unless the Jaguars would be willing to move on from Bortles.
Adam Schefter of ESPN mentioned during an appearance on WEEI 93.7 last weeek that even though one source has told him they would be “stunned” to see the Patriots trade Garoppolo, he believes they’ll listen to trade offers in the coming months.
“I didn’t say that. One person told me that,” Schefter said. “I don’t know that I believe that. I think they definitely are going to listen and it’s going to be up to another team to make an attractive enough [offer]. There was one person I spoke to with the Patriots who said he would be stunned if they traded him. Now, that doesn’t mean that that person is right, it means I think they are going to listen and it means they are going to ask for a lot. If somebody steps forward whether it is Chicago, or Cleveland, or San Francisco I think they act, but they are not looking to randomly deal the guy to deal the guy.”
Schefter added that a starting point for a potential Garoppolo trade would likely consist of a first- and a fourth-round pick.
“In my mind, Sam Bradford went for a 1 and a 4 [round pick], so to me that is the starting point and I don’t even know if they would do it then,” Schefter said.
Schefter gets the sense that they will explore the market for Garoppolo, even though he could very well be their long-term successor to Tom Brady.
“My own sense on Garoppolo is that they are going to explore that market,” Schefter said. “That they are going to listen. They are going to see what is out there and if some team steps forward and makes it such that they have to trade him they will, but they are just not going to look to give him away. That is not going to happen.”
If a team were to acquire Garoppolo, they could allow him to play out his rookie contract and then franchise him the following year if they can’t get a long-term deal done.
It would make sense for the Patriots to make Garoppolo available next year, as this would likely allow them to recoup a better draft pick than a third-round compensatory pick they would receive in 2019 if he played out the final year of his contract and signed elsewhere.
Garoppolo, 25, is a former second-round pick of the Patriots back in 2014. He’s currently in the third year of his four-year, $3,483,898 rookie contract and stands to make a base salary of $686,718 for the 2016 season.
Next year, Garoppolo has a base salary of $820,077 to go along with a $75,000 workout bonus.
In 2016, Garoppolo has completed 70 percent of his passes for 496 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions for the Patriots over the course of four games.
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