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The 49ers surprisingly tried to sign Tom Brady this offseason, but were apparently very honest with Jimmy Garoppolo about the process.
Despite taking a San Francisco 49ers team from the depths of the NFC West to the Super Bowl in just one year, John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan flirted with replacing Jimmy Garoppolo with Tom Brady when he was a free agent this past offseason.
Garoppolo was one deep throw to Emmanuel Sanders away from winning that Super Bowl over arguably the most talented quarterback we’ve ever seen in Patrick Mahomes. Yet, that wasn’t enough to satisfy the Shanahan-Lynch duo, who are rightfully always seeking out roster improvement.
Jimmy Garoppolo reveals what it was like knowing the 49ers were chasing Tom Brady in free agency.
In any other situation, Garoppolo would’ve been right to be furious. Yet, this is Tom Brady we’re talking about, arguably the most accomplished quarterback in NFL history. If Shanahan and Lynch had brought him into the fold in hopes of a 2-3 year run at advancing their narrative, could anyone have blamed them? And, to that point, is there any real evidence that Garoppolo can deliver on the same attributes that made Brady such an attractive fit?
Garoppolo has that potential, and at 28 years of age he’s only beginning his ascent into the game’s top signal-callers. Unlike the elite rise of Deshaun Jackson, Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes, Garoppolo’s ascent is a slow crawl, and one that’s aided by perhaps the most giving offensive system the NFL has to offer. Adding Brady into that situation was tempting, and upon further inspection is understandable from a team-building perspective.
But, in the end, Brady spurned the 49ers to head down south and join Bruce Arians’ QB-friendly scheme. Garoppolo remains in control of his own destiny, even if the 49ers brass doubted — albeit only briefly — if he’s good enough to deliver.