Longtime Sports Illustrated writer, now with NBC Sports, Peter King was at the American Century Celebrity Golf Championship Tournament at Edgewood Tahoe this week and had an opportunity to walk the course on Wednesday with former Dallas Cowboys quarterback turned CBS analyst Tony Romo.
King told KNBR on Thursday that the two discussed about 40 topics, but dedicated three holes to San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.
"We're all totally fascinated with Garoppolo," King said. "You know (what) my take on Garoppolo is? I'm going to write this at some point soon. I think it's hard to imagine a quarterback prospect -- this is going to sound ridiculous -- a quarterback prospect in NFL history who has the bedrock of quality upbringing as an NFL quarterback as Jimmy Garoppolo does.
"Because think about it. You're drafted by the Patriots. You're in a quarterback room with Tom Brady. You're being coached every day by Josh McDaniels. You go sit in team meetings and listen to Bill Belichick. And you get basically inculcated into the winning way of the NFL through Belichick. You do that for three-and-a-half years, and then you go to a guy who is as imaginative (in Kyle Shanahan)."
Shanahan, who is considered an offensive mastermind, helped prepare Garoppolo to play last season with a shortened timeframe following a late-October trade. When thrust into the starting role, the quarterback flourished and guided the 49ers to five-straight wins to end the season.
"Romo made a couple of really good points about the good fortune of Jimmy Garoppolo and one of the things he said was that people totally underestimate how great Kyle Shanahan is on first down," King continued, "on getting chunk plays on first down. That most other coaches, you might see a little swing pass or a wheel route by the running back. Kyle Shanahan is attacking on first down. And he said that suits Jimmy Garoppolo's game because he's a little bit of a riverboat Jimmy.
"I don't want to overstate this. He's the most compelling story in the NFL this year."
King also pointed out that it's an interesting year for NFL fans because they get to experience the start of what could be one of the best rivalries in the game – Shanahan of the 49ers versus Sean McVay of the Los Angeles Rams. The two are close friends but, at the same time, they are as competitive as it gets.
"I think it is going to be tremendously fun," King said.
So what is the biggest Bay Area storyline? Garoppolo and the 49ers or Jon Gruden and the Oakland Raiders?
"I just think the 49ers, the team, the players, is a little bit more interesting this year but Gruden is going to be a barrel of laughs every week," King answered.
You can listen to the entire conversation with King below.
