Greg Bedard of The Boston Sports Journal believes that the New England Patriots remain focused on Jimmy Garoppolo as their quarterback for the 2021 season. So much so that Bedard calls Garoppolo New England's "Plan A" and that Patriots fans should root for the San Francisco 49ers to make a move—any move—at quarterback.
Garoppolo has been the subject of much discussion this offseason, as he is each offseason. The 49ers have indicated that they expect him to be their quarterback in September. However, that has not deterred the speculation that San Francisco would still like to move on from Garoppolo, should a better option present itself.
Former NFL general manager Michael Lombardi, now a contributor at The Athletic, recently thew out two names as options that might entice San Francisco to move on from Garoppolo—Sam Darnold and Deshaun Watson. Of course, he states that the latter would be the 49ers' own Plan A while the former would be Plan B, and the team wouldn't want to make a move for Darnold now if Watson were to become an option later.
It's also possible that neither Darnold nor Watson becomes an option or that San Francisco sees the cost as too high for either. That would mean Garoppolo stays put—Teddy Bridgewater probably isn't going to replace him—for at least another season. New England would need to move on to Plan B, then.
The Patriots reportedly remain hopeful, though.
"From what I gather from talking to people this week, over the past week, Jimmy Garoppolo still is far and away their Plan A," Bedard said on a recent podcast via The Spun. "That, if they had to draw it up, exactly the optimal situation for the Patriots for this coming season, it's Jimmy G coming back here. And of course, that's all dependent on the 49ers doing something."
What does Bedard think about general manager John Lynch's recent comments that there is no doubt that, barring injury, Garoppolo will be the 49ers quarterback during the upcoming season? Apparently, he doesn't believe them for a second and feels the general manager lacks the power in San Francisco to make such a declaration.
"Don't believe anything John Lynch says," Bedard boldly stated. "John Lynch has no power there. I guess he runs personnel, but it's Kyle Shanahan's show from top to bottom at that place. Shanahan plays things close to the vest, doesn't show his cards … he might even leave Lynch twisting in the wind."
Garoppolo is entering his fifth season with the 49ers and has missed 23 games over the past three seasons, bringing his durability into question. That includes missing 10 games in 2020, when he thew for 1,096 yards with seven touchdowns and five interceptions through his six game appearances.
Garoppolo is set to count over $26 million against the 49ers' salary cap this season. The team is expected to have about $23 million in cap space, per OverTheCap.com.