FOXBOROUGH, MA — The man who many thought would be the successor to Tom Brady will instead likely replace another former Patriots backup quarterback. New England Patriots announced Tuesday morning that they have traded popular quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to the San Francisco 49ers for a 2018 second-round pick. Garoppolo leaves New England after more than three seasons, backing up Brady during two Super Bowl-winning seasons.
ESPN was the first to report the news Monday night.
The move could mean starting time for Garoppolo, who will move to a team that has gone 0-8 with former Patriot Brian Hoyer behind center.
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While he did not play many games, Garoppolo was seen as a possible heir to Brady's spot. Drafted in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft, all eyes were on the Eastern Illinois product at the start of the 2016 season when he was expected to start the first four games of the season as Brady served a suspension for his alleged role in the Deflategate scandal.
Major QB shakeup: 49ers trading 2018 2nd-round draft pick to New England for Patriots’ QB Jimmy Garoppolo, sources tell ESPN.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 31, 2017
While impressive in the season opener against the Arizona Cardinals, Garoppolo's time as a starter was cut short when he suffered an injury near halftime of the second game of the year.
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In his limited playing time across 17 games, Garoppolo has thrown for 690 yards and five touchdowns while earning a QB rating of 108.6.
With the Patriots' backup leaving town, the next question is who will be the Patriots' backup quarterback because as it stands, Brady is the only quarterback on the team.
This story will be updated.
Image Credit: Winslow Townson/AP Images for Panini
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