Bears Should Avoid Jimmy Garoppolo Optical Illusion

Patriot’s QBs Minus the Mystique

So, now we have some absolute facts as a starting point. First, the Patriots do not have a history of developing quarterbacks who become quality starters elsewhere in the NFL. Second, backup quarterbacks who play for the Patriots rarely look as good after they leave the Patriots. That brings me back to Tom Brady. Tom Brady is not a great quarterback, he is a Bill Belichick quarterback on a Bill Belichick team. He is an optical illusion, just like Matt Cassel was. He looks great because the system makes him look great. The same way the system makes his replacement look great when pressed into service.

Having dispensed with all of the mythology, then, let’s look at Jimmy Garoppolo without the illusion that everything the Patriots turn to gold stays gold forever. Jimmy G was acquired with the highest draft pick the Patriots have spent on a quarterback in a long time, a second rounder. Statistically, he is clearly the best backup quarterback the Patriots have had in the Brady era. And on the 90th pass attempt of his young career, the Miami Dolphins wadded him up like a paper doll and knocked him out of the game.

Garoppolo is Still an Unknown Quantity

Now I’m not saying that makes him flimsy or some kind of constant injury risk, but at 6’2″, 225 lbs, he’s no Cam Newton, either. Might he be worth the multiple early round draft picks the Patriots are likely to ask for him? Certainly, he has that potential. But, how long do you think he’ll last if he comes to Chicago and takes the kind of pounding Jay Cutler has endured here. The most likely outcome for any team that trades for Garoppolo and does not put a supporting cast around him is a remake of the Jay Cutler story in Chicago.

On the other hand, if you give Garoppolo a team in which he has absolute faith, and that faith is always well deserved, yes, he will take you deep in the playoffs year after year. So would Jay Cutler, Matt Cassel, or Kyle “Does 20 Yards Count as a Deep Ball” Orton. The kind of leadership required to bring such performances out of an offense that is not already performing at that level is a rare trait. I’m not saying that Garoppolo doesn’t have it, I’m saying Belichick clearly does, and there is no way to even guess if any of Belichick’s QBs have it until you see them play for someone else.