© Matthew Emmons | 2018 Feb 4
So the story went like this: John Lynch called Bill Belichick during the 2017 offseason, and inquired about trading for Jimmy Garoppolo. He was rebuffed. Lynch then called back and half-jokingly asked if Tom Brady was available. The two shared a laugh.
A few months later before the deadline, Belichick called Lynch back. He asked what Lynch would give up for Garoppolo. Lynch offered a second-round pick, Belichick said ‘cool’ (paraphrase) and just like that, Garoppolo was a member of the San Francisco 49ers.
Or maybe that’s not how it went down.
According to a bombshell report by Matt Miller of Bleacher Report, it was actually Brady who Belichick originally offered to Lynch, an offer that shocked the 49ers GM. Lynch was obviously interested, but Patriots owner Robert Kraft shut it down, leaving Garoppolo as the consolation.
At the time, there was an incredible amount of buzz around the NFL that the 49ers originally asked for Garoppolo, but Belichick instead offered Brady. A Patriots source confirms that’s how it went down, and a 49ers source close to John Lynch says the first-time general manager couldn’t believe his ears when he heard the counteroffer.
Lynch had the chance to trade for the best quarterback ever to play and bring him back to his hometown? It’s the ultimate no-brainer, but it didn’t happen.
“Kraft shut that s–t down fast,” says a source close to Belichick. “So, instead, Lynch gets Garoppolo, but Brady, Belichick and Kraft haven’t been the same since Tom learned that Bill was ready to get rid of him. And that lit a fire under his ass.”
The decision to offer Brady would change things forever according to the quarterback’s former teammates, who told Miller that Brady began planning his exit after word got to him about Belichick’s offer. Brady would go on to restructure his deal twice before the 2020 offseason, in an effort to make it impossible for New England to hit him with the franchise tag.
Brady reportedly did not communicate with the Patriots this offseason regarding a new deal. On Wednesday, he reportedly agreed to a deal with Tampa Bay worth around $30 million per year.