John Lynch Confirms Tom Brady Trade Offer, Says Bill Belichick 'Laughed at Me'

San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch pulled off a trade for Jimmy Garoppolo at the 2018 NFL trade deadline.

But that didn't stop him from rolling the dice on asking for Tom Brady. 

"We were calling about Jimmy and we did have that conversation and got quickly rebuffed," Lynch said on Barstool Sports' Pardon My Take podcast.

"I figured, 'What the heck, you gotta take your shot, right? You can't score if you don't shoot.' I had to summon up the courage and Bill [Belichick] laughed at me and basically hung up on me. But hey, I took my shot."

The 49ers traded a 2018 second-round pick for Garoppolo, who quickly established himself as their franchise quarterback. He threw for 1,560 yards and seven touchdowns against five interceptions in 2017, winning every game he started for the 49ers. 

"I've always had that mindset," Garoppolo told Bleacher Report's Joon Lee when asked if he thought he was better than Brady. "I knew that [Brady] was better than me in my first day in the NFL. Naturally, you're the rookie and he's the veteran, but you have to have that mindset, that you want to be the starter.

"Even when I was a little kid, my brothers, whenever we would play, I would literally always think I was going to win. I wouldn't, but I would always think that. It's like when I go to New England, when I first got there, I thought in my head, 'I'm better than this dude.'"

Suffice it to say the 49ers are satisfied with their choice. Garoppolo signed a five-year, $137.5 million contract this offseason, locking him in as the face of the franchise.

Brady became the oldest player in NFL history to win the MVP and led the Patriots to another Super Bowl appearance. His age (41) might have made him a trade target if Bill Belichick wanted to go all-in on Garoppolo, but it's pretty clear the Patriots are going to keep riding Brady's hot hand until he retires.