Adam Schefter Thinks Some in Patriots Building Regret Jimmy Garoppolo Trade

ESPN's Adam Schefter feels there is likely some seller's remorse within the New England Patriots organization regarding last year's trade of quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to the San Francisco 49ers.

Appearing on Adrian Wojnarowski's Woj Pod on Tuesday (h/t WEEI's Ryan Hannable), Schefter said:

"I'm sure there is some [regret]. Jimmy Garoppolo is going to be a top quarterback in this league for the next decade or so. You don't want to let a guy like that go when Tom Brady is at the tail end of his career. In a perfect world you get to hold on to both guys and when Brady decides to walk away, Garoppolo is ready to step in and assume the throne. But, it didn't work out like that for a variety of reasons—Jimmy's contract was coming up, Tom is not ready to quit playing just yet, and people say that timing in life is a lot, and in this particular case it was.

"But, for whatever reason there was a 180 within the organization going from where they weren't going to deal him, and were determined they weren't going to deal him, to all of a sudden rushing to trade him right before the trade deadline last year on Halloween. It happened very quickly, very suddenly and yeah, I think there are people that definitely would not want him traded, but that was the circumstance and situation that they were in at that point in time."

Garoppolo went 5-0 as the Niners' starter last season, while Brady was named NFL MVP and led the Pats to an appearance in Super Bowl LII.

Garoppolo could have left in free agency, which would have left the Patriots with no return on their investment.

Since the 41-year-old Brady was still playing at an elite level, the Pats decided to move Garoppolo for a high second-round pick in the 2018 NFL draft.

The 26-year-old paid immediate dividends for San Francisco, throwing for 1,560 yards, seven touchdowns and five interceptions while rushing for another score in six appearances.

San Francisco rewarded him with a five-year, $137.5 million contract in hopes that he will quickly develop into one of the NFL's premier signal-callers.

The Patriots have arguably the best quarterback in the league in Brady, but the bubble has to burst eventually.

New England is a perennial Super Bowl contender until that happens, but keeping Garoppolo could have extended the Patriots' dominance for another decade.