49ers: 10 things for which fans can be thankful at 2019 Thanksgiving

10 things for which 49ers fans can be thankful at 2019 Thanksgiving

SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 11: Strong safety Jaquiski Tartt #29 and free safety Jimmie Ward #20 of the San Francisco 49ers celebrate Tartt stripping the ball from wide receiver D.K. Metcalf #14 of the Seattle Seahawks at the two yard line to prevent a Seattle Seahawks touchdown in the second quarter at Levi's Stadium on November 11, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

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Head coach Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots talks with Tom Brady #12 (Photo by Kathryn Riley/Getty Images) /

No. 5: Bill Belichick Having a Quarterback Conundrum

Let’s rewind back to 2017, shall we?

The 49ers are mired in another losing season despite John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan coming aboard, and quarterbacks Brian Hoyer and C.J. Beathard aren’t getting the job done at all.

Suddenly, the phone rings and it’s New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick.

Belichick has a problem: He can no longer retain the two quarterbacks on his roster, Tom Brady and Jimmy Garoppolo. Garoppolo is poised to hit free agency after backing up Brady for three-plus years, and there’s already too much heat on the Pats head coach to alleviate the situation.

A second-round NFL Draft pick later, Garoppolo is on his way to the 49ers.

There are two kinds of teams in the NFL today: those who have a franchise signal-caller and those looking for one. With one complex situation in New England and a simple move with San Francisco, Shanahan and Lynch addressed arguably the hardest problem to solve.

True, Garoppolo is still going through some maturation and growing pains. But if cornerback Richard Sherman‘s comments about Garoppolo being “the leader of this team” aren’t convincing enough, nothing will be satisfactory for the critics.

Simply put, the 49ers managed one of the best trade coups in recent NFL history.