49ers 2020 NFL schedule release: Top 5 storylines to watch
By Peter Panacy
No. 2: Jimmy Garoppolo Takes on the Patriots in Week 7
It’s a bit of a wonder why the Week 7 contest between the 49ers and New England Patriots isn’t nationally televised. After all, it’ll feature the Niners’ franchise quarterback, Jimmy Garoppolo, going up against the team that drafted him.
OK, if now-Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady was still in New England, it would be a prime-time bout. But Brady isn’t there, and the Pats now look to be in a total rebuild mode.
Still, the storyline will be about Garoppolo and the head coach who wanted to groom him as Brady’s successor, Bill Belichick. The context of the now-infamous 2017 trade that sent Garoppolo to San Francisco for a mere second-round pick is well known, particularly the rift between Brady, Belichick and Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
New England got more Super Bowl wins with Brady under center, yes. And the Niners got their franchise quarterback, too.
Now, however, the Patriots are left with a less-known quarterback, Jarrett Stidham, under center. Not Garoppolo.
And that’ll surely spark some commentary leading up to Week 7 surrounding whether or not Belichick regrets trading Jimmy G away to the 49ers.
Garoppolo will want to make sure Belichick regrets it.