Patriots plan on keeping Jimmy Garoppolo

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Whether it’s a ploy to drive up his asking price or a legitimate claim, the New England Patriots reportedly don’t want to let Jimmy Garoppolo go no matter what.

Speaking on NFL Network’s Up to the Minute, Ian Rapoport made it clear that, based on his understanding, Garoppolo’s going nowhere in 2017.

“From my understanding, the Patriots do not want to deal Jimmy Garoppolo,” Rapoport said. “They really just don’t, whether it’s to the Browns, whether it’s to the Texans. Their stance right now … is they do not want to give up someone who they consider a franchise quarterback for a pick this year.”

One must truly take this with a grain of salt. The closer teams get to the upcoming 2017 NFL Draft, the more they might be convinced Garoppolo is a better option than drafting a quarterback. That drives up Garoppolo’s value by simple virtue of supply and demand.

However, on the flip side it’s perfectly reasonable to think this isn’t just a smokescreen. Tom Brady will be 40 when the 2017 NFL season begins. And as we’ve seen all too often in this league, that tends to be a number quarterback’s just don’t handle very well. Despite his desire to play another half-decade Brady could go the way of Peyton Manning and suddenly fall apart.

That would mean that, if New England did let Garoppolo go, they’d have no legitimate starter on their roster. That goes against another recent report that indicates the Pats want to keep Garoppolo as Brady insurance.