NFL defensive coordinators have a total of six and a half games worth of film on San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, who remains undefeated as a starter. He was a game-changing factor for San Francisco last season. As soon as he took over the starting job, the 49ers' fortunes took a turn for the better.
Expectations are high for Garoppolo as he enters the 2018 season as "the guy" in San Francisco. Acquiring him from the New England Patriots for merely a second-round draft pick will seem like a bargain should he come anywhere close to meeting those expectations.
The reasoning behind why the Patriots decided to gift Garoppolo to the 49ers remains a mystery. Head coach Bill Belichick was clearly fond of his backup quarterback, who he hoped would one day succeed future Hall of Famer Tom Brady. Some question whether or not Belichick was forced to initiate the trade.
"I feel like they've been handed one of the biggest gifts of all time with Garoppolo," former NFL linebacker Bill Romanowski said Tuesday night on 95.7 The Game.
Romanowski also said at least one "very high up" source within the Patriots believes the league will have Garoppolo "figured out."
"I had a really interesting talk with someone very high up with New England [who] said, 'Let's wait until game six to eight this year, and let's see if Jimmy is still kicking butt,'" explained Romanowski. "So, a real interesting conversation (with) someone that is in the know with New England."
Romanowski was asked how high up his source within the Patriots was.
"Very high up," he answered. "He thinks that defensive coordinators will have him figured out. He feels like he had a little bit of a grace period last year where the defensive coordinators didn't have him figured out yet.
"But that's where Kyle Shanahan comes in, and I thought it was very interesting. Like I said, this was someone very high up."
Was it someone within the front office or the coaching staff?
"Almost as high as you can get," Romanowski responded.
Click here to listen to what Romanowski said on 95.7 The Game with the conversation about Garoppolo starting at the 32:30 mark.
H/t to Tracy Sandler of the Fangirl Sports Network for the find.