NFL Trade Rumors: Patriots’ Jimmy Garoppolo Trade Talk Set Off By Instagram Post
NFL trade rumors are all the rage right now, and they will be for the next few days or even weeks. However, when it comes to high-profile and much sought after players, such as New England Patriots quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, they can cause a small frenzy on social media! Garoppolo may be one of the most intriguing backup quarterbacks in the NFL, but is he really on the trading block? If so, he may have tipped his hand today with just one simple post on social media.
ESPN indicates that an early-morning Instagram post on Garoppolo’s verified account saying farewell to New England sent social media buzzing Friday, but the quarterback’s agent said that his client’s account was hacked.
“Jimmy’s social media account was hacked,” agent Don Yee told ESPN’s Mike Reiss.
When asked about all of the potential NFL trade rumors involving Jimmy Garoppolo, or if something is in the works and the former Eastern Illinois legend got wind of it, prompting him to say his goodbyes the way everyone does now – over social media – a source close to the quarterback responded to Reiss, “not to my knowledge.”
Jimmy Garoppolo says he is leaving the Patriots on Instagram. pic.twitter.com/aF3jFQNpSQ
— Mut at Night (@MutAtNightWEEI) March 10, 2017
The original post went up at approximately 4 a.m. ET, but it has been removed. Here is where the story gets a bit more interesting.
According to a Mashable report, the post Garoppolo says he has now deleted with a “peace out Boston” caption was a hoax. ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith isn’t buying into Garoppolo’s story.
“I think it’s indicative of what Garoppolo actually wants to happen. I don’t believe it was a hoax,” he explained. “I think he had everything to do with that post. I don’t care what anybody says. Garoppolo is feeling himself a little bit. He knows that at no time the market is going to be as high as it is appears to be for him right now,” Smith said. “He senses a prime opportunity for himself to land someplace else, be a starting quarterback in the NFL and get some shine. And I think he wants to capitalize on it.”
With all of the NFL trade rumors surrounding Garoppolo, you can’t blame him for trying to push some buttons that may tip the scales in his favor, but saying you were hacked isn’t the way to go. To give him the benefit of the doubt, anything is possible, but in this case, it doesn’t look that way.
Garoppolo is going to be sought after by teams that need a starting QB, and for good reason.
He was a stud in college, and he has a few NFL games under his belt already. While filling in for Tom Brady during his four-game suspension at the start of the 2016 season, Garoppolo led the Patriots to a 3-1 start and looked sharp in doing so. With that being said, you would think that the Patriots would want to hang on to Garoppolo and not trade him.
Sure, Tom Brady still has a few seasons left in him, but he is going to be 40 years old and finding a quality quarterback in the NFL is not easy; just ask 20 or so of the teams right now. Garoppolo is 25 years old and could realistically be the Patriots starting quarterback when he is 27 or 28; that is if he chooses to stick around for that long, or the Patriots don’t deal him away.
While it may seem like a long time to wait to get his chance to take over in New England, just remember this; Aaron Rodgers sat behind Brett Favre for three seasons before he even got a sniff of the field, and we all know how well that worked out in Green Bay. And Rodgers was on the NFL trade rumor mill more than a few times before he became the star quarterback he is today.
Jimmy Garoppolo will never be Tom Brady; no one will, but it could benefit both sides if the New England Patriots held on to him in the long run.
The NFL trade rumors are just beginning fans; it should be one wild ride this summer.
[Featured Image by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images]
