Finding a franchise quarterback is no easy task, so when the San Francisco 49ers had a chance to trade for Jimmy Garoppolo from the New England Patriots, general manager John Lynch didn't hesitate.
The 49ers acquired Garoppolo before the trade deadline in 2017. San Francisco badly needed a quarterback upgrade, and although Garoppolo had shown impressive potential and talent to that point, giving up a second-round pick for a quarterback with very little starter experience was a risk. However, in a quarterback-driven league it was a gamble worth making.
“We felt it was a reasonable cost, albeit a high one, a second round pick, to have an opportunity to find your franchise quarterback,” Lynch told reporters Wednesday in Miami, where the NFC champions will play the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIV on Sunday night.
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Belichick's praise for Garoppolo during his trade discussions with the 49ers also made quite an impact on Lynch.
“It is one thing in our conversations with Bill Belichick, when I talked to him, when Kyle (Shanahan) talked to him, ‘You’re gonna love this kid, his teammates love him,'" Lynch said. "And Bill is not prone to hyperbole. He doesn’t say things just to say them. So if he says something he means it, so that’s stuck with me.
Lynch has done an impressive job building a championship-caliber roster in such a short period of time. He was hired in January of 2017, and among the 53 players expected to be active for Sunday's Super Bowl showdown, 46 of them have been acquired in some fashion by Lynch.
New England Patriots
The 49ers have a deep, well-balanced roster that is set up to compete for the Lombardi Trophy over the long haul, and having a franchise quarterback like Garoppolo provides a strong foundation.