Garoppolo set to take Pats’ reins Pats’ Ebner headed to Rio
Backup likely to fill in during Brady’s absence
Jimmy Garoppolo has never started an NFL game. That almost certainly will change Sept. 11 when the New England Patriots open their season on Sunday Night Football at the Arizona Cardinals.
Tom Brady’s decision Friday to end his legal fight of a four-game suspension for his alleged role in Deflategate means he’ll miss his first regular-season games since a knee injury cost him nearly all of the 2008 season.
“It has been a challenging 18 months and I have made the difficult decision to no longer proceed with the legal process,” Brady posted on his Facebook page. “I’m going to work hard to be the best player I can be for the New England Patriots and I look forward to having the opportunity to return to the field this fall.”
Barring unforeseen developments in training camp and the preseason, that almost certainly means Garoppolo, who’s entering his third NFL season, will step into the breach.
Half of his 20 career completions came in a meaningless Week 17 game in 2014. His lone touchdown pass occurred that season in garbage time on a night the Patriots were blown out 41-14.
But when it comes to preparations for temporarily supplanting perhaps the greatest quarterback in NFL history, no one might be better qualified for the job than Garoppolo.
Drafted in the second round two years ago and viewed as Brady’s potential successor, Garoppolo has spent the last two offseasons getting ready to guide the perennial AFC East champions through the first month of the regular season while the threetime Super Bowl MVP fought a four-game ban that was vacated before last season but reinstated this year as the case wound through federal court.
Garoppolo became the de facto face of the Patriots during the summer of 2015, patiently offering scripted but polite answers about the situation, something coach Bill Belichick had no patience for. Brady has often been a media recluse the last two offseasons, splitting time between the practice field and legal hearings.
Garoppolo played well as part of his big dress rehearsal in preseason last year, completing 61 of 80 passes for 554 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions while posting a solid 92.4 passer rating.
Of course, it was all for naught. Brady’s ban was shelved just before the 2015 campaign kicked off, and Garoppolo wound up throwing four passes in five relief appearances last season.
After Brady’s ban was revived by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit, Garoppolo again received plenty of work this spring, and this time he’ll have to put those repetitions to good use.
New England fans can take solace in this much: It could have been worse.
Yes, Week 1 could be rough. But even if Brady was in the lineup against the NFC West champion Cardinals (and former Patriots pass rusher Chandler Jones), chances are New England would have been listed as a slight underdog for the game.
But New England will play its next three games at home, where the Patriots are 26-2 since 2013. Their opponents will be the Miami Dolphins, who are breaking in a new coach and last won in Foxborough in 2008 (when, incidentally, Brady was injured); the Houston Texans, who have a new quarterback and are 0-3 at Gillette Stadium; and the Buffalo Bills, who are 4-28 against Belichick and Co. dating to 2000.
Garoppolo might be unproven, but he won’t be cowed by the circumstances. He just completed his third offseason under the tutelage of Belichick, Brady and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. He will be playing behind what should be a healthy offensive line and should have tight end Rob Gronkowski and wide receivers Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola at full strength along with newly acquired weapons such as tight end Martellus Bennett and wide receiver Chris Hogan.
Although the Patriots, who typically carry just two quarterbacks on their 53-man roster, might have to bring in a hired gun as the backup if rookie Jacoby Brissett isn’t up to the task, Garoppolo should feel relatively secure given he won his current role outright as a rookie.
Really, all that’s left for Garoppolo is to adhere to the Patriots’ mantra: “Do your job.”
The NFL will be represented at the Rio Olympics.
New England Patriots safety and special teams ace Nate Ebner was selected to the 12-man Team USA rugby roster Monday.
Rugby is returning to the Olympics after a 92-year absence. The version used now is known as “sevens” — seven players to a side on a field the size of a soccer pitch.
Ebner told USA TODAY Sports that sevens equates to “full-blown action — the hardest 15 minutes of anything I’ve ever done.”
Drafted in 2012 and a member of New England’s Super Bowl XLIX championship team, Ebner will join Herschel Walker as the only man to participate in the Olympics after playing in the NFL. (Several athletes joined the NFL after competing in the Games.)
Team USA is viewed as a legitimate contender in Rio, but Fiji is considered the favorite.
Ebner has played rugby since childhood and was a member of the national team as a teenager. After re-signing with the Patriots in March, he took a leave of absence in a bid to fulfill his Olympic dream.
The six-day tournament in Rio will begin Aug. 6. The Patriots open training camp July 27 and will be awaiting Ebner’s arrival once he returns.
“It’s been great. These guys are all great guys, humble guys,” Ebner said. “I’m lucky to be teammates with them and call them my friends. Been a good opportunity, good learning experience.”
Joining Ebner will be team captain Madison Hughes, Zack Test, Folau Niua, Danny Barrett, Garrett Bender, Maka Unufe, Perry Baker, Carlin Isles, Andrew Durutalo, Chris Wyles and Ben Pinkelman.
Coach Mike Friday didn’t initially think Ebner had a good chance to make the cut but was impressed by his progress and likes the overall construction of the squad.
“The team is balanced in terms of physicality, power, X factor and out-and-out pace,” Friday said. “The squad has some big-temperament players within it and is underpinned by a strong work ethic and relentless approach.”