Jimmy Garoppolo heard from a lot of people after the 49ers won the NFC Championship Game. One of them was his mentor, Tom Brady.
“Yeah, he shot me a text congratulating us on the NFC Championship and wished me luck here,” Garoppolo said Monday, “so it was pretty cool.”
In his first 3 1/2 seasons, before the Patriots traded him to the 49ers, Garoppolo started two games and threw 94 passes for New England.
“It was not frustration,” Garoppolo said. “I won two Super Bowls in my time there, so it wasn’t a bad start to the career.”
Garoppolo long has credited the Patriots and Brady for his development. He reiterated his feelings Monday, lauding Brady’s mentorship.
“He was awesome,” Garoppolo said. “Everything he did, I never tried to be much of a pest and ask too many questions, but just watching him from afar how he went about his business, how he handled off-the-field things, on the field, whatever it was, he always did it the right way. So he gave me a good example when I was young.”
Garoppolo learned the Patriot Way during his time in New England. Someone suggested that has served him well as he has thrown only 27 passes and one touchdown in the postseason.
Tevin Coleman and Raheem Mostert instead have stolen the show for the 49ers.
“I mean, I never thought of it that way, but it does translate,” Garoppolo said. “When it comes, especially in playoff time, it’s whatever it takes to win. If we don’t pass the ball once and we win, I would be happy with that. That’s makes us a great team, though. We have a lot of guys like that who are all pulling for each other.”