Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Friday with a Frisco Flavor: Snowman talks Brady, Patriots - 3/27/2020

Episode Date: March 27, 2020

Tom Brady ended up in Tampa Bay. However, how close did he come go landing in the Bay Area? Niners insider Brian Snow of ArenaSportsNet joins host Mike D’Abate to discuss Brady’s fit with the Buccaneers and why it is not wise to count out the New England Patriots in 2020.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Patriots fans, you are now locked in to the Locked On Patriots Podcast. I'm going to show you how to make a beautiful and beautiful flower. I'm going to use a small flower pot. I'm going to use a small pot Hello to all of you Foxborough faithful. It is Friday here on the Lockdown Patriots Podcast, your daily home for news notes and analysis infused with the occasional opinion on your six-time Super Bowl champions,

the New England Patriots. My name is Mike DeBate, your host of the Locked On Patriots podcast, which, of course, is a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. And, folks, because it's your team every day, that means your questions, your comments, and your feedback, always welcomed and appreciated. Feel free to send that feedback to me by reaching out to me

and following me on Twitter at MDABATEFPC. And while you're out there roaming around through that Twitterverse, please be sure to follow the Lockdown Patriots account as well at LO underscore Patriots. Patriots fans, today is March 27th, 2020, the first full week here on the Lockdown Patriots podcast in the post-Tom Brady era. And with Tom now officially taking his talents to Tampa Bay, we here in Foxborough turn our attention to a new dawn and a new day. And that likely means handing the reins of the Patriots offense to Jarrett Stidham.

But there was a time, Patriots fans in the not-so-distant past, that we believed if the keys of the kingdom were going to be turned over to anybody that wasn't Tom Brady, it would have been Jimmy Garoppolo, who is now the quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers. And if you recall, at one point this offseason, the 49ers were a rumored destination of Tom Brady. So why didn't that happen? Well, ultimately, Niners general manager John Lynch, head coach Kyle Shanahan, and the San Francisco 49ers brain trust decided that they were going to roll with Jimmy G. And it's really hard to argue that logic.

Jimmy had them within an eyelash of winning a Super Bowl title this year. Yes, I'm aware that he didn't play his best game in the second half of the Super Bowl, but there was still enough there to build on. And apparently, enough there to build on discouraged the 49ers from moving on from their young quarterback and going with a surefire Hall of Famer in Tom Brady. But youth wasn't the only factor in Jimmy G's favor. There were a lot of reasons why San Francisco preferred to stay the course, and in order to help shed some light on why Tom Brady ended up in Tampa Bay as opposed to the other

Bay, meaning San Francisco, I will be welcoming in my good friend and San Francisco 49ers insider Brian Snow of Snowman in the Morning. Brian is as dialed into Niners Nation as anybody I know, and as much as he loves him some Tom Brady, he has some great insight on why Jimmy Garoppolo is and will continue to be the best fit for the 49ers as they pursue

that elusive sixth Super Bowl championship. Last but certainly not least, this is Locked on Patriots, so because Brian has been watching Bill Belichick coach teams for a good long while, we'll get his take on why it may not be so smart to be sleeping on the New England Patriots in 2020. And of course, Patriots fans, don't forget, it is still the mocks of March.

And to conclude today's show, I will be outlining this week's exercise and when you can expect for further instructions coming via Twitter. So settle in, folks, as we stray from the format a little bit here on this Friday, and I sincerely hope that you enjoy today's podcast. But before my good friend Brian joins me here on today's episode, I just wanted to take a moment to address you. Yes, you, listening out there. If you've been a listener of this podcast, I'm sure you've heard all of the great advertisers

working with Locked On to reach sports fans. But you may not know that Locked On Patriots is a great way for your local business to reach passionate Patriots fans just like you. Unlike any other podcast, Locked On gives your local company the unique ability to reach local podcast listeners. Not just any podcast listener, a Locked On podcast listener. If your company wants to connect with Patriots fans and a predominantly male audience that is well-educated with disposable income, then let's put your company right here on Locked

On Patriots. Local fans love to support local businesses. Text the word advertising to 33777 or visit LockedOnPodcast.com slash advertising and let us know who you are. We'll get our team to help your team achieve Locked OnPodcast.com slash advertising and let us know who you are. We'll get our team to help your team achieve Locked On advertising success. Once again, text the word advertising to 33777 or visit LockedOnPodcast.com slash advertising. We look forward to hearing from you. Patriots fans, my guest today is not only a good friend and pseudo-brother of mine,

but one of the most knowledgeable in the business across the NFL and really across the professional sports landscape. You know his great work from shows such as Snowman in the Morning, as well as so many exciting ventures on the horizon for Arena Sportsnet. He is Brian Snow, and I am honored to welcome him to the podcast today. And you all know, folks, I love my movie quotes. So when my good friend joins me here on Locked On Patriots, springtime fan of Smokey and the Bandit,

I am so excited to ask this man this question. Snowman, you got your ears on. You got them, you lucky devil. Now that I love. And this is another example of the reason why this man and i get along so well uh thank you so much for joining me tonight my friend uh hope you and yours are doing safe and doing as well as possible uh you join me today uh in in definitely interesting times but uh i'm so glad to be able to share the microphone and talk a little Niners Patriots. Yeah, let's get into it.

Absolutely. And Brian, you know, it's been almost two weeks now since shockwaves were sent through the sports world and Tom Brady announced that he would be continuing his football journey elsewhere. And subsequently we found out that elsewhere was going to be in Tampa Bay, Florida. Now we've heard about the Raiders. We've heard about the Chargers. Tampa Bay, Florida. Now, we've heard about the Raiders. We've heard about the Chargers. We've heard about the Titans. And we've heard about the Miami Dolphins. However, there were rumors that your San Francisco 49ers were a possible destination for Tom.

And if those rumors are to be believed, Tom was, how shall we say, very open to returning to the Bay. But the Niners were hesitant. They chose to remain dedicated to Jimmy Garoppolo. Now, the Niners believe this was the right decision without question, but there are some, including some in Patriots Nation, that believe Tom would have given Frisco a better chance to win the Super Bowl this year. Now, you're dialed into this organization, and we are like-minded in this, so I don't want to steal your thunder but my friend why do you believe that the niners made the right choice by staying with jimmy garoppolo instead of pursuing tom brady first and foremost they handed him 73 million and locked him in for five years one of those years was canceled out due to an injury and he's just getting back on course you and I have talked about this a lot he's just

getting back on course for coming off of a horrific horrific injury you don't want to bring Tom Brady into that kind of situation where you just had Jimmy Garoppolo a be the chief of staff and b take your team to a Super Bowl and And then you bring in Tom Brady, because if you bring in Tom Brady, for me, that gives me a sense of panic. Because everyone, every 49er fan, including yours truly, wants that sixth Super Bowl so badly. But you don't want to mess up the process either. If you take a chance with Tom Brady, you don't know what's going to happen. And I mean this very, very respectively. You don't know what's going to happen.

You don't know how he's going to connect with the receivers. That took Jimmy Caroppolo two years to connect. And if you bring in Brady, you're giving him only one. You don't want to mess up any kind of, listen to this key word, Patriots Nation, continuity. The Patriots had it for 20 years with Tom Brady the 49ers are developing theirs with Jimmy Garoppolo you don't want to mess that up right now especially with Jalen Hurd coming back from an injury Devo Samuel's already there Kendrick Bourne staying put the best darn tight end in the game and George Kittle and plus a running game that will run you over.

You don't want to mess that continuity up. Completely agreed on all counts. And I have been saying for a number of weeks now, and we've talked about this several times, both on your show and offline, about how continuity is so important to a championship contending team. And the San Francisco 49ers were within an eyelash of winning a world championship this year. You might make the argument that a couple of plays that go either way,

and maybe they're handing the trophy over to Jimmy Garoppolo and the 49ers rather than Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. No disrespect to the Chiefs intended whatsoever, but I think that a lot of ways this was a team that was so close to being able to do it for a lot of people, including some Patriots fans, which I'm surprised because we've seen Jimmy's evolution from the time that he was a draft pick all through training camps and preseasons. And then the couple of starts that he made for New England in the regular season when filling in for Tom, we've seen that progression. We know what he's capable of. For me, I think it really was a bit disheartening, to be totally honest with you, that a lot of people were calling for him to be removed from that position when I thought he

played well all year. Did he have the greatest second half of that Super Bowl game? Probably not, but he definitely learned from that. He can build on that, and that's why I believe that they did make the right decision by staying with Jimmy. independent of the fact that you're able to bring in one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time. You're already building something there and continuity ultimately has to trump sometimes maybe even skill or maybe even, you know, the opportunity to bring in again, the greatest or the arguably the greatest quarterback of all time i think that uh they did make the right decision there so i'm glad we're like-minded and i think that the niners definitely uh are still poised uh to be a part of that discussion for the nfc title this year

and that leads me very nicely into my next question and tom's arrival in tampa does shift the balance of power a little bit. You know, it makes Tampa an instant contender, which they weren't last year. Respect to Jameis Winston, but when you throw 30 interceptions and you replace him with Tom Brady, who's probably not going to come even close to that in the two years that he signed for this team, it's going to change the complexity a little bit of how teams are stacked up. I do believe that Tampa is a contender right now, but much like yourself, I believe that the road to the NFC title still runs through San Francisco.

In your opinion, could we possibly see a Jimmy Garoppolo-Tom Brady showdown for the right to go to Super Bowl 55? You know what? There are three teams I'll look at that can challenge Garoppolo and the 49ers for NFC supremacy. You got to put Tom Brady on that list and the Buccaneers, but I see two holes with them. A, lack of a tight end, and B, and this has been very important,

if you look at Tom Brady's Super Bowls, he was always equipped with what? A running game. And Tampa Bay doesn't have that so far. The second team I have contending, you know, to replace San Francisco is the team they beat in week 14, New Orleans. Drew Brees is back, enough said. And plus, they snatched up Emmanuel Sanders on a two-year deal. I think the 49ers are going to respond to that deal because there's a couple of rumblings out there in free agency. But I really don't see the 49ers dipping into free agency to pick up a wide receiver because they selected one out of Baylor last year in Jalen Hurd, who's coming off of a back injury. And you don't know what Jalen Hurd is going to do in this offense. But if it's anything like what Deebo Samuel put up,

you know, the fabulous rookie out of South Carolina, then the 49ers are already in good shape. And again, mixing in George Kittle, and you're pretty much set with that powerful running game. The third team, and people are going to think I'm crazy when I say this, as much as you would like to put Aaron Rodgers in that conversation, take him out of that conversation because their team is Seattle. Seattle gave the 49ers two fantastic games, one in Santa Clara on a Monday night and the last game of the season,

which they flexed to Sunday night and the 49ers by an eyelash and a fumble football on the goal line, got the NFC West championship. I truly see the 49ers not only repeating as NFC West champs, but also as NFC champs. And they finally get number six into the bay on their third attempt. But those are three of my three teams in the NFC that I see challenging for the NFC title. But until you unseat the champs, you got to go to Santa Clara to do it. I agree. And I think that obviously the champs do reside in Santa Clara right now. And I believe that they will not be so willing to relinquish that title, I guess is the best

way for me to put it. I'm glad you mentioned Seattle because I had the opportunity to join the crew at Locked On Seahawks yesterday, and we talked a little bit about their addition of Philip Dorsett, former Patriot player that I know pretty well from having covered him the last three years. Philip never really got a chance to live up to his true potential in New England. I don't think that was an indictment on Philip. I don't think that was necessarily an indictment on New England, but New England is predicated, and that offense is predicated on short intermediate routes, getting the quick burst, and being able to utilize the deep ball only in extreme situations. Philip's game is being able to beat his defenders. He's very fast, very quick, and I like the fact

that not only does he come in now with Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf, he's going to add another dimension of speed to that offense that Russell Wilson is going to be able to utilize. And Wilson does love to throw the deep ball. So I really think that Seattle emerges now as one of the more intriguing teams as a possibility to contend for that title. So I'm very glad that you mentioned them. But I agree. I think San Francisco is still the class of the NFC I agree also that New Orleans is a team that is

going to be very formidable they've kept that defense pretty much intact now they bring in a guy like Emmanuel Sanders he adds another dimension and obviously is able to take a lot of the pressure off of Michael Thomas so this is going to be a team to watch Tampa Bay again. You mentioned lack of a tight end, and I don't want to just let that go for a moment. There are some, including yours truly, that have been saying that the combination of OJ Howard and Cameron Bray give Tom Brady a more formidable tight end package than he's had in quite some time. And that's even including Rob Gronkowski, because Rob has been a phenomenal player for New England for his entire career, but he hasn't really been flanked on the other side with a tight end, like a Bray and a Howard that allows Tom Brady to really utilize that two tight end set.

In that respect, does that make, or could that possibly make, Tampa Bay a little bit more of a threat, knowing that those two could work off of one another? Or do you still see that as a lacking part of Tampa Bay's game going forward? The old phrase is two heads are better than one. And that is ever so true with Tampa Bay having the two tight end package that they have. Again, the weapons around Tom Brady are going to be terrific. Don't get me wrong. I wouldn't be surprised if Tom Brady repeats what Jameis Winston did, and that's throw for 5,000 yards.

But the problem I see with Tampa Bay is in the backfield. Who is going to step up and carry the rock for them, or are they going to be able to get a couple of running backs like San Francisco has to shoulder the load and take some of the load off Tom Brady? And the other reason that I failed to mention of why the 49ers stuck with Garoppolo and didn't go to Brady, and this is not a knock against Tom, but Tom's going to be 43 years old. And you're paying Jimmy Garoppolo $73 million for five years. You ain't going to get five years out of Tom Brady at that advanced stage, even though he's proven us wrong before.

He's proven yours truly wrong before. But again, it's the running game that I question with Tampa Bay that would make them an instant competitor to San Francisco for that NFC West title. And once again, Seattle found this out. Green Bay found this out. Minnesota found this out. Until you beat the champs in their house and unseat them, they're still the NFC champs and you have to go through with them to win. Absolutely. And I agree with you. And I think Tampa Bay, and that is where I do think they're vulnerable when it comes to the running game. I know they've mentioned Swift as a possibility

in the draft. I think he would be a good fit, probably one of the better running backs in this year's NFL draft, but until they add a little bit of a running game, that could be a problem for Tampa Bay potentially, and we both know that's something that is a big-time strength of the San Francisco 49ers, is a potent run game, a dual solid attack that they can run at you in addition to having Jimmy Garoppolo under center. Brian, you have a tremendous amount of experience and knowledge in watching Bill Belichick coach teams, whether it be the defensive guru that he was in New York, watching him all those years with the Giants and the 49er battles from yesteryear, or watching Bill Belichick emerge as the head coach of the New England Patriots

and take them to prominence for the last 20 years. There's a lot of people up here in New England right now that are ready to pack it in for the season. I hear a tank for Trevor or lose for Lawrence or whatever kind of hashtag that you want to put out. But knowing Bill Belichick, the way we know him and the way we've studied him and the way we've covered him, that's not in his makeup. That's not who he is. That's never who he's going to be. In short, and without putting you too much on the spot here, my friend, why is it not a good idea to sleep on Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots, even though they've suffered maybe the worst possible loss that a franchise can suffer?

You mentioned Bill Belichick and the way he used to be the defensive coordinator for the Giants. If anybody gave the 49ers fits back in the 80s and the early 90s, it was the New York Giants. Bill Belichick always had a plan for them. And say the Dallas Cowboys, you know, he always had a plan for the top teams. Don't sleep on Bill Belichick and his coaching ability, please. Yes, he had arguably the greatest quarterback behind him for 20 years in his system. This is where you get a chance, if you're the Patriots, to prove a lot of people wrong

because a lot of folks, even up there in Patriots Nation, are going to doubt that Bill Belichick can actually get a quarterback and lead them back to the playoffs. If they wind up winning the NFC East, there are going to be a lot of mouths dropped through the floor. And I really believe that the only team that can challenge the Patriots

or AFC East supremacy is the Buffalo Bills because the Bills have grown so much in their maturity. Yes, they lost the wild card game to Houston. Questionable play calling abound. But you want to look at the team that is going to challenge you for your division. And right now, that's the Buffalo Bills. And if anybody knows and does their research,

if someone knows how to defeat the Buffalo Bills, it is Bill Belichick. If you go back to Super Bowl XXV, who was the Giants defensive coordinator? Oh yeah, that was Bill Belichick. Who was the team he faced? That would be the Buffalo Bills. And the quarterback he silenced? A hall of favor by the name of Jim Kelly. Absolutely. And again, I think it's great that you bring that up because I think a lot of people forget that in terms of Bill Belichick's prowess being able to go against Buffalo. Yesterday here on Locked On Patriots, Brandon Ray, who runs the FPC Bill site,

came on and we talked a little bit about Buffalo and how the balance of power could possibly be shifting in the AFC East and their prognostication about being able to take over the crown. Don't forget, the Patriots have won this division for the last 10 years straight. Yes, they did lose their franchise, their cornerstone, but there is still a team that is taking snaps in Foxborough and they will continue to do so. I truly believe that with Bill Belichick at the helm and with Jarrett Stidham under center which it looks like that's going to be the case

there was a lot of buzz this year around Jarrett Stidham for a lot of good reasons the Patriots saw a lot in him there's no way I'm expecting him to be Tom Brady but I think he's going to be a little bit better than people think he's going to be and I think he's going to turn some head in the you had mentioned before this season before this past and I think he's going to turn some head in the process. You had mentioned before this season, before this past season, Jared Stidham could turn some heads. Now he gets an opportunity. Absolutely, and he does get that opportunity.

And again, I think he's going to be a little bit better than people will think. Apparently it's Stidham's season, as ZN, as the kids like to say nowadays. But I guess we'll see what happens here in Foxborough, and who knows, my friend, maybe we finally will be able to get that Patriots-Niners Super Bowl that we have been coveting for so long. I think it might be a little bit more of a long shot now than

the last time we spoke here on Locked On Patriots, but you know what? We live in hope, and my best of luck to you guys, and we'll see what the Patriots have in store. Thank you so much for joining me today, my friend. Before I let you go, please let everyone know where they can find you, your amazing work, and where they can always listen to you each and every day, especially on Snowman in the Morning and so many of the ventures that you have going on. Man, got a lot going on right now. Snowman in the Morning

is the cornerstone of Snowman Digital Media, five days a week, 9 a.m. to noon. You can listen via snowmaninthemorning.com or snowmandigitalmedia.com, as well as fullpresscoverage.com. Other shows I have in the works, the Daily BS will be an afternoon drive show from 4 to 6. That'll start in April. We've got the Snowman in the Morning podcast, as well as the Full Press NBA podcast, all produced by Snowman Digital Media. For all the information you need, go to snowmandigitalmedia.com. Take a look. Subscribe to the YouTube page. Join the Snowman Digital Media Patreon.

All you need is five bucks a month, folks, and we can keep these programs going. Absolutely. And again, I cannot recommend highly enough the work that Brian does. Whether you're a fan of the NBA, NFL, Major League Baseball, NHL, you name it, this man is not only covering it, but he's also an expert in the subject. And it's not by happenstance, folks. It is by design. He puts the time in each and every day and you won't find a finer host anywhere.

And I'm absolutely 100 percent confident to say that. My dear friend, thank you so much for joining me today. Again, stay safe, stay well. And we look forward to having you back here on Locked On Patriots again soon. Absolutely. Thank you very much, brother. I love you, and thank you so much. You're very welcome.

Love you too, my friend, and thanks again for everything. And before we put a wrap on the week that was here in Patriots Nation, folks, remember, the Mox of March exercise is still very much alive and well, and this weekend, we want you to put all of your cards on the table. What will the Patriots draft board look like when all is said and done? This is your opportunity to be the Patriots GM. Do they make all their picks? If so, who will be wearing Patriot blue in 2020? Do they make a few trades either up or down in this draft? Or do they trade away this year's draft capital to increase next year's draft capital?

Anything and everything is on the table, and if the submissions that I've been receiving for the last couple of weeks are any indication as to what's going to happen this week, we are in for a treat, folks. All of you who have participated in this exercise have done an amazing job. I've been so impressed by some of the insight that I've seen, and I really look forward to seeing what your total draft board for the New England Patriots looks like as we close out the Mocs of March exercise. But don't worry, folks.

We still have a few weeks left in April before the draft. We still have some interactive segments to come, so as I always like to say, keep a sharp eye, and I think you'll like what we have in store for you during the month of April. And as for me, I will be back here on the Locked On Patriots podcast on Monday, where I will be analyzing your Mocks of March submissions and also giving my opinion on what our expert friends at thedraftnetwork.com have in store for your New England Patriots as the draft approaches starting on April 23rd.

As always, please be sure to join me each and every day here on the Locked On Patriots podcast. Subscribe and download via your preferred podcast provider. And don't forget that you can always listen to the Locked On Patriots podcast on your smart device. How do you do that? Very simple. Just simply ask it to play the latest episode of Locked On Patriots. Once again, I am Mike DeBate.

I thank my good friend Brian Snow for his time, his insight, and his appearance today. But most of all, I thank you so much for listening and for staying locked into Locked On Patriots. And if you've enjoyed today's podcast, now tell your smart device to play the most recent episode of Locked On NFL. Stay safe, stay well, and have a great weekend, everyone.