NFL odds: Tom Brady to 49ers? Sportsbooks starting to pay attention

Until Tom Brady signs with a team in free agency, which starts March 18, there are going to be rumors about his decision every day. Some of them are best to ignore because it's simply some hot take from a blowhard on TV trying to drum up ratings. Some rumors, though, have teeth.

The latest has Brady going "home" to the Bay Area and playing this coming season with the San Francisco 49ers. On this surface, this wouldn't seem to make much sense as the Niners have a good young quarterback in Jimmy Garoppolo – of course, formerly Brady's backup in New England – signed long term.

Jimmy G had a good season in leading San Francisco to the NFC's top seed and eventually the Super Bowl, although he struggled in the fourth quarter and the Niners blew a 10-point lead in losing to the Kansas City Chiefs. San Francisco's team brass may believe Brady gives the franchise a better chance to win a Super Bowl immediately.

Brady could be intrigued by returning home (where his parents still live), working with a terrific play-caller in Kyle Shanahan and having Pro Bowl tight end George Kittle to throw to. Brady's numbers dipped quite a bit without another Pro Bowl tight end, the retired Rob Gronkowski, in 2019. Plus, the Niners already have a Super Bowl-caliber defense and a good running game.

So who wins and covers every college basketball game? Join SportsLine now to get winning picks from the model that simulates every game 10,000 times and nailed 15 of 26 first-round upsets by double-digit seeds the past four years in the NCAA Tournament.  

If the 49ers were to trade Garoppolo – and there would certainly be a market -- before April 1, they would only get hit with a cap charge of $4.2 million and would free up $22.4 million in cap space they could use on Brady.

One team that surely would be interested in trading for Jimmy G? The Patriots. Bill Belichick never wanted to trade him but was essentially forced to by owner Robert Kraft. In theory, the Pats could sign-and-trade Brady to San Francisco for Garoppolo. 49ers GM John Lynch is on record saying he spoke with Belichick about trading for Brady in 2017 before getting Garoppolo for a second-round pick.

On the NFL odds at William Hill, the Patriots are still the -170 favorites to be the team Brady is playing for Week 1 of 2020. The 49ers aren't given individual odds but part of the field at +1800.

On the FanDuel NFL futures odds, the 49ers have risen to +750 fourth-favorites behind the Patriots, Titans and Raiders. Just a week ago, the 49ers were +3400.