Tom Brady is the main man now. And he’s still going to be the Patriots’ top gun two or three years from now, perhaps beyond.

If the message wasn’t clear before, Bill Belichick hammered it home by shipping Jimmy Garoppolo to the San Francisco 49ers. Brady might be 40, and while quarterbacks are supposed to be on their way out at this point, the Pats are going to roll with the legend.

QB Jimmy Garoppolo is going to be a free agent after this season, and it would not have made much sense for the Patriots to sign him. Associated Press/Mary Schwalm

The four-time Super Bowl MVP was asked during Monday night’s Chiefs-Broncos game if he thought this was a sign the Pats were committing to him long term.

“I don’t know what that means. This is a week-to-week league,” Brady said. “Things go quickly from week to week, year to year.

“I’m going to bring it every single day, like I’ve tried to do for the last 18 years. I’m focused on this season, and I’m sure that’s where everyone else in our organization is focused.”

Even if Garoppolo was headed for free agency after the season, that’s the immediate takeaway from this surprising transaction. It’s going to take time to find Brady’s heir in the draft and get him ready.

In other words, it’s time for a new succession plan. The old one just flew out the door to San Francisco. Brady is the present and the future, for now.

Given what the Pats reportedly turned down, they seemed intent on keeping Garoppolo as insurance for Brady.

They invested nearly four years in Garoppolo, allowing him learn at Brady’s side. He looked like the chosen one. When Belichick waved off the Browns, who were talking in April about dealing first-round picks for Jimmy G, it looked like the Pats were just buying time.

Garoppolo fit this offensive system and played well during Brady’s suspension last season. But then he got hurt against the Dolphins. Still, he seemed to show enough to convince the team he could follow Brady whenever the legend rides off into the sunset. But with Brady still going strong, plus Garoppolo’s contract status, something had to give.

The Pats could have kept Garoppolo with a franchise tag, but paying the backup QB more than the starter would have been awkward. It also wouldn’t make fiscal sense to tie up so much money in one position.

So Belichick chose one.

Brady has defied time and logic this season, soldiering through a left shoulder injury and leading the NFL in passing yards (2,541). He’s also second in passer rating (106.5).

Some believe the situation was on a collision course for the offseason, when Belichick was going to decide between the two QBs.

Belichick certainly is cold-blooded enough to trade a man who’s helped him win five Super Bowl rings and is arguably the greatest QB of all time. The move would have required owner Robert Kraft’s blessing, and it’s doubtful he would rubber-stamp dealing Brady. Talk about a move that would send shock waves.

But there’s no trading the GOAT now, and probably not ever.

Garoppolo probably has been watching Jacoby Brissett, who was the No. 3 with the Pats, lead the Colts, and that must be killing him. So, no way he’d sign to stay on as Brady’s backup.

Garoppolo had to go, and to a far-away place in the NFC West. The Patriots rarely see the 49ers, so it’s unlikely he’ll come back to haunt them.

Maybe Garoppolo turns out to be a great QB. Or maybe he’s ordinary. It’s possible the Pats decided he wasn’t going to be great after watching him the past four seasons, but the news here is Belichick is going to ride Brady until he drops. They have no backup, but that’s just a formality. They’ll get one.

There’s no succession plan. It’s just more of the same. All Brady, all the time.

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