The Patriots evidently don’t believe they’re as wounded as teams around the league are making them out to be.
Tom Brady’s departure obviously left quite the void in New England, as there now will be a true quarterback competition in camp for the first time in decades. One could argue the top candidates aren’t very inspiring, either, as there’s not much to go off on Jarrett Stidham and Brian Hoyer is a career journeyman.
As the Patriots’ QB depth chart suddenly became mediocre, their competitors reportedly tried to take advantage. According to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, multiple teams tried to coax an asset out of New England in exchange for a quarterback.
“It’s looking like Hoyer and Stidham as the best candidates currently to challenge for the starting quarterback job that used to be Tom Brady’s because a lot of other teams have contacted the Patriots, according to sources, trying to push guys on the Patriots,” Garafolo said on “NFL Total Access.” “See if they can get a pick back in return for one of their quarterbacks. In fact, it sounds like the Colts with Hoyer were one of those teams. The Patriots said might as well just wait until it comes free, which wound up being the case. So, the Patriots are taking their time, not in a rush to go trade for somebody else. Gonna stick with what they have and then see what happens in the draft come April.”
If Garafolo’s report is correct, we probably shouldn’t expect to see the likes of Cam Newton or Andy Dalton joining the Patriots for the upcoming season.
