It’s been reported the Patriots’ starting quarterback job is Jarrett Stidham’s to lose.
Veteran NFL writer Albert Breer, for one, doesn’t believe the 2019 fourth-rounder will lose hold of the gig at any point in the upcoming season.
Yes, New England’s options outside of Stidham are nothing to write home about, but at the very least, Brian Hoyer has quite a bit of institutional knowledge in Foxboro. One former Patriot even believes it will be Hoyer under center come Week 1 of the upcoming season.
But not only does Breer believe Stidham will win the job in training camp, he thinks the second-year pro will keep it from wire-to-wire. Breer in his latest mailbag for Sports Illustrated explained why he believes Stidham will start all 16 games for the Patriots in 2020.
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From Breer:
He has very little injury history. And I do think when the chips are down, the Patriots are going to want to see what they have in their 23-year-old quarterback, because they do feel like there’s something to work with there from a talent standpoint. Now, maybe it’s a trainwreck in camp, and Bill Belichick looks for reinforcements in August. But I think it’s more likely they ride out whatever bumps lay ahead with Jarrett Stidham.
Why? Well, because this is sort of a year to reset in New England. They’re carrying dead money. They’re resetting financials. They’ll be relying on some younger players than they’re accustomed to leaning on in some key spots (particularly at linebacker, receiver and tight end). And so it makes sense that, as part of that, they give Stidham a great shot at developing and proving he’s worthy of being Tom Brady’s successor.
One way or the other, they should have a better handle on whether or not Stidham’s the guy for the team going forward, come January.
It is starting to feel like Stidham will have every opportunity to prove he’s the Patriots’ next franchise signal-caller. But if he proves to be uninspiring, New England very well could be a major player in the quarterback market next spring, whether it be via the draft and/or free agency.
