NFL Rumors: How Patriots Players Feel About Brian Hoyer Starting Vs. Chiefs

The Patriots will battle the reigning Super Bowl champions Monday night, and they'll do so without their starting quarterback.

Cam Newton will be sidelined for New England's Week 4 matchup with Kansas City after testing positive for COVID-19 on Friday. Newton's positive test, as well as the one drawn by Chiefs practice squad quarterback Jordan Ta'amu, forced the game to be rescheduled from Sunday afternoon.

Brian Hoyer is expected to be under center for the Patriots at Arrowhead Stadium. The 34-year-old has made one start dating back to the 2018 season and never has started for New England. Still, Patriots players reportedly are feeling confident about Hoyer's ability to lead the offense against the Chiefs.

I spoke to some New England Patriots players about Brian Hoyer getting the start tonight.
It’s pretty clear they all feel confident that Hoyer knows this playbook like the back of his hand. One player shared the big stage of playing against the Chiefs won’t scare him at all.

— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) October 5, 2020

With Hoyer starting, it's fair to expect New England to heavily lean on its ground game Monday, especially considering Kansas City has struggled against the run early this season. The Patriots won't be at full strength in the backfield, however, as Sony Michel will be inactive due to a quad injury.

The odds certainly are stacked against New England, but we still probably shouldn't rule out its chances of hanging tough with Patrick Mahomes and Co.