The Patriots addressed a number of important roster needs via their spending spree to kick off the new NFL year.
But for New England, great uncertainty still surrounds the most important position on the football field.
Cam Newton was given a second chance by Bill Belichick and Co. and the Patriots still have Jarrett Stidham on their quarterback depth chart. Neither player inspires optimism about the QB position going forward in Foxboro, however, which is why ESPN's biggest question to be answered for the Patriots is pretty straightforward.
"Who is the quarterback of the future?" Patriots beat writer Mike Reiss wrote. "For all the moves the Patriots made, and no team had more, they still have a level of uncertainty at QB. That could be answered in the draft, although picking at No. 15 -- and with the 49ers shaking things up with their big trade up to No. 3 with a quarterback in mind -- there's no guarantee the Patriots will find their answer, unless they make their own bold move up the board. For now, Cam Newton is the projected starter for 2021, and Jimmy Garoppolo could be in play in 2022 (if not sooner)."
The Patriots should be inspired by the 49ers, who have a solid starting signal-caller under 30 in Garoppolo and still felt the need to move way up in the first round. It would be uncharacteristic of New England to give up multiple high-end assets for one player, but the franchise can't afford to be idling along with stopgap signal-callers for very long.
At some point, the Patriots are going to have to take a real swing at landing their next franchise quarterback. Why not in the 2021 draft, which features a QB class that might be one of the best in years?
