The Patriots now have a uniquely talented — albeit underdeveloped — player on their active roster, and they would be foolish not to give him some playing time Sunday.
New England’s flurry of roster moves before its Week 6 game in Las Vegas included a promotion for Malik Cunningham, who first joined the Patriots as an undrafted free agent in the spring. Cunningham was among Bill Belichick and company’s final roster cuts in late August, but he promptly joined the Patriots’ practice squad and reportedly inked a new three-year deal with the organization Saturday.
Does Cunningham have a shot at being a regularly impactful quarterback in Foxboro, Mass.? Most likely not. But it’s tough to find a reason why the Patriots shouldn’t give him a fair share of run at Allegiant Stadium.
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To say New England’s offense has been dreadful recently would be an understatement. Mac Jones and his peers haven’t found the end zone since Week 3 and the third-year signal-caller was benched in each of the Patriots’ last two games. Those Jones exits probably were mostly due to lopsided scores, but they were warranted from a performance standpoint as well. Jones turned the ball over a combined six times in Weeks 4 and 5, and half of them were returned for touchdowns.
The Alabama product reportedly will be on a short leash against the Raiders, and it’s unclear who would replace Jones if he was benched for a third straight week. But even if Jones manages to stay behind center from wire to wire in Las Vegas, some of those snaps should go to Cunningham, who reportedly has improved a great deal since the summer. The Louisville product flashed potential in New England’s preseason opener when he impressively led a touchdown drive that was capped off by a Cunningham rushing score.
A Cunningham package absolutely should be in the Patriots’ plans this weekend. He can emerge from the pocket and bolt downfield in a flash, a skill that is of the essence when you consider how poorly New England’s offensive line has performed this season. And even though Jones appears to be held in high regard in the locker room, Cunningham’s mere presence on the field could provide the energy boost the Patriots offense desperately needs.
There’s reason to believe play designs for Cunningham could be successful for New England, too. Offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien spent three full seasons in Houston working with Deshaun Watson and managed to get the best out of the three-time Pro Bowl selection. Watson obviously is a vastly superior signal-caller to Cunningham, but O’Brien has ample experience putting a dual-threat QB in the best position to succeed.
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Again, Jones is going to start for the Patriots on Sunday and deserves to see the majority of snaps if he performs well. But now that Cunningham has been bumped up from the practice squad, what’s the point in stapling him to the sideline? The rookie can’t play any worse than Jones and Bailey Zappe played the last two weeks, but if he somehow pulls that off, it will only drive home the notion that changes need to be made in New England.
At this point, the Patriots should be open to just about any potential source of optimism and improvement on the gridiron. Cunningham probably will never set the world on fire in the NFL, but a role as a successful gadget player feels well within the realm of possibility.
