The New England Patriots have one of the most difficult decisions that an NFL franchise can make. They have to decide who their starting quarterback will be next season.

Tom Brady is still an option. He might be the option. But he can enter free agency this offseason, and his contract prevents the Patriots from franchise-tagging him. New England and Brady could be set for a breakup. Maybe. Probably?

Still, the Patriots may end up having no shortage of other options.

Dak Prescott, Drew Brees, Philip Rivers, Jameis Winston and Teddy Bridgewater, among others, are pending free agents. Extensions will come over the next few months. The options will thin out. The NFL draft will also present a few tantalizing options, like Joe Burrow, Tua Tagovailoa, Justin Herbert and Jacob Eason. And of course, there’s always the trade market, where stars like Cam Newton might be available.

Here’s who the Patriots might consider as a starter in 2020 if they part ways with Brady.

1. Jarrett Stidham, QB, Patriots

Technically, he’s the most obvious option. He served as Brady’s backup for the entire 2019 season, even when Cody Kessler arrived to serve as the team’s third-team quarterback. That transaction transpired immediately after Stidham threw a pick-six in his regular-season debut. He was filling in for Brady during a blowout. But Stidham didn’t get demoted. Though his public-consumption body of work has been small, the Patriots have seen a lot of him. And perhaps we’ll begin to hear rumblings — which have already started — that they’re very impressed with his development in 2019.

Maybe they’ll give the 2019 fourth-round pick a shot at the job.