With Jarrett Stidham, there’s so much uncertainty. But ESPN’s Todd McShay seems awfully sure about one thing: Stidham isn’t ready to be the New England Patriots’ starter in 2020.
He joined the Patriots after a rough 2018 season with the Auburn Tigers. Stidham looked like he had potential to be a future first-round pick in 2015 with Baylor, but he transferred after his coach, Art Briles, departed. Auburn’s system wasn’t right for the young quarterback — and it showed. After the Patriots drafted him in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL Draft, Stidham looked brilliant in preseason — but the exhibition games should be taken with a grain of salt. His lone regular-season game didn’t end well — he threw a pick-six in a blowout against the New York Jets. Quarterback Tom Brady had to return to the game.
With Brady in Tampa, it could be the Stidham show. McShay, however, thinks that’s unlikely.
“He was a great backup, in my opinion, coming out of college at Auburn and had a chance to be developed into a starter,” said McShay, who co-leads ESPN’s draft coverage, as transcribed by WEEI.com. “Now, you go back and you watch him against the Jets, they threw him in that game and he threw an interception. Bill (Belichick) got annoyed and pulled him out and put Tom Brady back in the game. They were up by about 50 points.
“From everyone I talk to in the organization, they are excited about his development. He has so much potential. He is gifted. He’s been through a lot in his life. He’s got some character and some grittiness and some toughness to him. But he’s not ready yet. That’s the bottom line. He’s not ready to lead the New England Patriots, in my opinion.”
The only people who truly know Stidham’s readiness are those in the Patriots’ facility. Bill Belichick, Josh McDaniels and the Patriots saw Stidham during the closed practice sessions during the regular season and postseason. He even got work with the starters while Brady was nursing a handful of injuries this season. Only the 2019 Patriots saw how much Stidham developed. (The media didn’t see him at practice. And of course, NFL teams didn’t see him either.) Stidham remains a mystery, which makes the Patriots’ quarterback situation uncertain. They have just Stidham and veteran Brian Hoyer. It feels imminent that Belichick will add another quarterback.
“Brian Hoyer is there, and he’s a really good backup,” McShay said. “But they are going to have to make a decision on what to do in terms of is it bringing in a veteran like Andy Dalton to kind of send the tide between now and when Stidham is ready. Or is it drafting another quarterback that they think can bring competition and potentially outplay Stidham at that No. 1 position? It is going to be really interesting to see how it all plays out.
“The one thing I know from talking to people inside the organization, it is all about patience and waiting to see how the market plays out and not jumping into something too early when they are not ready for it.”
The Patriots could target Dalton, if the Bengals release him. For now, Dalton’s cap hit ($17.5 million) is too big for the Patriots’ to fit on the cap. Quarterbacks Jameis Winston and Cam Newton are already free agents, but their asking price seems to be prohibitive. So the Patriots will wait to find the right match, whether in free agency, the draft or by trade.
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