It’s been nineteen years since Tom Brady took over for the Patriots in 2001.
That season, the future six-time Super Bowl champion quarterback, started fourteen games and led his team to their first-ever Super Bowl win. No one knew at the time the multitude of success the sixth round quarterback would accomplish throughout his career in New England.
The level of success the Patriots franchise has achieved throughout Brady’s reign will not be matched for a long time in the NFL.
Though, with every rise in a sports teams’ success comes an eventual drop-off. As Brady edged into his 40s, fans were forced to visualize the idea of a Patriots offense without the future hall of fame quarterback.
Now that he has left New England for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the visualization fans have had for the past few years has become a reality.
Many fans have been left wondering- who’s going to take over under center in 2020? Now that free agency has died down, the answer is most likely in one of the three quarterbacks on the roster.
The first candidate is 26-year-old, Cody Kessler. Before joining the Patriots as a 3rd-string Quarterback in 2019, Kessler played for three other teams — the Browns, Jaguars, and Eagles. He was on the inactive list for the entirety of last season.
Even though he most likely will not get the starting job week one, he will be a strong backup once the regular season begins.
Next up is the experienced veteran backup, Brian Hoyer. The 34-year-old recently joined up with the Patriots for the 3rd time in his career. After going undrafted in 2009, he has found himself on seven other teams besides the Patriots.
Both his experience in the league and his knowledge of the Patriots offense gives him an advantage over the other guys in the Quarterback room.
The final and most promising quarterback is last season’s backup, Jarrett Stidham. The Patriots selected the former Auburn signal-caller in the 4th round in 2019.
Stidham, at 6’3, 215 lbs, fits the mold of a Patriots quarterback and showed off his skill in the preseason, where he threw for 4 touchdowns and 1 interception with a completion percentage of 67.8%.
His teammates have stated their admiration for his work ethic and improvement throughout last season.
Pending any more quarterback transactions the Patriots make from now till week one, Stidham is currently the de facto starter.
Photo: CBS Sports
