You knew Bill Belichick would have at least one trick up his sleeve.
The New England Patriots trotted four quarterbacks out to the Gillette Stadium practice field Thursday for the first day of training camp ... but one of them, Danny Etling, had a notable wardrobe change.
Etling traded in his red non-contact jersey for a white jersey and took reps with the wide receivers during the positional phase of practice.
The writing was somewhat on the wall for Etling after the Patriots drafted Stidham in the fourth round this year to back up Tom Brady and Brian Hoyer. So, it appears the 25-year-old -- who also dabbled in special teams work at minicamp -- is trying to pull a Julian Edelman and catch on as a wide receiver.
Etling ran a 4.76-second 40-yard dash at the 2018 NFL Scouting Combine and has below-average measurables for a wide receiver. But at 6-foot-3, 215 pounds, perhaps he could find a niche as a bigger target -- or become victim to roster cuts later this summer.
If the latter is the case, at least he'll have that 86-yard touchdown run against the New York Giants in the 2018 preseason...
Click here to download the new MyTeams App by NBC Sports! Receive comprehensive coverage of your teams and stream the Celtics easily on your device.