Barring any surprising personnel decisions, the New England Patriots will head into the 2020 season with Jarrett Stidham as their starting quarterback.
No one truly knows what to expect out of the 2019 fourth-round draft pick, who attempted only four passes last year after an impressive preseason. But one former coach believes Stidham is set up to succeed with the Patriots as they begin the post-Tom Brady era.
Ex-Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer expressed his confidence in Stidham during his appearance Wednesday on "The Herd" with Colin Cowherd.
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“I remember watching his high school film and was very high on him. Started off at Baylor, and then went to Auburn,” Meyer said. “As I have said many times in the last couple of weeks, the common denominator of every great quarterback is that he’s on a great team. Great quarterbacks who go to bad teams all the sudden become bad quarterbacks. It’s hard for me, sometimes, to understand the media, and often the fans, who say they have a bad team, so it’s the quarterback’s fault ...
“I think Jarrett Stidham, you put him with Bill Belichick, Josh McDaniels, that system, I can’t say he’ll be the next Tom Brady, but I’m sure he’ll have a good year. He did it with Matt Cassel. He did it, obviously, with Tom Brady … They’re going to make that quarterback a good player.”
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While some believe Stidham will fill in admirably for Brady, others aren't as convinced. One outlet ranked the Patriots' QB room, which also consists of veteran Brian Hoyer, as the worst in the NFL.
Regardless, the Patriots have shown their confidence in their 23-year-old QB, and it looks like he'll be given a real chance to show what he's capable of.