On To Arizona: Will Garoppolo Be Ready to Lead Patriots?

The New England Patriots are set to face the Arizona Cardinals with third-year quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. Will the 2013 second-round pick be ready to lead the Patriots during the team’s four weeks without Tom Brady?

Following a melodramatic preseason, the New England Patriots are preparing to face old friend Chandler Jones and the Arizona Cardinals in the NFL season opener on Sunday night. The nationally televised showdown will be the first of four games without Tom Brady.

With third-year quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo manning the fort until Brady returns, the Patriots will certainly enter Week 1 with some questions. One of the main questions is how Jimmy Garoppolo will perform on the big stage.

Following an up and down preseason, the product of Eastern Illinois will have to be prepared in his first regular-season start and stay away from mistakes. It won’t be an easy task for Garoppolo due to his lack of experience, but according to Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, experience only comes in playing the games.

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“There’s really nothing that can give you the experience of playing in a regular-season game than playing in them,” McDaniels said Sunday in a conference call. “Jimmy’s done a great job of working hard for the two-and-a-half years that he’s been here and studying and improving every year in our system and with what he can do in it. He’s going to prepare hard this week and be ready to go in the game.”

Garoppolo’s success will depend on his mental preperation.

While preparation will be a major factor in how Garoppolo will perform, the playmakers surrounding him will also factor in. With tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Martellus Bennett along with wide receivers Danny Amendola, Julian Edelman, Chris Hogan and rookie Malcolm Mitchell, Garoppolo will have plenty of outlets to get the ball to. His success will be on his ability to slow the game down and read the defense.

“I think part of that is going back to the game slowing down for you,” Garoppolo said at Wednesday’s press conference when asked about his level of confidence. “As the game slows down, you’re able to play faster. You know what you want to do with the ball, whatever it may be. It’s a comforting feeling. When you know what defense to expect, when you know what the play is and everything like that, it makes it that much easier on you.”

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Jimmy Garoppolo certainly has the physical attributes to adequately fill in for Brady, but the question that will be answered on Sunday night is whether the mental preparation needed to be successful at the NFL level is an attribute of Garoppolo’s as well.

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