A look at potential successors to Tom Brady is the New England Patriots quarterback takes his services elsewhere for the 2020 NFL season.
The New England Patriots are currently in limbo. They suffered an uncharacteristically early playoff exit and a very long list of free agents-to-be. One of those being quarterback Tom Brady, the 6-time Super Bowl Champion whose been at the helm for 20 seasons.
For the first time in his long career, Patriots QB Tom Brady is an unrestricted free agent. He is free to go wherever he wants. Brady himself already said that retirement is “unlikely,” so there is a higher chance of him still playing football. However, his playing elsewhere is seeming more and more inevitable as time goes on.
The Patriots have way more free time than they are used to having in past off-seasons, so they should look into different possibilities at the quarterback position should Brady decide to sign elsewhere.
Here we look into the options that New England Patriots can explore through free agency, trades, and the draft.
Jacoby Brissett
Jacoby Brissett was drafted by the New England Patriots in the 3rd round of the 2016 NFL Draft. He began the season as the backup for Jimmy Garoppolo, as Tom Brady missed the first four games due to suspension. He would start his first game in Week 3 of that season against the Houston Texans in a 27-0 shutout win.
He has shown to be a capable starter since being traded to the Indianapolis Colts. In 2017, he would accrue over 3000 yards, 13 touchdowns passes, and 7 picks. Then, in 2019, after he was thrust into a permanent starting role after the sudden retirement of then-franchise quarterback Andrew Luck, he put up a little over 2900 yards, 18 touchdowns, and 6 picks.
However, Colts GM Chris Ballard stated “the jury is still out” on Brissett, showing that he may not have complete confidence in Brissett.
Jacoby Brissett signed a 2-year, 30 million dollar deal with the Colts before the 2019 season started, thus has only one more year on his current deal.
Brissett is a guy that can be mobile, doesn’t turn the ball over much, and probably knows enough of the Patriots’ system whereas he could come in and take over if need be. He is a good trade target for the Pats.
Cam Newton
Cam Newton was the first overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft. He is a three-time Pro Bowler and was the 2015 Offensive Player of the Year & Most Valuable Player. During his MVP campaign, he would throw for over 3800 yards, 35 touchdowns, and just 10 picks. He would also rush for over 600 yards and 10 more touchdowns.
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Newton is also the Carolina Panthers franchise leader in every major passing category and the NFL’s all-time leader in rushing touchdowns by a quarterback with 58 (and counting).
Cam Newton is an extremely dynamic player when he is on his best stuff, and adds a different dimension to the New England Patriots offense that hasn’t been seen. However, the major problem in his career has been his health. A combination of ankle, rib, shoulder, and foot injuries throughout his career has held him back at times. But when healthy, he can truly be awesome. At just 30 years of age, he can have some more good years in him.
The Panthers have a new coach and offensive coordinator coming in for next season, so whether they would want to move forward with Newton in the fold is yet to be seen, but the New England Patriots should definitely monitor this situation closely.
Andy Dalton
Andy Dalton has been the quarterback of the Cincinnati Bengals since being drafted in the second round out of TCU in 2011.
A three-time Pro Bowler, he has shown flashes of being a very good quarterback. However, a lot of people would say that he is more of a “middle-of-the-pack” kind of guy. A guy that doesn’t really put you over the top and can win you a championship. Whether his inconsistency is due to coaching or something of that nature isn’t really known, but he can be a guy that you can plugin and he can do good things for your football team.
He owns almost every major passing record in the Bengals franchise, so he must be a capable quarterback, in theory. Dalton’s career passer rating is 87.4, which is good for only about 18th for active quarterbacks, but he can still be a good QB if in the right situation.
He is 32 years old and is set to be a free agent and his market may be small enough for the New England Patriots to make a move on him if need be.
Teddy Bridgewater
Teddy Bridgewater is also set to enter free agency. He has had yet to receive a real opportunity to be THE guy since his horrific knee injury in 2016. He signed with the Jets soon after leaving Minnesota, signing a one-year deal. Even after looking good, New York would send him & a 6th-round pick to New Orleans for a 3rd-round pick.
He would start one game in the 2018 season, an uneventful 33-14 loss in the season finale. He would sign another one-year deal to stay with New Orleans. Franchise quarterback Drew Brees would suffer a thumb injury against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 2. He would start the next five games. In those games, he would throw for over 1200 yards, 9 touchdowns, & only 2 picks. The Saints would g have a 5-0 in games that Teddy Bridgewater started.
He was Pro Bowler during his time in Minnesota, and the aforementioned knee injury seems to stop his career in its tracks. However, he has shown that he can be very good when given the chance. He is only 27 and he is healthy. He likely is only going to better if given a fair shot. He deserves it.
Tua Tagovailoa
The lefty from ‘Ewa Beach, Hawaii is a product of the Alabama Crimson Tide, coached by Nick Saban.
Saban has been close to New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick for the better part of 30 years. So there is something. Tua Tagovailoa has also been very, very good.
Tagovailoa came into the college football spotlight during college football’s biggest game of the year, the CFP National Championship. Then-starter Jalen Hurts and the rest of the team were struggling against their SEC rival Georgia Bulldogs. The Tide were down 13 at one point, but Tagovailoa came in and won Alabama their 17th national title.
In 2018, he was amazing, racking up almost 4000 yards, school-record 43 touchdowns, & only 6 picks. His rating was 199.4, an NCAA FBS record. The Tide would come up short in that year’s national title game. Then, in 2019, he was on pace for what would’ve been a better season, over 2840 yards, 33 touchdowns, and just 3 picks in only 9 games.
His season was cut short due to a horrible hip injury suffered against Missouri State that knocked him out for the remainder of the year. This injury was said to be similar to the one Bo Jackson suffered, the same hip jury that derailed what would’ve likely been a legendary career. He was seen as the top quarterback in the draft, until of course the rise of LSU QB Joe Burrow, until he got hurt, and the injury may hurt his stock even more.
He may drop. Will he drop to the 23rd pick? No one knows. But if so, the New England Patriots may want to take a chance on him.
Jacob Eason
Formerly the starter for the Georgia Bulldogs, then later transferring to Washington, Jacob Eason is seen as a “wild card” in this year’s quarterback class. He is often touted at the 4th-best QB prospect behind LSU’s Joe Burrow, Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa, and Oregon’s Justin Herbert.
Eason is believed to have a lot of potential. But it did not really seem to translate to his play at some points, struggling in big pressure moments, made more obvious during conference play. In Pac-12 games, he would only complete 59.5 percent of his passes, 224.6 yards per game, 12 touchdowns, and 7 interceptions. Overall, he would complete 64.2 percent of his passes, 23 touchdowns, and 8 picks.
“The Athletic” NFL Draft analyst Bane Brugler described him as a “bigger, slower” version of Matthew Stafford. Eason has the arm talent but gets less effective when he has to move.
The biggest thing is his measurables, which a lot of scouts love, but there are lots of question marks in Eason’s game. He can flutter around the first round or early in the second. With the 23rd overall pick, New England can definitely pick him if they like him enough. But the New England Patriots should definitely do their due diligence before taking that chance.