The first addition the Patriots have made at quarterback after Tom Brady departed to Tampa Bay to play for the Bucs is a familiar face in New England.
Brian Hoyer, who will be turning 35 in the fall, will be back with the Patriots in New England for the third time to start the 2020 NFL season.
The definition of a journeyman, Hoyer has also played for the Browns, Texans, Colts, 49ers, Bears and Cardinals in his 11 seasons in pro football and has a 16-22 record as a starter.
Now back with the Patriots on a one-year contract that will pay him about $2 million (with $1 million of that being paid by the Colts), Hoyer will have a chance to compete for the starting job in New England, according to his agent.
Agent Joe Linta tells me: “It someone offered him $5M or $6M to be a backup, Brian still would’ve wanted to be back in New England. They gave him a chance to compete for the starting job, and that’s all he asked for.” https://t.co/r0AE4MctMR
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 22, 2020
Linta can say what he wants, but this signing makes it pretty clear the Patriots intend to move forward, at least as of now, with second-year QB Jarrett Stidham as their starting quarterback.
While Stidham will have to beat out Hoyer for the starting job in 2020, he will likely be given every opportunity to do so. Last year, Stidham beat out Hoyer for the No. 2 job during the preseason, which led the Patriots to release Hoyer.
Though he didn’t play much during the season, the 22-year-old Auburn product did showcase some potential during the preseason.
Gonna go through my takeaways from Jarrett Stidham’s four 2019 preseason performances
He can make every throw in the Patriots’ offense. Put the ball on receivers quickly in the short game, drove it downfield with accuracy, and launched rainbows to ideal spots pic.twitter.com/KbLESKxZHF
— Taylor Kyles (@tkyles39) March 18, 2020
In addition to Hoyer and Stidham, the Patriots also have Cody Kessler on their roster.
With three quarterbacks now under contract, it seems unlikely the Patriots will make a big splash in free agency or the trade market and bring in a QB like Cam Newton, Jameis Winston or Andy Dalton.
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