Who will be the Patriots’ quarterback for the 2021 season?

Who will be the Patriots’ quarterback for the 2021 season?

The New England Patriots have predictably struggled in 2020 with Cam Newton as their quarterback as opposed to the legendary Tom Brady, who has led the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a playoff berth and is proving he’s more than just a system quarterback.

All kidding aside, it’s been a down year for the Patriots, especially throwing the football.

Over his last 427 pass attempts, Cam Newton has just five touchdown passes. Josh Allen actually threw four touchdowns in the Bills’ recent blowout win over the Pats, two more than Newton has thrown at Gillette Stadium all year.

Josh McDaniels continues to be one of the many subjects for head coaching gigs around the league, so there’s more uncertainty for the Patriots’ offense moving forward than there is clarity, to be certain.

Even though the Patriots have Jarrett Stidham under contract, they are likely to make a bigger play at the quarterback position in 2021 whether through free agency, trade, or the 2021 NFL Draft.

Cam Newton’s contract will expire after one more game, and the Patriots will officially be back to the drawing board. Currently, they are projected to hold the 14th pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. The Patriots could still climb into the top 10 with another loss, but that’s obviously not a certainty.

So what are the Patriots going to do at quarterback in 2021? Will they be one of the teams that tries to trade for Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford if he becomes available?

Will they look to the 2021 NFL Draft crop?

With no third-round pick currently in place, the Patriots don’t exactly have the draft capital to move up for a quarterback like Justin Fields, Zach Wilson, or Trey Lance. Unless one of those guys falls to the 10th pick or later, the Patriots might have to invest in someone earlier on in the offseason to build their program around.

There are a number of free agent options available and there could be even more guys who become available through trade. One option that I talked about in my latest mock draft that could be the most likely, especially if Josh McDaniels sticks around?

Getting Jimmy Garoppolo from the San Francisco 49ers.

Garoppolo, with his injury history, has become a top cap casualty candidate in 2021. He is set to count over $26 million against the 49ers’ overall cap space, and there would only be $2.8 million in dead money if he is released.

The Patriots have the cap space to be able to trade for the remaining two years on Garoppolo’s contract, but even more preferable might be signing him as a free agent.

Garoppolo proved when he was mostly healthy in 2019 that he is capable of taking a team deep in the playoffs with a proper cast around him. The Patriots’ initial plan was obviously that Garoppolo might one day take over for Brady, but Brady’s game hasn’t slowed down and was not slowing down at the time, so they got a nice draft pick for him.

Now, they have a chance to potentially bring him back to complete the mission he was originally brought in for — be the long-term Brady replacement.

There are a lot of “ifs” attached to this idea, but if the Patriots stay consistent with their offensive coaching staff, it might make the most sense. They could bring in Garoppolo on a 2-3 year deal, use their draft capital and cap space to really reload the roster, and try to get back into the thick of the AFC East.