Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - New England Patriots ‘M & M-MQB’ - Mike and Mark’s Monday Quarterback Talk: 7/27/2020

Episode Date: July 27, 2020

The New England Patriots will engage a quarterback competition for the first time in nearly two decades. Joining host Mike D’Abate is Mark Schofield of USA Today Touchdown Wire. The pair discuss the releases of J’Mar Smith and Brian Lewerke, as well as the viability of Jarrett Stidham making an impact on the team in 2020. Mark offers his insight on Cam Newton’s presence in New England and what it likely means for the Patriots offense. Mike also offers his thoughts on the Pats’ weekend roster cuts, as well as potential concerns arising from COVID-19 testing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Patriots fans, you are now locked in to the Locked On Patriots Podcast. I'm going to show you how to make a beautiful and beautiful flower. I'm going to use a small flower pot. I'm going to use a small pot Hello to all of you Foxborough faithful and welcome to your Lockdown Monday Quarterback episode of the Lockdown Patriots Podcast. Your daily home for news notes and analysis infused with the occasional opinion on your six-time Super Bowl champions, the New England Patriots.

Today's episode is brought to you by rockauto.com. Amazing selection, reliably low prices, all the parts your car will ever need. Visit rockauto.com today and tell them Locked On sent you. Patriots Nation, it is Monday, July 27, 2020, the unofficial yet official start of training camp for your New England Patriots for the upcoming NFL season. My name is Mike DeBate, your host of the Locked On Patriots podcast, which of course is a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day.

And as always, folks, your team every day means your questions, comments, and feedback are always welcomed and very much appreciated. Feel free to share that feedback anytime by reaching out to me and following me on Twitter at M-D-A-B-A-T-E-F-P-C. And of course, while you're out there making that Twitterverse an offer it can't refuse, be sure to follow the Lockdown Patriots account as well at L-O underscore Patriots. Patriots fans, thank you once again for making Locked On Patriots a part of your daily New England Patriots coverage.

I'm excited because we kick off camp coverage this week, and your New England Patriots had themselves a busy weekend. We'll get to the transactions and what it means for this team's roster in just a moment. But today we start with the news that the boys are indeed back in town. Per the rules and regulations set forth by the team, Patriots rookies, quarterbacks, and injured players are reporting to Gillette Stadium in Foxborough today, where they will begin COVID-19 testing. Now the rest of the team, meaning the remaining veterans, will report tomorrow, Tuesday the

28th, and they will begin their round of testing. In between, the team will continue to conduct virtual meetings throughout the week, and as of right now, we're expecting that the first on-site work, meaning on-field work, won't take place until at least August 3rd. And that on-field work is not going to be scrimmaging anytime soon, folks. It's going to start with conditioning, in-person meetings, and then the team will continue to work on strength and conditioning probably through day 14 of camp. After that point, the plan is to have four days of non-padded practices, and then the first padded practice is expected to be held on August 17th. And even though this is a much different training camp than we've seen in quite some time,

training camp is usually the best opportunity for fans to be able to see their heroes up close and personal. Unless things drastically change between now and the start of the season, that's probably not going to happen. Even media access for training camp this year has been significantly limited, and as a result, the fan experiences for training camps across the NFL this year will be much different. And it's important to remember that the NFL is doing its best to try to navigate us through the COVID-19 pandemic. These are such unprecedented times for everyone, folks, and quite honestly, few if any have

the answers. For the most part, we're doing our part. At least I hope we're doing our part. Stay socially distant, wash your hands, wear your masks, limit your contact with those that you know may be at significant risk to contracting this disease and struggling through its recovery. These are things that we all can do and should be doing to help put this pandemic behind us for good.

And it is possible, folks. But anybody that thinks that COVID was completely a thing of the past got a rude awakening this morning. And it didn't come from the NFL. It came from Major League Baseball. And on Monday morning, MLB announced that two games that were supposed to take place as part of their Monday slate had been canceled. The Miami Marlins home opener against the Baltimore Orioles, as well as the Philadelphia Phillies home game against the New York Yankees. Now, Miami is one of those unfortunate sports teams that seems to be decimated by COVID-19 right now. They just completed the series in Philadelphia, and seven more players and two coaches with the Marlins also tested positive for COVID-19.

That brings their clubhouse total to at least 13, and I've seen reports that have been as high as 14. Obviously, because of that, the Miami-Baltimore game was canceled, and of course the Phillies and the Yankees were as well, because don't forget, the Philadelphia Phillies have been exposed to the Miami Marlins, and it's likely they'll experience some positive tests for COVID as well. Now before any of you start saying, Mike, that's Major League Baseball, it has nothing to do with the NFL,

I beg to differ, folks, it definitely does have to do with the NFL. In as much as the NFL's plan to deal with COVID-19 is more similar to that of Major League Baseball than it is to the NBA or NHL, who have essentially eliminated travel and are putting their teams together in bubble cities. They're shutting them off from the rest of the world, and they're doing so to prevent the spread of COVID.

Major League Baseball, however, is still very much engaged in travel. And after training camp has been completed, so will the NFL, folks. MLB has an immediate problem on their hands. They're working all day Monday to find a way to keep playing and not have to cancel the remainder of the season, or at least postpone a good portion of it. The NFL is nowhere near at that level yet, but they should be taking notes of what MLB

is doing and the problems that they're having. This may cause them to reevaluate some of their policies and maybe be a bit more stringent with some of them, including travel restriction. I'm not saying that's going to happen, folks. I don't have all the answers, but the powers that be at the NFL are going to need to seek those answers. Players all throughout the NFL, across all 32 NFL teams, continue to have significant concern over the effect COVID-19

may have on themselves and their families. Over the weekend, Jason McCourty of your New England Patriots went on his double coverage podcast with his brother Devin and expressed a lot of those same concerns. Player safety has to be the most immediate concern, and the NFL has an opportunity here to learn from possible mistakes being made in Major League Baseball and ensure that they don't make the same ones. I want to see football back on the field as much as you do.

I do not want to be the voice of doom and gloom here. I still fully believe that we will. It's important to remember that the safety of the fans, the safety of the players, the coaches, everyone involved is the most important thing. And over the course of the next couple of days, weeks, and even months, the NFL has some decisions to make and a lot of evaluating to do. So folks, as I like to say, keep a sharp eye out

as we have more information when it comes to COVID testing. The health and safety of not only your New England Patriots, but all players in the NFL will continue to bring it to you here on Lockdown Patriots and across the NFL channel here on the Lockdown Podcast Network. And for the sake of argument, let's assume that all systems are go. And the Patriots are certainly operating under that assessment, folks. They've built a reputation of being a franchise that is unafraid to hasten the inevitable.

We've seen it year after year. Well, this past weekend, they once again failed to delay until tomorrow that which they could do today. As reported by Jim McBride of the Boston Globe, the Patriots released nine players on Sunday. That included seven of their 15 2020 undrafted free agents. And if we're being honest, folks, we kind of saw the handwriting on the walls when it became obvious that cutdowns for the rosters were going to be 80 as opposed to 90. Now, it should be noted that the Patriots could have kept 90 players. They could have run split squad practices for three weeks,

and then on August 16th, they would have to make the 10 roster cuts. Well, Bill Belichick didn't want to wait around. And honestly, folks, I don't blame him. He wanted to be proactive. As a result, your New England Patriots will now have their full complement of players on hand for conditioning and for walkthroughs. So who were the 10 now former Patriots that were on the chopping block? Well, according to Jim's report, they were rookie quarterbacks Jamar Smith and Brian Lewerke, rookie receivers Isaiah Zuber, Will Hastings and Sean Riley, rookie defensive tackle Courtney Wallace, rookie linebacker Kayava Tazzino, safeties Malik Gant and Adarius Pickett.

And of course on Saturday, the Patriots started their roster cutdowns when they released veteran Lindsey Pipkins. The cornerback had spent time with Indianapolis, Green Bay, Cleveland and Detroit. Now some of these names might not come as a surprise to you. A couple of them came as a surprise to me. Zee Pipkins. The cornerback had spent time with Indianapolis, Green Bay, Cleveland, and Detroit. Now, some of these names might not come as a surprise to you. A couple of them came as a surprise to me, Will Hastings being one. Look, I'm not going to shy away from the fact that I was very high on the Auburn product. In fact, at one point, I projected him to be a member of the 53-man roster. But now, with Cam Newton in the fold, and the lack of preparation and showcase time that a lot of these undrafted rookie free agents were going to have, the Patriots had to make a judgment call. And from what I've heard, and those that are close to the team, particularly Jeff Howe

of the Athletic, reported that Jeff Thomas, the wide receiver out of the University of Miami, was very impressive in his offseason virtual workouts. That most likely gave him the nod over a guy like Will Hastings. The other name that surprised me a little bit was Jamar Smith, and he was particularly intriguing for me at the quarterback position. Out of Louisiana Tech, he brought a blend of athleticism and arm strength, looked to be pretty explosive, and I for one was really looking forward to seeing what he could do in camp. But again folks, the COVID-19 pandemic and the lack of preparation and evaluation time meant that the Patriots had to make a decision. They have Cam Newton.

They have Jarrett Stidham. They have Brian Hoyer. Neither Jamar Smith nor Brian Lewerke was going to unseat them. So the Patriots quarterback room got a little smaller over the weekend. But if we're being honest, it's still the most intriguing spot on that roster. And you did hear me correctly in the opening today, folks. I declared today's episode Locked On Monday Quarterback. And when we want to talk quarterbacks, who else would I go to but the source of all knowledge? My good friend and predecessor right here on Locked On Patriots, Mark Schofield joins

me in the hot seat today. And we'll talk a little bit about Jamar Smith and Brian Lewerke's exit, what it means for the Patriots in terms of depth at the quarterback position, why the electrifying style of Cam Newton might just be the best thing to happen to the New England Patriots all offseason, and we're also going to pick Mark's brain on why he believes Jarrett Stidham could still be a viable option for the Patriots in this offense. Last but certainly not least, folks, I'll put Mark on the hot seat as we give our opinions on who will win the starting job at quarterback here for your New England Patriots. Folks, an action-packed episode, so sit tight, settle in, and be prepared to absorb the wisdom

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Patriots fans, the start of training camp is upon us. And today, we take a deeper dive into the quarterback room, which is suddenly a bit smaller after the weekend's events. But in my opinion, it's still the most intriguing position on this roster. But you know what that means. We're talking quarterbacks. And that means bringing in the best there is, the best there was, the best there ever will be, the excellence of execution, the host emeritus here at Locked On Patriots,

an amazing writer and analyst for platforms such as Inside the Pylon, Big Blue View, Bleeding Green Nation, and Pat's Pulpit, and of course, USA Today's Touchdown Wire, just to name a few. His podcast, The Scosho, appointment listening for Patriots fans. That's right, folks. He didn't need an introduction. I give him one anyway. Today, we bless the reins and welcome back my predecessor, my mentor, and my good friend, Mark Schofield. Thank you for joining me today, bud.

Welcome back home. Mike, it's a pleasure to be back with you. It's great to see the total posts are still up on the wall. You continue to do such great things with this show. I listen all the time. It's great to see the total poster still up on the wall. You continue to do such great things with this show. I listen all the time. It's such great work. You're doing such a tremendous job, but it's great to be back with you. I'm excited

to talk quarterbacks, as I always am with you. Absolutely. We're always excited to have you. And the total poster on the wall, my friend, that's a fixture. I mean, that's never coming down. As long as I have the microphone here at Locked On Patriots, that will remain up and it will remain worshiped each and every day in your honor. So don't worry about that, my friend. But in any case, buddy, since your last visit, the Patriots quarterback situation went from, how shall we say, interesting to

fascinating and a whole lot more exciting. Cam Newton is here. And folks, we will talk Cam today, but we'll also talk some Jarrett Stidham and some Brian Hoyer too. But yesterday, the Patriots chose to be proactive, Mark, and they reduced their roster to 80 players in accordance with last week's agreement reach between the NFL and the NFL Players Association. Now, they could have opted to keep 90 and engaged in split squad practices until middle August, but Bill would rather have his full contingent right off the bat. And to me, it's really just a typical Belichickian move.

Now, two of those cuts were quarterbacks, Brian Lewerke and Jamar Smith. Last time you were here, we talked a little bit about Brian and about Jamar, and I think we both agreed that Lewerke was facing an uphill battle toward making this squad, maybe even toward making the practice squad. But Smith was particularly intriguing. As we previously discussed, he brings a unique blend of athleticism, arm strength, and was expected to be one of the most closely watched players throughout camp. Mark, in your estimation, was this a wise decision?

And how much of this was determined by the presence of Cam Newton? Yeah, I mean, when we talked last, we sort of kind of agreed that Lewerke, like you said, faced the biggest uphill battle. You know, we sort of viewed him as more of a camp arm type of player. You and I were both somewhat intrigued by Jamar Smith. And I remember talking about how you know his athleticism particularly when you look at the quarterbacks the Patriots have to play this year guys like Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes and Russell Wilson and Kyler Murray you want somebody that can replicate that

during the week that can give your defense that look you know during practice to get them ready for what they're going to face on Sunday. And Smith with his athletic ability would be that guy. But I also thought that, you know, some of the things that he could do from the pocket, saw him a couple of years ago against LSU, for example, that he was certainly an intriguing guy to sort of develop. And so I am surprised that Smith was on this sort of cut down list. I said Cam Newton and the acquisition of Cam Newton.

Now when you have three NFL quarterbacks in Cam Newton, Jared Stidham and Brian Hoyer, it makes it a little bit easier to move on from a young quarterback because, you know, maybe Brian Hoyer won't have the athleticism of, say, Jamar Smith to show the defense during practice. He can still give you a good look. So that must be the way that they're dealing with it. And, you know, these are interesting times. And so the team had to get to 80 players, you know, because of the recent agreement. So the two quarterbacks were on the outside looking in. It's disappointing in a sense because I was excited about Jamar Smith. But at the end of the day, this is a business. There are numbers that the teams had to deal with and they had to get to 80 and look at around, you

know, the various quarterback rooms, the various position groups. They felt they could do without the two undrafted rookie quarterbacks. Yeah, I think you're absolutely right there, and I think you're definitely on to something. Look, in some of the people that I've talked to that are close to the team, one issue with Smith that seemed to concern people very early on, and this doesn't come directly from the team, but people that cover it, you know, people on the periphery, colleagues of ours, is that he had some issues with his pocket awareness. It caused him not to feel, you know, not to feel pressure, not to see the blitz coming at times. And that struggle, that led to some of his struggles with downfield vision.

I think a lot of that could have been corrected if he had the opportunity to work things out during camp. But again, Mark mark we're dealing with a different situation a completely different training camp than anyone has ever seen before uh there were no otas there were no rookie mini camps jamar and brian you know as well i don't mean to just you know kind of gloss him over and make him a footnote here but neither one of these guys had the ability to really utilize that time that normally they would have had to maybe work out some of the kinks and show the Patriots brain trust

what they could do. I think right now, proven veterans have the upper hand. And unfortunately, it is the byproduct of the society in which we live right now. Teams are going to gravitate toward those with experience, those that they know have a proven track record. And unfortunately, Jamar Smith and Brian Lewerke ended up on the opposite end. But I think Jamar has definitely a capability of being that type of electric player that we thought he had the ability to be.

He may have to wait a couple of years to showcase that talent. But at the same time, i expect him to land on his feet so should be interesting to see what happens there with uh with jamar but i definitely wish him well and i'm a little disappointed because i was looking forward to seeing what he could do um now we did say about the newest acquisition for the patriots quarterback room and it was a big one um cam was not a member of the patriots the last time you were here on the pod. His arrival has injected new life into the fan base without question, and it's also into the local and national media perception of the Patriots as well.

Expectations have risen since the announcement that Cam was coming to town. Now, Mark, when Cam is healthy, he's obviously one of the most electrifying playmakers in the NFL. He can make things happen with his arm. He can make things happen with his legs. And so much is being made about Cam allowing the Patriots to incorporate RPOs into their offense. I've been saying it really since they signed him. And I know a lot of our colleagues are saying the same thing, and fans seem to be salivating over this but cam's impact is going to be much deeper than just giving the patriots an option to run an rpo every once in a

while in your expert quarterback whisperer opinion my friend what are the subtleties that cam newton can bring to this offense that perhaps most of us are not providing enough attention to yeah mike this is, you know, if I can be allowed to make a personal plea for a moment, please everybody wear your masks because as somebody that loves to talk about schematics and X's and O's, I want to see all the various ways that Josh McDaniels and this offensive staff can incorporate Cam Newton, what he brings to the table into this Patriots offense,

because it is going to be an absolute joy to watch. And we want to see football in the fall. And we want to see this in the fall. So to that point, two things that come to mind immediately for me. And one is a basic subset of a design, a concept we've seen from New England, from the Tom Brady era, right? Short yardage situation, red zone situation. They come out, they go empty.

James White flexed out to the left, Tom Brady in the shotgun, right? We've seen that so many times. And then what do the Patriots do? They bring White back into the backfield. Maybe he just shifts back in there, but now Brady has gotten that sort of pre-snap look, zone man coverage, right? But what they recently started to do is instead of that being a shift it was a motion and then it was a motion that they

incorporated that sort of fly sweep into where Brady would take the snap and just flip it or hand it to James White outside zone to the right side they got some touchdowns and some big plays off of that design now think about it from the perspective of say Matt Milano, Buffalo Bills inside linebacker. You see that, you see this look, you're ready for it. You know they might run that little fly sweep. You see White coming in motion. All you're thinking about now is I've got to get to the left edge. I know they're running that fly sweep. The last thing in your mind is 12 is going to keep it and Shaq Mason is going to climb to me and they're going to run Tom Brady on the inside zone off of that or a quarterback power off of that that's the last thing in your

mind but now with Cam Newton there you have to worry about that you have to stay home because there's that possibility that Cam Newton is going to fake that and climb to the second level behind a Shaq Mason or a Joe Tooney and now if you're a a Matt Milano, you're in a bind. What do you do? Because you want to get to the edge and you want to help on that outside fly sweep to James White. But if you do, Ken Newton is going to run right where you vacated. So that little wrinkle is already impacting the defense. And that's something that linebackers and defensive coordinators are going to have to

think about. But then let's think about this team last year and this passing game last year. We saw this started with that Houston Tech game and it went on from there. And Quincy Avery, who is a private quarterback coach, he coaches guys like Deshaun Watson, he pointed this out on Twitter recently and it's so accurate, right?

If you were a defensive coordinator last year facing the Patriots, you put a bracket or a double on Julian Edelman, you put a corner on James White, and you told Tom Brady, all right, where are you going to throw it? Where are you going to throw the ball? You can't throw it at anybody. But you can't do that now because if you do,

you don't have the ability to then spy Cam Newton. So if it's third and sixth and you want to double Edelman and put a corner on James White, you can't then sacrifice another body to spy Cam Newton. The numbers just don't work. So you're either going to have to play some sort of single-man coverage on Edelman, some different sort of coverage on James White, or if you're going to have to spy, you're going to have to play zone behind it and give Cam Newton the opportunity

to pick you apart with his own coverage. That changes the calculus in the Patriots' favor. For 20 years, the Patriots have been playing basically 10 on 11 when it comes to offense, right? Because Tom Brady's not a threat. Defensive coordinators, they would probably sit down with their defense, lead it up to a Patriots game saying, we want 12 to run. If 12 tucks and goes against us, we'll take that. We'll let him run 15, 20 times a game because he's not going to beat us with his legs. Now you have to do something different. The Patriots are now playing 11 on 11 again. And people might say, look, it's Tom Brady's really 10 and a half on 11. And sure, greatest quarterback of all time. But it does change the number calculus in the favor

of the offense. And that's the name of the game right now in this sport, is when you have that athletic quarterback, whether it's RPOs, whether it's simple design runs, whether it's quarterback scramble, whether just creating time in the pocket, that changes the numbers. It changes the numbers back to an even playing field, which for an offense, for the way the game is tilted these days, is a huge advantage. And so for, you know, RPOs, spying the quarterback, having to spy the quarterback, this really changes things in New England's favor. And that's why I'm so excited to see it this fall. Yeah, I could not agree with you more and I'm so glad that you brought up what happened last year in a lot of ways where Edelman was double teamed and

an extra corner was put on James White it seemed to shut those two reliable options off for Tom Brady more often than not and when he had to look elsewhere two guys like Nikhil Harry who was injured for half of the year uh to Mohamed Sanu who simply just did not get on the same page with Tom because of his high ankle sprain injury and the difficulties that caused or a guy like Jacoby Myers who was an undrafted rookie free agent that was coming in and expected to be a big part of this offense it was a lot to put on those shoulders and it was a lot to put on Tom, too. I'm simply not, you know, going to take that off of his shoulders either. He had a lot of pressure when it came to trying to essentially turn, you know, water into wine, and it was difficult at times. There was no question about it. I agree with you. Cam's presence is so intriguing

for the Patriots. It really really extending plays, simplifying reads, I think are things that are going to be maybe taken a little bit more for granted. Now, we talked about that with Jarrett Stidham and trying to extend plays, simplified reads, allow him to roll out and alleviate pressure in the pocket, make his reads easier, make his throws easier. And when the option to run, if nothing was there, Jarrett could tuck the ball and run a little bit. And we'll talk about that in a little while, folks. But Cam now gives them that threat on nearly every single play. And now all of a sudden, the Patriots, if it took them a few extra yards to pick up those third downs under Tom Brady in

this offense, when it was like third and seven a lot of times, now all of a sudden you're looking at maybe third and two or three or maybe even collecting first downs a little bit quicker than they normally have before. So I do. I like the addition here, and I think it's going to be exciting. I think it's going to mean a lot of great things for this quarterback room. And, again, I appreciate the insight because those are the little subtleties

that a lot of people are not talking about when it comes to Cam Newton. They look at the athleticism. I think a lot of times we all get lost in the athleticism and just the playmaking ability and what he's going to look like on the field. But the complexities that he provides for an opposing defense, it's going to be something interesting and it's going to be really fun to watch Josh McDaniels try to navigate through that this year. And I, for one, can't wait to see what it looks like on the field. And again, to Mark's point, folks, wear your mask because we want a full contingent. We want to be able to watch this and we want sports and people to be healthy enough to be able to enjoy it. It starts with you. It's a choice to be made,

but it's the right choice. And I could not agree with him more buddy it's always a blast when you come back home uh you're showing why today's topic is always right in your wheelhouse but it's time for a quarterback competition in foxborough for the first time in a long while and in just a moment folks mark scofield and i will discuss cam newton but we'll also discuss brian hoyer and jared stidham and who he believes will be the starter when the 2020 season kicks off. All this and at least one more total reference when the Lockdown Patriots podcast continues. Patriots fans, we open the week in style here on the pod by welcoming home my friend and

predecessor Mark Schofield. And Mark, for the first time in 20 years, Tom Brady is not walking through the door of the quarterback room. It's tough to believe, but it is true. And it doesn't mean that we're not going to recognize the faces that are there. And we talked about Cam Newton in the previous segment, but prior to Cam's arrival in New England, we kept hearing from very reliable sources. And I say that honestly, folks, I'm not saying that tongue in cheek. We've been hearing from those sources that Jarrett Stidham had the confidence of the Patriots brain trust to be productive in this offense. I kept hearing that the Patriots were content to move toward a game

management strategy in 2020 with Stidham under center. And the argument there is that it was the best way for him to learn the NFL game and study defensive formations. After all, that really is kind of how Tom started. But Jarrett is capable of making some big-time throws, provided he gets the protection and the time he needs to make the reads. He can be mobile as well when he needs to be. So even though he has some support in New England, I think the better question here is,

is it realistic to expect that Jarrett Stidham would either see the field this year, and if he does, maybe even turn some national heads while doing it? I mean, I think it's certainly possible. I mean, Mike, you and I heard the same things from people in and around this organization and around that building, that they were excited about Jarrett Stidham. They were excited about the development that he showed. They were excited about the progress he had made as a quarterback from a guy that came in after the draft in that first rookie minicamp,

throwing interceptions and walkthroughs, to a guy that was getting that defense ready. I mean, after, you know, the Tom Brady move to Tampa Bay, Devin McCourty was out there saying that part of the reason that Patriots defense was so good last year was because of Jarrett Stidham and what he did during practice. And, you know, there were certainly reasons to be excited about Jarrett Stidham and what he did during practice. And, you know, there were certainly reasons to be excited about Jarrett Stidham

and what he offered, at least the potential of what he offered. And, you know, we often don't get into the room. We don't get into the decision-making room, right? You know, we're on the outside looking in. But the draft and free agency period, that's our opportunity to really see into the minds of how teams view their rosters how they view their various position groups and look at what the Patriots did at quarterback they didn't draft one they didn't go out and sign one early in free agency and yes the

cap was an issue there but the cap is a myth it's a construct they could have found a way to get something done they passed on quarterbacks in the draft. They had an opportunity to draft one early. They didn't. Everything seemed to be pointing to Jared Stidham. And then, you know, with the Cam Newton news, now we sort of get excited about what he can bring to the table. But I don't think we should overlook the potential in Jared Stidham. I think this was a situation Mike Knair,

who does a great job covering the league, after the Cam Newton sign-in said, look, you know, I think this tells us that the Patriots are still excited about Stenum but they don't trust their evaluation process on him more than the fact that you have a former MVP available for a league minimum salary and so it's almost a no-brainer in a sense and that you would sign Cam Newton given the economics of it and the potential of it. And we hope that Cam Newton is a guy that he was in 2015 or 2017, but he's not. The Patriots didn't have to spend a ton of money in their back where we all thought they were going to be, which is seeing what they have in Jared Stenum.

There's reason to be excited in terms of what he brings to the table. You know, some of the process and speed that he showed during preseason last year. I know last time I was with you, he was talking about a play in that game against the Lions. Well, I'm really excited about seeing him make some NFL reads. I think there is potential still with Jarek Stidham. I don't think the acquisition of Cam Newton forecloses the idea that Stidham

could be the week one starter. I mean, let's face it. We are in interesting times. We are in a scenario where there's been no OTAs. There's been no voluntary minicamps. There's been no scenario where Cam Newton has gotten on the same page with coaches and players on the field. He's had to do it on private workouts and things like that. Stidham might still have a benefit where he knows this often better than Cam Newton. I don't think it's going to be an issue for Newton to learn it, but these are interesting times. And

so I don't think we should foreclose the idea that Cam Newton is not going to be the starter and Jared Stidham is. I think there's still a potential where Stidham could win the job, but it is interesting to have a quarterback camp battle for the first time in two decades. Yeah, without question. And it still feels, I guess, a little odd that we're talking about a positional battle at quarterback for the starting position in New England after what we've had in 20 years with Tom Brady. But I think it definitely exists. And look, I think all things being equal, both of these guys clicking on all cylinders, meaning Cam, meaning Jarrett, I think there's the potential for this to be a pretty good battle but if all things are equal and if both of these guys are playing at the top of their game I still don't see Cam losing a battle to anybody very few I should say there may be a couple of quarterbacks out there that might be able to beat him out but especially on this roster I think Cam would be the

guy but the interesting wrinkle that you put in there, my friend, was this being an offseason where there were no OTAs, where there were no mini camps. The COVID-19 pandemic can change so much. We're seeing it change so much in all of professional sports. We really haven't seen the impact it could have on NFL rosters yet. And I think we're about to find out because today and tomorrow in Foxborough, both the veterans, the rookies are all reporting. And of course, those quarterbacks today are reporting for their COVID tests. So it will be interesting to see what happens when these guys get out on the field and what they're able to do. We've talked about the excitement level of Cam Newton, the stability that a guy like Jarrett Stidham can bring,

and also the stability of a guy like Brian Hoyer who's coming back into this system for the first time in a long while. And, well, I shouldn't say a long while, a year, but a year in football can be a long while. But that leads me quite nicely into my final question for you today, my friend. And it's the million dollar question on everybody's mind.

Seat's gonna get a little hot for you in a second. As the Patriots get set to begin the post-Tom Brady era, an insurmountable task of replacing a legend in a place like New England. But it has to be done. Which of these quarterbacks, Cam Newton, Jarrett Stidham, or Brian Hoyer? Yes, folks, there are still some believe Hoyer to be in the mix. I say that with sincerity. But my question to you, Mark, is who

will be given the keys to the kingdom? And maybe an offshoot to that is despite who wins the starting job, do you think the Patriots carry three quarterbacks this year? Well, I'll start there, and I do think they carry three quarterbacks. I think, you know, this is going to, these are going to be interesting times. And if there's a position group where if you have a sort of outbreak, you're going to need bodies immediately. It's quarterback. I wouldn't be surprised if we learn, and we're hearing rumblings

that teams might do this. Teams might keep a quarterback in isolation. You might carry three quarterbacks and that third quarterback, say it's Brian Hoyer, he doesn't come to practice. He completely self isolates. And if there's an emergency scenario where suddenly let's play this hypothetical out, you know, it's a week you're playing the Kansas city chiefs and Cam Newton test

positive for COVID and you have to quarantine Jared Stenum as well, because he's been exposed to meetings. You need a quarterback to step in. And so I think you might see teams go to a sort of self-imposed bubble for positions such as quarterback where it's so important so you might as a result see they keep three quarterbacks and that third quarterback is your you know in case of emergency break open glass type of player where they're isolated in a protective scenario and then they're active if need be um as to who wins this job you know look i i've been covering the patriots as of you mike for a long time and i've learned and then i go back on that so often never to expect and try to predict

bill belichick because i literally wrote over at USA Today's Cutout Wire, yes, there is a plan and the plan is Jared Stidham. I wrote that like two months ago, like 3,000 words, like why Jared Stidham is the planet quarterback. And thankfully, I snuck in at the end a simple sentence of, yes, Cam Newton's a better quarterback, but absent him signing on a veteran minimum deal, he's not going to be the guy.

Well, thankfully, I sunk that in because that's exactly what happened. You know, so I'm studying the thought, did him with the plan. But that's changed now. I do think that given what he brings to the table, given the experience he brings to the table, given the athleticism and how people change, how teams have to defend them, Cam Newton is going to be the guy. But I'm saying that here at the end of July. Things could obviously change. COVID can certainly change things in the blink of an eye,

as we're seeing right now with the Miami Marlins. And so who knows? But I do think that because of what he brings to the table, Cam Newton can make this a more dynamic offense almost overnight. I think the schematics, the concepts they can now use, the ways they can stress a defense from sideline to sideline and down the field. And let's face it, Newton has experience in this type of system. Maybe it's not one-for-one, the terminology, but he's been in sort of this earned parking system before. I think Cam Newton, even though people have questions about the Patriots wide receiver role and the offensive weapons they have, that might be true, that it's not great, but

it still might be the best group that Cam Newton has played with. Obviously, Christian McCaffrey is a tremendous talent, but when you look around, he's been throwing to guys like Brandon Burson and Ted Ginn. I was going to have Julian Edelman if he had the healthy Muhammad Sanu, if he can get on the same page with Nikhil Harry. It could be a much better group for him. So I think Cam Newton would be that guy. I anticipate him being the week one starter.

We've heard rumors that Belichick wanted more mobility and athleticism at the quarterback position because he's seen firsthand what mobile quarterbacks can do to his defenses, especially if you're going to be playing a ton of man coverage. When you've got those corners running, when they're back to the QB and they can't keep an eye on him, you know, that quarterback can change things in the blink of an eye. Think about it to the first half of that AFC championship game a few years ago when Blake Bortles, yes, Blake Bortles of all people,

looked like he was going to play his team into the Superbowl going on the road and being in the new England Patriots. Cause anytime he saw a man coverage, he was just going to pull the ball down and run. So you can certainly do things with Cam Newton and his athleticism that are going to be things that we haven't seen from a Patriots offense in a while. And so you put all those reasons together. I think Newton's going to be the guy. Yeah. And I think you're absolutely right on that. As much as I've been on the stidum stump, quote unquote, and I stand by it because I did. I sold his, you know,

his capabilities and I stand by that because I still believe in those capabilities. And I think just in the previous question that I asked you, you outlined so many points about Jarrett still being an optimal option for the Patriots, whether it be this year, whether it be at some point this year, or maybe it be down the line. There's still a bright future ahead for Jarrett Steneman. No one is saying that he just should be discarded and forgotten about by any stretch of the imagination. But as I said earlier, I think all things being equal and these two guys clicking and playing at the top of their level, I don't see Cam losing that quarterback competition simply because of the experience and the ability that he's going to bring in the complexities that he

can provide to having a defense defend him. Bill Belichick is definitely all about looking for mobility in this position. I think Josh McDaniels was looking for it as well. And I think these two guys are looking forward to seeing what Cam can do on the field. So I also agree with you that the Patriots will carry three quarterbacks this year as well. I like the fact that you brought up the bubble or the quarantine for the third or potentially a quarterback on the roster. I've been hearing a lot of buzz on that as well, and I think that may be the optimal decision considering what Major League Baseball is going through right now with the Miami Marlins having to cancel games.

Their roster is being decimated by positive COVID-19 tests. It gives the NFL an option to be able to say, okay, well, we're watching what's going on here. Maybe we should take some notes and try to stay proactive on this and learn from maybe the, I don't want to say the mistakes of major league baseball, because I think that's a little harsh. I think they're doing the best they can. But at the same time, I also believe that this could be a learning curve for the NFL too. Don't let this happen to you folks. Let's try to stay ahead of

it. So Mark, what can I say? I thank you so much, buddy. I always have a blast when you come here. You check on the total poster. You make sure it's still up on the wall. It always will be. You even mentioned that AFC championship game a couple of years ago with Bortles and the Jacksonville Jaguars. I can tell you, having been in the stadium, that was the loudest I ever heard the stadium when Danny made that catch in the end zone. It was just amazing and part of a magical run for the Patriots at that point, up until that point.

But that was a great reference, and I'm glad that you brought that up. It's pretty hot here in New England, my friend. So truly, we would love to be blessing the rains in relief in your honor. But the floor is yours, my friend. I normally ask you to tell people where they can find you, but you're football royalty. And if you're a football fan, you're already following Mark Schofield. So enlighten us, my friend, what can we look forward to in the analytic world of Schofield in the coming

days? Well, Mike, it's always a blast to be with you again. And it's always great to catch up, you know, before the show and things like that. It's, I keep saying, keep telling people I was just so proud of what you've done with this show, taking it to new heights, heights I never reached when I was hosting it. I'm so overjoyed to see your success.

It warms my heart all the time. You're one of the true best in this business, one of the true gentlemen in this industry, and I'm just so excited for your success. As for me, look, we're all keeping our fingers crossed. We're going to get a full 16 game season. If we do, that would be fantastic. You can follow along on Twitter at Mark Schofield right now, Doug Farrar and I over at Touchdown Wire. We're doing our NFL top 100.

We're doing our top 11 at every position. We've got tight ends for me today. No Patriots on that top 11 tight end list, although maybe we'll see Devin a CSC on there at some point in the future. We've also got top 11 quarterbacks in the league coming from me later this week. And then Doug and I will release our top 101 players. That's right. That talks about why we go to 101. We're kind of like spinal tapping that way. That will come out later this week. But best way to follow us on the Bird app at Mark Schofield.

Absolutely. And again, folks, one of the best follows that you'll find anywhere, one of the most knowledgeable football minds that you'll find in all realms of football media, not just New England Patriots coverage, but all 32 NFL teams, even into college. This man just does it all, and he does it all with class. He does it all with a style of his own, but he does it all with accuracy and top-notch proportion. I can't thank you enough for the compliments.

I assure you, taking the show to heights that you hadn't envisioned is something that I would never have been in a position to unless you set the table for me so eloquently and so prominently. I owe so much of that to you. And I couldn't be happier. I remain a steadfast fan of yours. I always will be. But the best honor is being able to call you a friend, a personal friend as well. You're a great man. And you always come on here and lend the wisdom and counsel like only you can. So my deepest thanks to you, my friend.

Stay safe. Stay well. We always look forward to having you back home here. And you know we'll have you back home here once again prior to the start of the 2020 NFL season to talk some quarterbacks and to find out if we were right when it came to our assessments here today on the Cusper Training Camp. Thanks again, my friend. Take care and have a great week.

You too, my friend. Be well. Be well. And so, folks, that concludes our Locked On Monday Quarterback episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast with special guest Mark Schofield. Mark never ceases to deliver the wisdom, counsel, and insight you need when evaluating quarterbacks of any NFL team, but especially your New England Patriots folks. He has a passion for it, and it truly shines through in his analysis

and everything that the man does. But we've only scratched the surface when it comes to Patriots training camp coverage and making our best attempts to evaluate the roster and the potential moves and camp battles that we can expect to see in the coming weeks. So to make sure you do not miss a single episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast, be sure to follow us on Spotify, Subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts. Download us wherever you get your podcasts. And of course, don't forget that you can always listen

to Locked On Patriots right on your very own smart device. How do you do that? Very simple. Just ask it to play the latest episode of Locked On Patriots. Once again, folks, my name is Mike DeBate. I thank Mark Schofield for his time, his insight, and his appearance on today's pod. But most of all, I thank you so much for listening and for staying locked into Locked On Patriots.

Stay safe. Stay well. Continue to be the change you wish to see in the world. Have a great day, everyone.