Who is the New England Patriots third-string quarterback?
By John Buhler
With Tom Brady out because of the Deflategate suspension and now with the Jimmy Garoppolo injury, who is the New England Patriots’ third-string quarterback?
The New England Patriots already knew that they would be without future Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Tom Brady for the first four weeks of the 2016 NFL season. Brady had been suspended by the NFL for his role in 2014’s Deflategate scandal. He’ll return under center in Week 5.
New England prepared all offseason for Brady’s absence by getting fourth-year pro Jimmy Garoppolo ready to lead the Patriots in the first four weeks of 2016. While the Patriots put up a ton of points early on the Miami Dolphins in Week 2, Garoppolo injured his shoulder and had to leave the game.
This brings to question: who is the Patriots’ third-string quarterback? That would be none other than rookie signal caller Jacoby Brissett. Brissett played his college ball at the University of Florida before transferring to North Carolina State University in 2013.
New England used its No. 91 overall pick in the third round of the 2016 NFL Draft to select the North Carolina State Wolfpack’s former starting quarterback. In his two years as a starting quarterback at North Carolina State, Brissett threw for over 2,000 yards and 20 touchdown passes each season.
Brissett was a former four-star recruit out of West Palm Beach, Florida in the 2011 high school graduating class. He has dual-threat ability, as he was the No. 3 dual-threat passer in his recruiting class.
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New England will definitely minimize its playbook with Brissett under center. He does have experience playing in a pro-style offense, but is at his best in shotgun formation. That is ideal for New England, as the Patriots like to spread the football around in their bubble screen offense. Brissett was a high draft pick by the Patriots. We’ll see how he does in place of the injured Garoppolo.