Don’t give up on Jarrett Stidham because the Patriots signed Cam Newton
By John Buhler
We shouldn’t give up on Jarrett Stidham just yet because of Cam Newton.
Though Cam Newton is the better player, we don’t need to punt on Jarrett Stidham just yet.
The New England Patriots have three quarterbacks capable of starting for them this fall. While Newton should edge out Stidham and the veteran Brian Hoyer in 2020, keep in mind that Newton only signed a one-year, incentive-laden deal to play for the Patriots. There are no guarantees he’ll even make the team out of camp.
Even if Newton does win the starting job and plays in all 16 games for the Patriots, it’s not the end of the world for a player like Stidham. He’ll get better taking reps against the vaunted New England defense as the scout team quarterback. It’s not like he wasn’t a good player in college, initially for the Baylor Bears before later transferring to the Auburn Tigers like Newton did.
It’s about the long game with Jarrett Stidham and not immediate success.
We must remember Stidham was a five-star recruit who committed to Baylor when it was a top-tier program under former head coach Art Briles. Obviously, the program cratered in the second half of the 2010s due to scandal and Stidham transferred to Auburn. In 2017, his team beat the arch rival Alabama Crimson Tide and Georgia Bulldogs at home en route to winning the SEC West.
Admittedly, neither the Baylor or the Auburn offense were exactly tailor-made for NFL success. Baylor ran about as basic of an Air Raid offense as you could find under Briles, while Auburn’s hurry-up-and-run attack under head coach Gus Malzahn didn’t bring out the best in Stidham’s skill set. The good news is he’s entering year two in a great offensive system under Josh McDaniels.
Though it’s not common now, quarterbacks back in the day did have to ride pine for a few years before getting their opportunity. Aaron Rodgers backed up Brett Favre for his first three years in the league with the Green Bay Packers. Kirk Cousins didn’t get to be a full-time starter until year four out of Michigan State University with the then-Washington Redskins in 2015.
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Cousins is a fellow fourth-round pick like Stidham was. Maybe that’s a career path he can follow? While Cousins was a two-star recruit coming out of high school, he quarterbacks a team in the Minnesota Vikings that is capable of winning a Super Bowl. He’s a two-time Pro Bowler, made a boatload of money and is considered to be one of the 10 best quarterbacks in the NFL today.
2020 may be Newton’s year in New England, but 2021 and beyond could be Stidham’s.