The Patriots are primed to miss the playoffs for the first time since 2008 and have officially snapped their NFL record of 17 consecutive seasons with at least 10 wins. While there’s plenty of blame to go around for this down year in Foxborough, it has become clear that Cam Newton isn’t going to be the quarterback who leads New England back into contention in 2021 and beyond.
While the Newton experience has genuinely been a pleasant one off-the-field with his always entertaining chats with the media, his arm talent is lacking at this stage of his career and, as my colleague Cody Benjamin highlighted this week, it doesn’t look like he’ll turn things around anytime soon. The former league MVP has five games this season where he has thrown fewer than 120 yards and has yet to have a game with two passing touchdowns. With Newton set to enter free agency this offseason, it rather easily opens the door for New England to head into a different direction under center. But where should they turn?
Here are three quarterback situations around the NFL that are worth keeping an eye on as it relates to the Patriots’ offseason plans:
Las Vegas Raiders
Truth be told, watching Marcus Mariota’s performance on Thursday Night Football was the inspiration for this column. The former No. 2 overall pick came in under duress after starter Derek Carr suffered a groin injury at the end of the first quarter and played well. Mariota immediately showed off his touch with two impressive sideline throws, including a 35-yard touchdown to Darren Waller. He also showed off his mobility by rushing for 88 yards and a touchdown. That aspect of Mariota’s game could be an attractive trait for New England after enjoying solid success on the ground with Newton, who has 11 rushing scoring coming into Week 15.
Mariota is signed through 2021, but the Raiders aren’t drastically committed to the 27-year-old as they’d clear $10.1 million by shipping him away with no dead cap charges. If he performs well enough, he could be better served to the franchise as a trade piece to collect assets to build around Carr rather than serve as his backup.
If he performs extremely well, does that maybe open the door for Jon Gruden to think about moving on from Carr? Whichever way that coin flips, it’d be wise for New England to monitor the QB situation over in Sin City to see if there is the potential for a trade. Remember: Bill Belichick is extremely close with Raiders GM Mike Mayock.
Detroit Lions
In the aftermath of firing head coach Matt Patricia and GM Bob Quinn, the Detroit Lions appear to be on the verge of a total rebuild. If that’s the case, it wouldn’t come as a total shock to see Matthew Stafford become available. The 32-year-old could be an ideal bridge quarterback for New England if they were to acquire him and select a prospect somewhere in the 2020 draft. He’s signed through 2022 but does have rather large cap hits of $34.95 million and $27.95 million over the next two years. That said, the Patriots are projected to have the third-most cap space in the entire NFL this offseason so it is at least feasible.
Stafford fits more of the offense that New England deployed with Tom Brady under center and if they’re looking for more of a pure passer, he certainly fits the bill and has plenty left in the tank.
San Francisco 49ers
This one is obvious and will likely be the most talked-about scenario for New England this offseason, but for good reason. There’s too much smoke surrounding a potential divorce between Jimmy Garoppolo and the 49ers for me to whole-heartedly believe San Francisco when they say publicly that he’s their man going forward. As things stand entering Week 15, the 49ers are looking at the No. 12 overall pick at the 2021 NFL Draft, which would put them right in the sweet spot for one of the major quarterback prospects.
If Kyle Shanahan falls in love with one of them or is able to acquire another quarterback who is already in the league (Kirk Cousins?), I’d bet he’d seriously consider moving on from Jimmy G. And that opens the door for a potential reunion in Foxborough. If Garoppolo were to become available, Bill Belichick, who drafted him in the second round of the 2014 draft, would certainly flirt with the possibility of bringing him back. Garoppolo knows the Patriots offense, which would make a transition rather seamless, and is only 29 years old meaning that he’d be a long-term answer under center.
He was groomed for essentially two-and-a-half years to be Tom Brady’s heir apparent and he could finally live out that destiny if he shakes loose from the Bay Area.
Before we jump into the rest of the news and notes surrounding the Patriots, here’s how you can watch their Week 15 matchup with Miami:
How to watch
Date: Sunday Dec. 20 | Time: 1 p.m. ET
Location: Hard Rock Stadium (Miami Gardens, FL)
TV: CBS | Stream: CBS All Access
Follow: CBS Sports App
Does Herbert’s breakout impact Josh McDaniels?
While Marcus Mariota’s performance on Thursday night and how he could be a potential avenue for the Patriots to go down this offseason may have been my initial takeaway from that contest, Justin Herbert was the other. While most New Englanders may not have seen the rookie’s brilliance during the 45-0 blowout against the Patriots back in Week 13, it was on full display in Vegas. He completed 22 of his 32 passes for 314 yards, two passing touchdowns, and added one on the ground to win the game in overtime.
That got me thinking: If Anthony Lynn does get fired, Herbert’s emergence as a top-10 quarterback in Year 1 automatically makes L.A. the top open coaching job in the NFL, right? If you’re Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, who has flirted with the possibility of going out on his own again as a head coach for years, wouldn’t this be the job that finally gets you to leave Foxborough? After all, there’s plenty of uncertainly surrounding New England now that Tom Brady is gone and there’s no guarantee that they’ll be able to bring in a star quarterback for 2021. Meanwhile, Herbert looks like he’s just that and he hasn’t even scratched the surface of his potential, which should have McDaniels’ attention.
Prior to the draft last offseason, NBC’s Peter King spoke with Justin Herbert and the then-Oregon quarterback revealed that he spent some time with McDaniels at the combine. If McDaniels was intrigued by Herbert then, that interest has likely only increased after seeing him in action in the NFL. If that job becomes available, McDaniels would be silly not to inquire.
N’Keal Harry’s slow-and-steady breakout
If you’re looking for one positive outcome from New England’s blowout loss in Week 14 against the Rams, I’d suggest keeping an eye on N’Keal Harry. It was lost in the shuffle due to the beatdown, but the second-year receiver did flash some promising signs. Bill Belichick even acknowledged this recent surge on Tuesday saying Harry “is starting to come on here in the last few weeks.”
He led all receivers with 49 yards on three catches in Week 14. The top grab of the night for him came in the third quarter when he hauled in a 30-yard reception from Cam Newton on second-and-20. Harry was able to make his defender bite on the curl in route before darting upfield and beating him on a 50-50 ball.
Coming out of college, Harry was billed as a receiver with tremendous hands that can win these types of battles in high traffic areas. When you point to that catch in Week 14 and then take a look at his touchdown reception against the Chargers in Week 13 on a fastball thrown by Newton, you can make the case that Harry may be finding a rhythm.
I wrote after the Cardinals win that the Patriots simply need more from Harry, who has yet to live up to his first-round billing. While he’s hardly done enough to call him a top-flight pass-catching option, there’s room for cautious optimism that he could be turning a corner.
Julian Edelman’s pending return
The Patriots could soon be getting a boost to their receiver unit as Julian Edelman returned to practice this week. However, that return will not be coming in Week 15 against Miami. The veteran pass-catcher had a knee procedure in late October that found him on IR and hasn’t played in a game since Week 7 against the 49ers. Reports say that Edelman isn’t quite there to return just yet and Bill Belichick classified him as day-to-day earlier this week.
“Julian, I’d put him in the day-to-day category,” Belichick told reporters on Wednesday. “But, when he’s ready, we’ll start him. If he’s not ready, then we’ll keep working and we’ll wait until he’s ready.”
Whenever he does return, it’s clear that he’ll energize the rest of the roster.
“I think everybody took note of him,” said Gunner Olszewski, via WEEI.com. “I was talking to him just yesterday, I was telling him, ‘I hope you’re out there.’ It gives us a little spark of energy. It’s Julian. He sets the tone. He’s been set the tone for not on the receiver room, but I think the team, for a long time. Having him out there, I think it brought a little spark back to everybody — a little pep in your step. JE11’s out there. That’s what I told him. I said, ‘It’s awesome having you out there.’ “
More playing time for Sony Michel
With the Patriots ruling Damien Harris (ankle) out on Saturday, the door is now open for Sony Michel to see some extended reps in New England’s backfield. The former first-round pick started the year as the starting tailback but poor play and injuries found him demoted on the depth chart after he landed on IR and Harris emerged.
With Harris now sidelined, this will be a solid opportunity for Michel to showcase his talents as the Patriots continue to mull picking up his fifth-year option this coming offseason. In three starts this season, Michel has 173 yards rushing on 6.65 yards per carry and a touchdown. Miami, meanwhile, is allowing 120.2 yards rushing per game this season.
