Patriots team reporter Megan O'Brien details how Broncos' Week 5 opponent could look without Tom Brady

Miles

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Mar 18, 2019
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As the Broncos approach the season, we're chatting with reporters who cover each of the team's opponents. We continue with Megan O'Brien, a team reporter the New England Patriots.


For a look at all angles of the Broncos' Week 5 road matchup against the Patriots, click here.



Aric DiLalla: What's the outlook at the quarterback position? Does it look like it will be an open competition between Jarrett Stidham and Brian Hoyer?


Megan O'Brien:
"There seems to be a perception that Stidham is the guy, but in my opinion, I think they brought back Hoyer for a reason. Especially given the circumstances of this offseason, I think we could see a situation where it very well might be Hoyer to start the season and perhaps as Stidham gets comfortable, we could see a switch. I do believe it is an open quarterback competition. I don't think the job is Stidham's. I think Hoyer's definitely in the mix, and depending on how all of this offseason goes with training camp, we could see a different situation — perhaps it's Hoyer starting. What I do think about Stidham is being around for a year, he's earned the trust of a lot of his teammates. Go back to some of the press conferences with Devin McCourty this offseason, and they just spoke about the way he carried himself as a rookie. I think that means a lot coming from a guy like Devin McCourty who's been around for quite a while. It will be interesting to see. If you go back and look at the fourth-round picks who have ended up having a career as a quarterback, there's not too many in recent years. It will be interesting to see what Stidham looks like. Looking back at last year throughout training camp and throughout the preseason, all you could say really is that he improved. But there wasn't a lot to see."


AD: Could you get a sense of Stidham's game from last season?


MOB:
"Throughout training camp, throughout the preseason, he got better each time not holding onto the football too long. But a lot of his throws, it seemed like he was gaining confidence with the younger guys like Jakobi Meyers, like Gunner Olszewski, because they were all rookies last year. A lot of throws could've been pick-sixes as well, so I think for Stidham it's going to come down to just taking care of the football. If he can take care of the football and he can be a game manager, I think he'll find success within the Patriots' system."


AD: A lot of New England's free agent moves were to retain players likes Devin McCourty, Joe Thuney and Matthew Slater. How important was it to bring that core back after losing Brady in free agency?


MOB:
"I think that's huge, and you look at what they're doing — we always say, look at what they do, not at what they say — all signs point toward more of a reboot this season. That's going to happen when you lose your starting quarterback, especially when your starting quarterback is Tom Brady. I think having those core guys, the leaders — the McCourtys, the Stephon Gilmores, the Julian Edelmans — they're going to help establish the culture in the locker room and they're going to make this reboot an easier transition."
 
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