What to do with Stidham.

Redman443 said:

Remember, we only signed hoyer because Jimmy G was traded and we needed a backup for Brady. Hoyer beat out 7th round pick Etling last year but Im betting that Etling is gone and if Stidham beats out Hoyer, We will release or trade Hoyer and Stidham will be QB2 but if Hoyer beats out Stidham, itll be straight to the practice squad.

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You're making a huge assumption that the Pats only carry 2 QBs.. They could carry 3.
You're also assuming that Etling hasn't made any progress and can't beat out Hoyer.

My guess would be the following scenarios.

Scenario 1-Etling or Stidham lights it up. This makes Hoyer expendable, so we release him for the cap savings.

Scenario 2-Stidham shows enough promise that we keep him at 3 and hold onto Hoyer for one more year to help mentor the kid and Etling stays on the PS.

Scenario 3-Someone gets injured and Bills decision is made for him.

I see scenario 2 being the most likely. I don’t think we can risk putting Stidham on PS at any point without someone snatching him up. Maybe by mid season he will be ready to take some meaningful snaps in case of emergency or some mop up duty experience. Remember, it wasn’t long ago that we were having conversations about whether or not the Squirrel could take snaps at QB due to suspensions and injuries. If you have talent, keep it if at all possible.

No brainer Pats selected Studham......who is engaged to an heiress. He will only ask for 50 cents on the dollar during his second contract negotiations in order to help out the team build a deeper more talented roster. Deja vu all over again.
BB’s game plan.... get Studham to the alter and everything will be ok

Like many others on this board, I feel BB keeps Hoyer and Stidham and Etling will be on the PS for another year. Looking ahead, I can imagine a scenario in 2020 where Hoyer retires, becomes the QB coach, and Etling has a clear shot at QB3. For those who oppose carrying 3 QBs, remember that is how TB started with the Pats.

With the Pats having a strong offensive line and a great stable of running backs, Hoyer should be able to eke out a few victories if Tom goes down with an injury for a couple of games. He stays on the roster along with Stidham.

Stidham from 2017 will beat out Hoyer IMO. It remains to be seen if 2018 was more due to a back injury/OL problems or actual regression in play.

Jimmy G won the backup job from a non-pro style FCS offense. BB also named Hoyer as an UDFA rookie the backup QB. It’ll be a fair competition as always.

Redman443 said:

Remember, we only signed hoyer because Jimmy G was traded and we needed a backup for Brady. Hoyer beat out 7th round pick Etling last year but Im betting that Etling is gone and if Stidham beats out Hoyer, We will release or trade Hoyer and Stidham will be QB2 but if Hoyer beats out Stidham, itll be straight to the practice squad.

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Hoyer does double duty, though. He can be the QB coach now and he'd be excellent at it.

luuked said:

Etling is a goner. Most probably before camp. There are only so many reps to go around and even the QB3 often only gets the leftovers. A QB4 would just stand around doing nothing.

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I think this is most likely. Hoyer plays the final year of his contract and Stidham (assuming he is competent at the NFL level) becomes QB2 the following year. Etling gets an early start to his future job head coaching the Arizona Cardinals.

luuked said:

Etling is a goner. Most probably before camp. There are only so many reps to go around and even the QB3 often only gets the leftovers. A QB4 would just stand around doing nothing.

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I disagree. We have had 4 QB's in camp in the past. When you have 4th string WR's, it is OK to have a 4th QB.

I think it'll be Etling who's gone. They wouldn't have drafted Stidham if Etling showed anything. This year Hoyer stays at No. 2; Stidham becomes No. 3. If he works out, next year Hoyer is gone and Stidham slides into No. 2.

PatsDeb said:

I think it'll be Etling who's gone. They wouldn't have drafted Stidham if Etling showed anything. This year Hoyer stays at No. 2; Stidham becomes No. 3. If he works out, next year Hoyer is gone and Stidham slides into No. 2.

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Both Brady and Hoyer are in the last year of their respective contracts. Adding Stidham makes complete sense even if you carry him and have Etling on the PS.

And, as I've mentioned, there was a Mass Live where Jerry Schulpinski spoke highly of Etling's progress.

EDIT: Found the article..

What the Patriots want in Tom Brady’s successor and how they’ll scout him

Too bad his first name wasn’t Gillette

DaBruinz said:

Both Brady and Hoyer are in the last year of their respective contracts. Adding Stidham makes complete sense even if you carry him and have Etling on the PS.

And, as I've mentioned, there was a Mass Live where Jerry Schulpinski spoke highly of Etling's progress.

EDIT: Found the article..

What the Patriots want in Tom Brady’s successor and how they’ll scout him

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We'll see - other than the year Tom Brady was drafted, have we ever kept 4 QBs again? I can remember several years during the Brady era when we only went with 2 QBs. Can't see BB keeping 2 projects at QB and taking up 2 roster spots, even if one is on the practice squad.

PatsDeb said:

We'll see - other than the year Tom Brady was drafted, have we ever kept 4 QBs again? I can remember several years during the Brady era when we only went with 2 QBs. Can't see BB keeping 2 projects at QB and taking up 2 roster spots, even if one is on the practice squad.

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There have been several years we've had 4 QBs through OTAs and into TC. Talking about the final roster now is putting the cart before the horse.

DaBruinz said:

There have been several years we've had 4 QBs through OTAs and into TC. Talking about the final roster now is putting the cart before the horse.

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Good thing you and me don't pick em, then! And I was only commenting on the final roster. It wouldn't surprise me if Etling is on the roster for TC, but off come the start of the season.

How often have we had a QB older than 40 on the roster? Last year we kept 2 QB's on the roster and one on the practice squad. With Brady, Jimmy and Brisset we had three on the roster and on and off others on the PS. If Etling really sucks he is gone, if he is progressing but not there yet he will be kept on the PS, if he beats out Hoyer he will be #2 and Hoyer will be gone. I can't see them cutting Stidham unless he is really, really, really bad.

If Brady went down (sign of the cross) for a game or two you would want some experience at QB to step in. Stidham will be no where close to being a go. If Etling beats out Hoyer then he is #2 otherwise it is Hoyer. As someone just mentioned scout team QB also plays a big role in practices. Question is if Etling beats out Hoyer then Stidham makes the roster. Otherwise straight to the PS and we hope he does not get poached. With as many STers that we carry I doubt we carry 3 QB’s.

IMO they should have gotten Grier. He was good value. They should have found a way to make it work.

PatsDeb said:

We'll see - other than the year Tom Brady was drafted, have we ever kept 4 QBs again? I can remember several years during the Brady era when we only went with 2 QBs. Can't see BB keeping 2 projects at QB and taking up 2 roster spots, even if one is on the practice squad.

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So we are really discussing how vital it isn't to waste one of our Practice Squad roster spots?
In 2021, we might very well have Stidham and Etling. More likely, this won't happen. If Etling is developing, I see no problem with keeping him if he has the potential to be a backup.

BobDigital said:

IMO they should have gotten Grier. He was good value. They should have found a way to make it work.

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Grier seems like a ****. That's just my opinion though.