Following this weekend’s trade of Mac Jones, the Patriots headed into this week with just Bailey Zappe and Nathan Rourke on the roster at quarterback, likely making it a tough sell for any potential free agents.
On Monday night, they added a key name that should allow them to have a veteran to stabilize their QB room in 2024 and give them a relatively viable starter to begin the upcoming season.
According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Patriots are reportedly set to sign free-agent quarterback Jacoby Brissett. Ian Rapoport reports that the deal is for 1 year and is worth $8 million.
It’s a solid signing for a team poised to select a quarterback with the #3 overall pick this April. His addition also brings him back to the team that drafted him, with Brissett having originally been drafted by New England back in 2016 in the 3rd round with the 91st overall pick.
The Patriots were likely an attractive landing spot for Brissett for a variety of reasons. The first being that he arrives in a place where he’ll more than likely begin the season under center, with Brissett also reuniting with offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt, who has familiarity with him thanks to their time together previously in Cleveland.
More importantly, he brings stability to the Patriots quarterback position and his arrival should make the pitch for any potential free agents a little easier. The club can now target players who will no longer have to worry about the prospect of having just Zappe and Rourke, given the uncertainty that still remains about who will be available when they pick at #3 next month.
Meanwhile, it’s also bad news for Zappe, as he’ll potentially now have to battle it out with Nathan Rourke for the third and final quarterback spot on the roster this summer.
Given the club’s history, it’s unlikely that New England will head into the season with four quarterbacks on their roster and Rourke is expected to contend for a spot after the club recently picked up his exclusive rights free agent tender.
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Ian Logue is a Seacoast native and owner and senior writer for PatsFans.com, an independent media site covering the New England Patriots and has been running this site in one form or another since 1997.
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