5 Patriots who won’t be back with the team next season

3. QB Jarrett Stidham

Do you think the Patriots are going to want to watch the dynamic play out with an Alabama alum in Jones effortlessly beating out an Auburn alum in Stidham for the starting quarterback job? Especially when Stidham was believed to be next in line after Tom Brady?

Just kidding, they don’t really care about that. They definitely care about Stidham entering the final year of his rookie contract, though, which will run the team over $1 million. However, they can save nearly $1 million by cutting him loose after June 1.

Stidham has gradually become more and more useless, and reports from 2020 training camp suggested the team was frustrated with him after he suffered a hip injury. Then came July of 2021, when he needed back surgery and wasn’t activated off the PUP list until Nov. 9.

He spent most of the year injured or on the practice squad as the Patriots carried just Jones and Brian Hoyer on the active roster. He didn’t log a single snap in his third NFL season, and his showing in 2020 when relieving Cam Newton at times certainly didn’t inspire any confidence (though it’s hard to fully blame him for that — the 2020 version of this team was almost unwatchable).

Stidham’s spot on this roster would be justified had Jones not been impressive during his rookie season, but it’s evident he’s likely the franchise quarterback, meaning any investment in a backup will be a veteran and anybody beyond that will probably be an option the Patriots will want to develop … not somebody wasting away on the practice squad.