Patriots Priority: Top Veteran Quarterback Targets
The New England Patriots have plenty of needs heading into their first offseason removed from the Bill Belichick era.
Luckily for the rebuilding organization, the Pats have plenty of cap space to improve the roster under new coach Jerod Mayo and general manager Eliot Wolfe. The real question will end up being which position will be focused on the most during this time.
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While most analysts expect the Patriots to select a quarterback with the third overall pick in April's Draft, how they build the offense around the quarterback is an even bigger question.
That is why even if New England drafts a quarterback, sitting the rookie to start while an overall bad team takes its lumps might be the best thing for the organization throughout the 2024 season. It makes the veteran quarterback the Patriots bring in incredibly important.
A player like former Titans and Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill should be the Patriots' biggest priority this offseason. They also reportedly have interest in bringing back veteran Jacoby Brissett.
Now before people get up in arms about the absurdity of a quarterback past his prime being a priority over offensive linemen, receivers and linebackers, it's important to remember one key thing:
In a division as talented as the AFC East, and with so many teams sharing the needs of the Patriots, there's no guarantee they'll be able to acquire top talent to turn their recent slide around in one year. This is expected to be a multi-year rebuild.
Tannehill has started 159 games, has playoff experience, and can be serviceable when surrounded by solid talent.
That's why throwing a young and impressionable quarterback out with a bad team isn't what you want to do when you develop top talent. Allowing a player like Tannehill to be the sacrificial lamb of sorts in 2024 while the young quarterback learns the game is the right way to do things to keep the organization ahead of schedule.
It's what the Kansas City Chiefs did with Patrick Mahomes. It's what the Baltimore Ravens did with Lamar Jackson. And it's what the Patriots even did with Tom Brady when he first came to the team (obviously his story is much different).
Signing a competent offensive line and receiving core will come for New England.
But the most important piece to protecting their long-term future is making sure they don't overburden a young quarterback coming to a team that won't be successful in 2024.
