The New England Patriots are apparently not happy with Jarrett Stidham.
Stidham is thought to be suffering from an upper leg injury, one that could take a few weeks to fully heal. The injury, along with the inconsistent quarterback’s inconsistent play, has led to “assembly” at Gillette Stadium, Boston Sports Journal’s Greg Bedard reported Friday.
Hence, the starting quarterback job could now be Cam Newton’s to lose.
Check out this excerpt from the Bedard column:
Stidham’s situation will do nothing to allay growing concerns about him. Internally, there has been frustration that Stidham have not done more to take the starting position to this point. He certainly started strong, but has struggled since the first two days.
As for Stidham’s injury to the leg, Bedard saw that its nature, and the mystery surrounding the illness, may not go down well with Bill Belichick and the coaching staff.
More from his column:
If it’s an overuse injury – and sources believe this is what it is – it will not be properly seen by the coaches. Players have had months to get ready for this camp, advising themselves. If you’re trying to be the Patriots’ franchise quarterback to Tom Brady and compete with Cam Newton, you’re 100 percent physically ready to go and you’re not missing reps for anything short of a major injury.
Calmly added: Both Josh McDaniels and quarterbacks coach Jedd Fisch have indicated at conference meetings that they do not have much information about Stidham’s injury, and that agrees with sources who say staff were not informed about it – so it’s not a major injury situation, or at least Bill Belichick does not I feel it is a major injury, and that may be the most important thing of all.
Of course, there’s still time for Stidham to turn things around. In addition, there is nothing stopping him from returning to full strength early in the season, excelling in practice and, in turn, taking off from the starting line-up of Newton or even Brian Hoyer.
That said, at the moment it seems like a player in the present is very much considering the future of the Patriots.
