Bill Belichick has remained committed to Cam Newton being the Patriots' starting quarterback despite some of his struggles this season, but it remains to be seen if that commitment will last beyond this year.
Newton is set to hit free agency again after the season. While it seems unlikely the Patriots would offer him any sort of long-term deal, they could explore another short-term deal, especially if they select a quarterback early in the draft and view Newton as a good fit in a bridge/veteran mentor role.
One website is predicting that Newton and the Patriots will end up parting ways after the season, though.
Pro Football Focus has released their initial list of the top 50 free agents for 2021, including predictions on where each of them will end up. They have Newton ranked as the No. 15 free agent and signing with... the Cincinnati Bengals.
That would have seemed pretty crazy just a few weeks ago given the way No. 1 overall pick Joe Burrow was playing, but now makes a lot of sense in the wake of Burrow's season-ending knee injury, which could force him to miss a chunk -- or even all -- of next season.
PFF has the Bengals signing Newton for one year and $20 million, fully guaranteed.
So, what do the Patriots do at quarterback then? PFF has Dak Prescott and Philip Rivers as their top two free agent quarterbacks, but predict they'll be staying in Dallas and Indianapolis, respectively.
Instead, they have the Patriots bringing in another veteran who could fill the bridge/mentor role: Ryan Fitzpatrick.
Of course, Patriots fans know Fitzpatrick well. The 38-year-old Harvard alum has played for all three of the Patriots' AFC East rivals, including the past two seasons with the Miami Dolphins.
Fitzpatrick started the first six games of the season this year, leading the Dolphins to a 3-3 record, before coach Brian Flores handed the reins to first-round pick Tua Tagovailoa. Fitzpatrick started again this past week with Tagovailoa out injured and led Miami to a 20-3 win over the Jets.
PFF, who has Fitzpatrick ranked as the No. 22 free agent, has the Patriots signing Fitzpatrick for one year and $10 million, fully guaranteed.
In other Patriots-related predictions, PFF has guard Joe Thuney departing in free agency and signing a four-year, $57 million deal with the Arizona Cardinals. And if you're wondering if the Patriots will land a big-name wide receiver or tight end in free agency, PFF says no.
They have Chris Godwin staying in Tampa Bay, Kenny Golladay staying in Detroit, Hunter Henry staying with the Chargers, Allen Robinson signing with the Dolphins, JuJu Smith-Schuster signing with the Jets, and Will Fuller signing with the Packers.