The first quarterback domino dropped Saturday night with Matthew Stafford reportedly being traded to the Rams along with picks and Jared Goff.
This means two teams potentially in the quarterback market this offseason are now all set.
So, how does this relate to the Patriots? There’s good news and bad news.
The bad news is it decreases the chances Jimmy Garoppolo is traded this offseason. San Francisco obviously would only deal away the quarterback if it was able to bring in someone it deemed as an upgrade, and Stafford was seemingly one of those players. Now, it’s hard to envision anyone else going to the 49ers, besides the slim chance of Deshaun Watson, which indicates Garoppolo may not be going anywhere.
The Patriots could blow the 49ers away with a good offer, but it doesn’t make sense for them to make a trade unless they have an alternative QB in mind.
There is some good news relating to the draft.
If the Lions traded him for a draft pick, there would have been another team ahead of the Patriots in the draft looking for a quarterback. With them now having Goff, it’s highly unlikely they will select one of the top-four quarterbacks at No. 7 overall.
This isn’t a huge development, but certainly doesn’t hurt the Patriots.
The big-name quarterbacks potentially being available for the Patriots is shrinking and it may be a case where they look to a veteran free agent — Jameis Winston, Marcus Mariota, Ryan Fitzpatrick, etc. — paired with a rookie.
The problem is that rookie may not be a franchise player because in order for that to be the case, the team would likely need to trade into the top-10. It could likely land Mac Jones at No. 15, but is he a franchise QB?
Obviously a lot can change over the next few weeks, but the Stafford deal is an indication of just how hard it is going to be for the Patriots to find their next QB.
