Jarrett Stidam is in the midst of a quarterback competition with Cam Newton and Brian Hoyer, but today the competition took an unexpected twist.
Yesterday at practice, the Patriots quarterbacks continued to distribute the reps equally. Cam Newton was 10-17 and Brian Hoyer was 7-16 with an interception. However, Jarrett Stidham only attempted six passes, only completing two of them, as well as throwing two interceptions. But, not much was made about Stidham’s lack of pass-attempts, until this morning.
The report initially did not lead to much panic or lead to much of a stir among other media members. At the time, this was the only report about Stidham. But, the real indication whether the report was credible or not would be if Stidham showed up to practice or not.
Then about three hours after Fitzy’s report, Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network confirmed that Jarrett Stidham was dealing with an injury. Rapoport reported that Stidham was dealing with a leg injury, and the Patriots would proceed cautiously.
Sure enough, despite these two reports, Jarrett Stidham trotted out for practice today with a big grin on his face. However, despite being at practice, Stidham did not take any throwing reps, and sat out some portions of the team stretches. It was obvious, that something was going on with Stidham. His health was in question, but he still participated in a limited basis at practice. So, the question became, how bad was Stidham’s injury?
Then to make matters worse for Stidham, the Boston Globe’s Jim McBride reported that Stidham was even at Mass. General Hospital on Thursday.
Despite Stidham’s apparent injury, and trip to the hospital, offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said that Stidham would be “ready to roll,” come practice on Sunday.
Today featured a whirlwind of reports regarding Stidham’s health. But, however you want to slice it, the 24-year-old Stidham is dealing with some sort of injury. Whether that’s his hip or his leg, something is not right.
As Stidham battles with whatever injury he has, Cam Newton and Brian Hoyer may now have the upper-hand as the season opener is approaching three weeks away. If Stidham is not 100%, then his chances of winning the job are slim. But, if Stidham’s injury was more a scare than anything else, he’ll still firmly be in the mix to win the quarterback battle.
The health of Jarrett Stidham should be something to monitor as training camp progresses.
