While I never thought the Pats would select a quarterback as high as they did this year, I did think that the time to start throwing any and all quarterbacks they could get their hands on at the wall now.
My biggest question was what kind of quarterback might they target? Would it be one of the more mobile kind in the Cam Newton/Colin Kaepernick mold? Or would it be a more traditional pocket passer?
Belichick is known to stay well ahead of the curve on all aspects of football, so I assumed any quarterback acquired would tell us a lot about the direction that BB thought offensive football was going.
With Mallett on the roster, it seemed to point the Belichick still favoring pocket passers, especially one with a big arm. But with the selection of Garropolo, especially in the second round tells us something a little different I believe.
Garoppolo’s strengths? Quick reads and a quick release. Essentially what Brady does best. For all the criticism that the “dink-and-dunk” has gotten over the years, leaving fans crying for a “deeeeep threat” it would seem that Belichick thinks that’s a style of offense that can be effective going forward.
This is also reflective in the Pats’ penchant for traditional slot receivers who are extremely quick and can get open right away off the line.
They all go together with a quarterback like Garoppolo.
Will Garoppolo be Brady’s heir apparent? We’ll see in a couple seasons, but for now it appears Belichick and the Patriots will try to maintain the kind of offense that has worked with Brady.