Stidham has made one start and went for 365/3. NE has gone 75 games without a QB accomplishing 350/3 (and counting). The last time was TB12 in 2018.
Help me out A99. What needs to be done to fix both Mac and the Pats O as where do you even start? Have to think Air Patricia was a colossal mistake and you start there but next year is year 3 for Mac and I would imagine they bring it a vet to challenge him in camp.
The steps are pretty clear . . . whether they act on the plan and how well it works out remains to be seen.
- Kick Patricia upstairs and get a real OC. Rumor is that Bill O'Brien is the guy and that is close to a done deal. The two seasons BOB ran the offense, they scored 518 and 513 points (granted, he had a lot more to work with back then).
- Fix the OL. Jones has been decent with time to throw the ball. But you can't run deep routes with 5 receivers and s Swiss cheese O-line. That probably means drafting an OT first or second round, drafting a couple of mid to late round prospects, signing a free agent castaway that was a high draft pick that didn't work out, and/or swinging a trade for a mid-round pick to get someone they've had their eye on for years.
- Get a legit #1 receiver. Meyers will probably sign elsewhere (the FA WR market is atrocious), and they will move on from Agholor. A trio of Parker, Bourne, and Thornton (and a smattering of Marcus Jones) would be decent behind a legit threat at receiver. We've been saying this for years, so who knows if they will ever listen. Look how the fate of the Bills changed adding Diggs and the Fins with Hill and Waddle.
Those three things would make them competitive enough to win a playoff game next year. In other threads, I suggested that adding a playmaker on either side of the ball would also help, but I think I've decided that playmaker needs to play WR.
I doubt they bring in anyone else at QB next season. They will likely go with Jones and Zappe, and if Jones doesn't look much better with a real OC, a better OL, and some weapons, then they will have to revisit in 2024.
As horrible as the offense has looked this season, NE is only a few plays away from being 12-4 right now (co-lateral damage vs. Vegas, RS fumble vs. CIN, Henry non-TD call in MIN, not going for it on 4th and short in OT vs. GB). No matter what their record was this year, they still weren't a very good team.
Their Oline is currently a mess. I can't see Brown or Wynn coming back. Cannon, Cajuste, and McDermott (who's been starting) are all free agents. They literally don't have anyone at OT for next year.
They really need to address three things to go back to being a much more competitive team. That being said, who knows who they'll have on the OLine next year, they probably won't look for a Top 10 WR, and who knows (for now) who the OC will be.