The New England Patriots re-signed Cam Newton in free agency, but they appear to have their eyes on a quarterback of the future, with Justin Fields seemingly high on their radar.
Speaking on the ‘Move The Sticks’ podcast, NFL Media’s Daniel Jeremiah (h/t Patriots Wire) said he has heard a lot of rumors the Patriots are “really high” on the Ohio State star.
Picking 15th in the first round of the draft, the Patriots would have to make a significant move up the draft board to land Fields. Trading up has traditionally not been a tenet of Bill Belichick’s draft strategy, but this has been an offseason where Belichick has eschewed tradition, going on a spending spree not at all in keeping with how he has attacked the open market in previous years.
And there are several reasons why Fields is a quarterback worthy of a change in course and aggressive move up the board from Belichick.
Continuity from Cam for the Patriots
While the Patriots’ first year with Cam Newton succeeding Tom Brady did not go entirely to plan, one area where New England excelled for much of last year was in taking advantage of Newton’s skills as a runner.
Newton’s 12 rushing touchdowns were tied for the fourth-most in the NFL while he averaged 4.3 yards per rush in 2020, putting him third among quarterbacks behind Lamar Jackson and Kyler Murray.
Fields has even greater potential upside as a runner, he is elusive in the open field and has the speed to break off long touchdown runs once he gets a clear path in front of him.
By landing in New England, Fields would have the benefit of learning from an experienced dual-threat quarterback who has played the game at an MVP level.
Meanwhile, Belichick and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels could be confident in calling the same designed quarterback carries and option plays that they did for Newton, boosted by the knowledge that Fields has the talent to maximize their impact with his superior athletic gifts.