What’s there to say at this point? On Sunday afternoon, the Packers are shipping up to Boston, er, to Foxborough to take on the New England Patriots, who made it to the Super Bowl last season behind the leadership of then-second-year quarterback Drake Maye. Since we’ve done this for 16 other teams at this point and people seem to enjoy it, we figured we’d add to our other sports coverage this week by ranking the nine different starting quarterbacks the Pats have used over the past 20 seasons. Go Pack Go!
9. Brian Hoyer
Having played for eight different teams during his 15-year career, Brian Hoyer is the epitome of a journeyman quarterback. That journey brought the veteran backup to New England for four different stints spanning portions of eight seasons. However, Hoyer only started two games as a Patriot and he lost both of them. In total, he appeared in portions of 30 regular season games as a Pat, during which he managed just 729 passing yards, two touchdowns, and a pair of interceptions.
8. Jimmy Garoppolo
Before he was traded to the Niners (where he was annoyingly good in spurts, especially against the Packers in the postseason) and subsequently suited up for the Raiders and Rams, Jimmy Garoppolo was drafted by the Patriots in the second round and served as Tom Brady’s backup quarterback for three seasons. When Brady was suspended as part of the “Deflategate” controversy in 2016, Jimmy G. started two games in his absence and helped New England win both of them. During the entirety of Garoppolo’s Pats career (parts of 17 games), he threw for 690 yards with five passing touchdowns and no interceptions.
7. Jacoby Brissett
As we type this, a trade is reportedly being finalized to send Jacoby Brissett from Arizona to Baltimore, which would be the well-traveled quarterback’s seventh NFL team in 11 seasons. Brissett spent two of those seasons (his rookie year in 2016 and a stint in 2024) with New England. In total, he appeared in 11 games and started seven of ’em, posting a combined Patriots stat line of: 1,226 passing yards, two touchdown passes, one interception, a rushing TD, and a 2-5 New England record in games he started.
6. Bailey Zappe
Your grandkids won’t believe it, but there were a few months in the early 2020s when a faction of football enthusiasts thought Bailey Zappe had the makings of being the next great (or at least above-average) Patriots QB. Yes, in 2022, New England’s fourth round pick impressed in limited snaps, helping the Pats win both games he started and throwing for close to 800 yards with five touchdowns. That success didn’t repeat in 2023, as Zappe appeared in 10 total games, won only two of six games he started, and tossed six touchdowns compared to nine INTs. He wound up buried on the depth chart in Cleveland the following season and he’s currently on the Jets’ practice squad.
5. Cam Newton
Had we made a similar list of Panthers quarterbacks prior to last week’s game against Carolina, we’re certain Cam Newton would’ve been the top-ranked starting quarterback. Sadly, that success didn’t exactly translate to Newton’s one and only professional season spent outside of Charlotte. During the 2020 campaign, the 31-year-old was a placeholder for the Pats in the wake of Brady’s departure to Tampa Bay. Over 15 games (all starts), New England went 7-8. His passing marks weren’t spectacular (2,657 yards, eight touchdowns, and 10 picks), but Newton jumped a few spots up this list on account of rushing for close to 600 yards with 12 touchdowns on the ground. Oh, and he apparently caught a touchdown pass as well.
4. Matt Cassel
When Brady’s 2008 season abruptly ended after sustaining a torn ACL and MCL in Week 1, New England put the ball in the hands of Matt Cassel. He proceeded to amass 3,693 passing yards with 21 passing touchdowns (compared to 11 interceptions), a pair of rushing touchdowns, and a 10-5 record that brought New England within a game of making the playoffs in what many expected would be a lost season. He was traded to Kansas City to serve as their starter prior to the 2009 season, but Cassel still did enough in those 15 games with New England to earn a spot on the upper half of this list.
3. Mac Jones
It was a baptism by fire for Mac Jones, who was drafted 15th overall by New England in 2021 and immediately installed as the starting quarterback of a team still rebuilding after Brady’s departure before the 2020 season. Things started well enough, with Jones—on the strength of 3,801 passing yards and 22 passing TDs—leading the Pats to a 10-7 record and a playoff appearance in his rookie year. However, the Mac Attack didn’t replicate the next two seasons, with New England going 6-8 and 2-9 respectively in games Jones started. Still, that impressive rookie year and flashes of proficiency in the two years that followed combine to earn the current Niners backup QB a spot in the top three on this list.
2. Drake Maye
How can a guy who’s currently in just his third professional season (and second full year as the starting quarterback) already be the second-best Pats QB of the past two decades? Well, Drake Maye has just been that good. Through a mere 38 games (37 of those in a starting capacity), Maye’s on-field performance already lands him in the top 10 among Patriots quarterbacks in career passing yards, touchdowns, completions, and quarterback record. That whole “led his team to a Super Bowl appearance in his first full season under center” thing is pretty impressive, too. He’s really, really good, but hopefully this already proven young quarterback has an off day this Sunday.
1. Tom Brady
Duh.