Surprisingly, the Boston Media Says Brian Hoyer's Release Was Further Proof Belichick and Brady are in a Power Struggle

When the Patriots made the tough call to release Brian Hoyer – a veteran they trusted with years of experience in their system – and put all their entire backup quarterback eggs into a rookie’s carton, I took it as a positive. It seemed to me that they’d seen enough of Jarrett Stidham to like the way he’s picked up the offense, the way he commands a huddle, moves the chains, grasps the concepts, makes decisions, and how hard he works in the gym, the film room and the practice field. I just can’t imagine Bill Belichick would put any player in any position for any reason other than he was confident said player could help him win games when called upon. It just seemed logical, given the track record of winning and all.

Stupid me. I’m not a member of the traditional New England football intelligentsia. If I was, I’d have been able to see through the ruse at what’s really going on here. This transition from Hoyer to Stidham isn’t about merit. It’s about the continuing, non-stop power struggle between Belichick and Brady:

Boston Globe – With the Patriots it’s often about the bigger picture.  Hoyer was collateral damage in the tug of war between Brady and Belichick for top billing in the Patriots’ long-running dynasty. Belichick thought he found Brady’s heir apparent once with Jimmy Garoppolo. If he can do it with Stidham and the organization wins with Stidham — either with Belichick as the coach or with Belichick’s successor — then the arrow on history’s gauge ticks in Belichick’s direction. Never underestimate the importance of this. It’s the undercurrent of the organization, especially with Brady playing on a reworked final year that precludes the Patriots from using the franchise tag on him after this season. That’s why we’ve been force-fed Stidham.

As Ted Karras’ great uncle put it in “Blazing Saddles,” Hoyer only pawn in game of life.

How could I have not seen this? It’s so obvious. Belichick and Brady have unzipped and whipped ‘em out and are measuring backup quarterbacks. They’re hiding the “tug of war” in plain sight, and yet I missed it. But the radio shows haven’t. Felger and Mazz  have both been doing “undercurrent of the organization” talk like Super Bowl LIII and the sweet, warm, loving embrace that followed never happened:

I see that and wish just once the Irish Rose would look at me like that. (Or that I’d look at anyone the way I look at Belichick and Brady, but I lack the emotional maturity.) The old school media know better. This was all just a show. The real relationship is a never-ending fight to win hearts and minds. It’s “Highlander,” and there can be only one true GOAT. Even if it means weakening the team by going with the lesser backup quarterback, that’s a small price to pay in order to make the arrow on history’s gauge tick toward in coach’s direction, however slightly.

Again, stupid me. I watch these two for 20 years or more and see two insanely competitive men with an all out, insatiable lust for winning. I see Alphas obsessed with getting better, even if they’ve already done things no one else ever has. If I was smarter, I’d see them for the petty, tribal, image-conscious manchildren they really are, obsessed with nothing but their own reputations and which one of them gets the credit. I stand corrected.

And just to not let WEEI off the hook, when Brady said nice things about Hoyer on their morning show:

“Brian provided a lot. He was a great quarterback for our team and he won an offseason award. He just brought a great positive energy to the team. Always optimistic and I think there’s times for me that I great frustrated or I get down or disappointed with things that may have happened and he would always try and bring me back to center pretty quickly. I love the relationship I have with him. It will certainly continue on in its own personal way. We just won’t be working together.”

… The afternoon show has been using this as further evidence of the rift. And how it’s now just going to alienate Brady further because he won’t have Hoyer there to pick him up when he’s feeling down. It’s the journo playbook in this town and all the success, winning, Duckboat parades and evidence to the contrary is not going to make them switch it up.

I guess we should thank them. The championship runs might actually get routine and boring around here if it weren’t for these bozos being wrong about everything all the time.