Patriots
“He’s a man who’s been doing it in school, so I suppose it’s second nature to him to do this.”
Malik Cunningham’s record of supporters continues to develop after his spectacular debut on Thursday evening.
Talking after Sunday’s apply in Foxborough, Patriots broad receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster provided up reward for New England’s rookie quarterback/broad receiver.
“That dude is electrical,” Smith-Schuster stated of Cunningham. “When the soccer’s in his arms as a quarterback, he’s a really harmful participant, as you could possibly see this previous Thursday evening. However he’s a man who’s been doing it in school, so I suppose it’s second nature to him to do this.”
A quarterback by commerce, Cunningham entered New England’s coaching camp attempting to carve out a task as a large receiver.
However after incomes reps underneath heart throughout camp practices final week, Cunningham earned the nod as QB in the course of the fourth quarter of New England’s 20-9 loss to the Texans at Gillette Stadium.
The twin-threat QB was one of many few vibrant spots on a lackluster evening for New England’s offense, orchestrating a 14-play, 75-yard drive that ended with a highlight-reel juke and a nine-yard scramble landing by the Louisville product.
“That’s his alternative,” Invoice Belichick stated of Cunningham on Thursday. “And he’s performed a great job with it. He’s embraced it. He’s labored laborious, he’s improved rather a lot as a receiver. The snaps he’s had at quarterback in apply and tonight — he’s performed a fairly good job.”
Cunningham as soon as once more earned appears each at receiver and quarterback throughout Sunday’s apply behind Gillette Stadium.
NESN.com’s Zack Cox famous that Cunningham warmed up with New England’s receivers on Sunday, however his solely reps throughout staff drills got here at quarterback.
Cunningham solely went by way of 5 snaps at quarterback and didn’t try a go. However he did earn some reps subsequent to Rhamondre Stevenson, David Andrews and a few of New England’s first-team unit on offense.
“Actually type of the primary reps I bought with him that y’all noticed,” Andrews stated of Cunningham’s reps with him on Sunday. “Like each different rookie, he’s getting rather a lot thrown at him. He’s simply attempting to take it daily. He clearly can do some various things, so we’ll see.”
Cunningham’s efficiency underneath restricted reps on Thursday has drawn consideration throughout the NFL.
“Two-hundred-fifty-nine picks in that draft final yr, Malik Cunningham was not drafted,” former NFL punter Pat McAfee stated on The Pat McAfee Present final week. “By some means this man is an undrafted free agent that Invoice Belichick finds.
“And within the fourth quarter of the primary preseason sport, he will get a chance to play quarterback [and] electrifies every little thing. … “I don’t understand how each staff passes on him seven occasions. However now right here’s Invoice Belichick, tremendous genius, simply discovered one other man.”
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson — as soon as a teammate of Cunningham at Louisville — supported the Patriots QB/WR by commenting: “QB1” on Cunningham’s Instagram put up.
With joint practices and a preseason sport towards the Packers set for later this week, will probably be fascinating to see if Cunningham positive factors much more reps at quarterback shifting ahead.
The 24-year-old clearly has loads of teammates and mates in his nook as he tries to land a spot on New England’s 53-man roster.
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