What the Patriots plan to do with Will Grier in his first recreation with the staff

Patriots

The quarterback formally joined the Patriots on Friday and can serve a job in Sunday’s recreation in opposition to the Jets.

Will Grier spent the 2021 and 2022 seasons with the Cowboys, however by no means performed a recreation for them. Sam Hodde / AP

Will Grier’s signing with the Patriots grew to become official on Friday morning, and Invoice Belichick even shared what position the quarterback will play in Sunday’s recreation in opposition to the New York Jets.

Grier will function the Patriots’ emergency third quarterback, marking the primary time the Patriots will train that choice for the reason that rule was carried out over the offseason. So, Grier would play in opposition to the Jets if starter Mac Jones and backup Bailey Zappe get harm or ejected from Sunday’s recreation despite the fact that he received’t be on the energetic gameday roster.

The Patriots’ resolution to signal Grier raised some eyebrows when the deal was first reported on Thursday. Grier was on the Bengals’ apply squad and might need had a doable likelihood to start out for Cincinnati in Week 3 as a result of Joe Burrow’s harm standing. Zappe was additionally the Patriots’ solely different quarterback on the 53-man roster, outdoors of Jones, following the staff’s resolution to re-sign him and transfer on from Matt Corral earlier in September.

Belichick merely defined that the signing was a depth transfer.

“We wish to work with him,” Belichick instructed reporters on Friday. “We’d like depth at that place – two quarterbacks, lengthy yr.”

Grier, 28, is in his fifth NFL season. The Panthers chosen the West Virginia product within the third spherical of the 2019 NFL Draft and 33 picks earlier than the Patriots chosen quarterback Jarrett Stidham.

Belichick actually didn’t say if the staff had a lot curiosity in Grier in the course of the draft that yr when requested concerning the staff’s exercises with him.

“We tried out all of those guys,” Belichick stated.

Grier began two regular-season video games in his rookie season with the Panthers, throwing for 228 yards, zero touchdowns, and 4 interceptions over these video games. He hasn’t performed in a regular-season recreation since then, remaining with the Panthers for the 2020 season earlier than becoming a member of the Cowboys as their third-string quarterback over the past two seasons.

Grier was knowledgeable he was being launched by Dallas on cutdown day forward of its last preseason recreation in August, however obtained the chance to play in that recreation. He threw for 305 yards and had two passing touchdowns plus two speeding scores.

In a corresponding transfer, the Patriots positioned Marcus Jones on injured reserve, ruling him out for the following 4 video games as he reportedly is coping with a torn labrum.

Belichick didn’t specify how lengthy Jones can be out for, saying he’d “be out for some time.”

“It’s unlucky,” Belichick stated of Jones’s harm. “He clearly had a very good rookie yr, explosive participant.”

With Jones becoming a member of fellow nook Jack Jones on injured reserve, the Patriots signed veteran nook Breon Borders and undrafted rookie nook Azizi Heard to the apply squad on Thursday.

When requested how he felt concerning the Patriots’ depth at nook, Belichick gave a really on-brand reply.

“Effectively, that’s the depth we’ve got.”