The Facts: The Patriots addressed their biggest need right out of the shoot at the 2021 NFL Draft. With the No. 15 overall pick, the club selected Alabama QB Mac Jones, giving the organization a signal-caller they can now begin to build around for the foreseeable future. That said, Jones won't be given the keys to the sports car that is the Patriots offense on Day 1. Those still belong to 2020 starter Newton and Jones will seemingly need to take some big strides to leap over him next season. "Cam's our quarterback," HC Bill Belichick said.

Diehards Line:Newton started 15 games for the Patriots last season and the results were mixed. He was able to make plays with his legs (12 rushing touchdowns), but the passing attack was lackluster. That was partly due to a less-than-stellar collection of skill-position players and poor play under center from Newton. He finished his season with a 65.8 completion percentage but averaged a career-low 177.1 passing yards per game, eight passing touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. When later pressed on whether or not it'll be Newton taking the starting reps and how long that may last before he gives way to Jones, Belichick said, "I don't know. Somebody would have to play better than he does." And what about the rookie? "Look forward to working with him," Belichick said of Jones following the first round. "He's a smart kid. He's been in a system that's similar to ours. We've had a lot of good conversations with him. I think he'll be able to process the offense. It's obviously going to take a lot of time. We'll see how it goes. ..." Yes we will.