FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said Monday morning that the team has yet to make a decision on how it will proceed at quarterback with Jimmy Garoppolo suffering a sprained right AC joint in Sunday’s win against the Miami Dolphins. Rookie Jacoby Brissett is the only other quarterback on the active 53-man roster.
"I’m not sure exactly what the situation is going to be; I think a lot of that will be determined later today relative to Jimmy’s whole situation and what it’s going to be. I’m sure if he can’t play or back up, then we’ll be going through that process today," McDaniels said on sports radio WEEI’s "Kirk and Callahan Show."
"I haven’t heard anything yet this morning exactly what that’s going to be, but I’m sure we’ll be on that quick. It’s a short week, we’re going to have work hard to get somebody ready to go in case that does happen, if that situation does come up, we’ll have somebody ready to roll."
The 2-0 Patriots host the 2-0 Houston Texans on Thursday night.
When McDaniels was asked if it was important to sign a quarterback who has previously been in the system, such as Matt Flynn or Ryan Lindley, he cited his past experience in a similar situation as St. Louis Rams offensive coordinator in 2011. That year, the club signed free-agent quarterback Kellen Clemens on a Wednesday and had him ready to play Sunday.
"A couple freak things happened there, and he had no experience in our system ... he went out there and did the best he could do," he said. "Experience in our system, I don’t know how many guys have it, there’s not many. But if somebody is out there that does have experience in the system, and we felt like that was the best alternative, and the best option we could get, that would surely help. But it’s certainly not a thing we have to do."
Specific to the play in which Garoppolo was injured on Sunday, McDaniels was asked if there was a concern from a long-term perspective that his unwillingness to throw the ball away could make him injury prone.
"I think all quarterbacks, especially the young ones, play and start to feel the speed of these guys that are rushing after them and how quickly those guys can close ground on them, especially when they break the pocket," he answered. "I think there is always a learning experience there, and some growth in that area of their game.
"Jimmy, like I said, hasn’t played that many games in the National Football League. I think, as any young quarterback would, the more you play, the more you get used to that and the quicker decisions you make when you’re in those types of situations. He made a good play on that play. Unfortunately, he kind of had to wait until the last second to get rid of it, and Kiko Alonso put a good hit on him and he fell on his shoulder. So I think you live and you learn in that regard. I think he had been doing a great job of getting the ball out of his hands quick in the first two weeks, and he also made a couple loose plays for us.
"So I think with the pros of being able to move and extend plays, you also have to learn how to protect yourself when you’re outside the pocket."
As for Brissett, McDaniels complimented his approach.
"Jacoby is really a calm individual," he said. "He’s been that way since we brought him in for his interview and we tried to put him under pressure when we first brought him in here before the draft, and he didn’t flinch then. He’s a guy that is very difficult to fluster. He’s young, he doesn’t have much experience obviously, and he’s learning every week and every day. But I thought his poise and composure yesterday showed. I didn't feel like he was rattled on the sideline when it was his opportunity to get in there. I felt like he handled the huddle, the line of scrimmage and some critical situations well."