There's a lot of rumors about the Arizona Cardinals wanting to take Kyle Murray with the first overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. The rumor mill for this has been spinning for months after new head coach Kliff Kingsbury's comments came out that he would take the Oklahoma quarterback with that pick if he had it back when he was still at Texas Tech.
These rumors are even more bizarre given that they appeared draft their quarterback of the future in Josh Rosen in last year's draft.
And with online draft scouts buying into the hype around the Cardinals willing to draft Kyler Murray, many wonder where Rosen will be sent to.
Will the UCLA product be traded to another quarterback-needy team like the Miami Dolphins or the Washington Redskins? Or will he go somewhere to compete for the starting position in a city like Cincinnati or Tampa Bay?
As much as those franchises would be good options for a second-year pro like Rosen, he still has plenty of developing to do. And, the best place for that to happen is none other than the New England Patriots.
Yes, he won't be the starter out of the gate, as Tom Brady will continue to fight Father Time. But, he can learn from the greatest quarterback of all-time in the Patriots' system with Josh McDaniels and company.
And from what reports show, Rosen is being offered for cheap.
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But why exactly would Rosen be the perfect heir apparent to Brady? Here's why.
Why the Patriots should trade for Josh Rosen
Let's look at New England's depth behind Brady.
First is Brian Hoyer. A player that's been on six teams in ten years and has a 16-21 record as a starting quarterback in the league. His biggest accomplishment is being the winningest starting quarterback for the Cleveland Browns with a 10-6 record from 2013-2014. Hoyer was also benched in favor of Johnny Manziel.
Next is Danny Etling, a 24-year-old going into his second season in the NFL who has yet to record a single regular season statistic.
These aren't players that provide confidence if Brady ever goes down.
Bringing in someone like Rosen only makes sense as an option to bolster the backup QB spot. Not only is the former top-10 pick an upgrade over the two previously named quarterbacks behind Brady, but it brings in a long-term solution when Brady retires.
He also comes at a fairly cheap cost and can be built into a quarterback for the future in New England after taking time to fully learn the system. He's fairly polished as a passer from his time in UCLA and showed potential during his time as the starter for the Cardinals, despite their miserable offensive line.
Quarterbacks that have come up in the Patriots system in the past have flourished once given a chance to shine when Brady was unavailable.
When Matt Cassel was asked to step in after Brady tore his ACL in the 2008 season-opener, he took over and guided the Patriots to a 11-5 record. He also became the first quarterback in history to record 10 wins, 3,600 passing yards on 325 completions with a completion percentage of 63, 20 touchdown passes, 11 or fewer interceptions, and 250 rushing yards in a single season.
When Brady was suspended for the first four games in 2016, Jimmy Garoppolo and Jacoby Brissett stepped up in impressive fashion. The two of them combined to complete 67 percent of their passes for 896 yards and four touchdowns while throwing zero interceptions. That's good for a passer rating of 102.1, and they came away with a 3-1 record.
Rosen can shine in this offense if given the chance.
Why New England works so well for Rosen
In Rosen's rookie season he was given a Pro Football Focus grade of 49.1, ranking second-worst. That will give some people an idea that he has not adapted to the NFL level just yet.
However, looking at the offense around him in 2018, it shows more than poor passing on his part. His offensive line was ranked as the worst in the league by PFF.
The Cardinals’ offensive line was in shambles when fully healthy, so it didn’t help that only rookie center Mason Cole was able to stay healthy for more than 600 snaps this season. 11 different offensive linemen played at least 100 snaps for the Cardinals this season, and not a single one played well. Quarterback Josh Rosen didn’t have a chance.
And it doesn't help that the Cardinals went into 2018 with the second-worst receiving corps per PFF, either. It's a team that's still dependent on Larry Fitzgerald, even at age 35. Fitzgerald was the team leader in every receiving statistic last season: catches (69), receiving yards (734), and receiving touchdowns (6).
The next closest players in those statistics were receiver Christian Kirk, who was placed on injured reserve near the end of the season, and running back David Johnson, who was coming off of a season-ending forearm injury in 2017.
This isn't the supporting cast that will help a young quarterback.
The Patriots, on the other end, have something that would ascend Rosen above his woeful rookie year. Their offensive line gave up the third-fewest (21) sacks in 2018. They boast a passing offense that ranked eighth in the league as opposed to Arizona, who placed last. And to help more, the Patriots have a rushing attack that was ranked fifth in the league, while the Cardinals also placed last in that category.
New England is a step above Arizona, to say the least.
Should the Patriots pull the trigger on a trade for Rosen?
They should.
It's more than just a feeling of “what will happen once Brady leaves?” It's about continuing to be the best team in the league and prolonging a franchise's dominance.
It's not known when Brady will retire, as New England has been drafting possible heir apparents for him since the start of this decade. Guys like Ryan Mallett, Garoppolo, and Brissett were all in line to take over if Brady called it a career. However, it's better to pick up someone that can take some time to learn and be prepared at the time of Brady's departure.
This is where Rosen comes into the fold. He's someone that came away with flourishes of brilliance in arguably the worst offense of 2018. He can change all of this if given the chance to perform in an offense that can benefit him. And in turn, benefit the Patriots.
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