“I’m not saying that that situation will be that way every week throughout the year,” Belichick said, “but based on the preseason, we just feel like Tom, right now, is a little bit of ahead of Damon in terms of handling the team.”

FOXBOROUGH — The Patriots handed ex-Dolphin Damon Huard a three-year, $3 million contract in the offseason to be their No. 2 quarterback. For Sunday’s season opener in Cincinnati, Huard will in fact be the second QB — the second one off the bench, that is, if Drew Bledsoe is forced to leave the game.


Brady, a sixth-round pick in 2000 out of Michigan and the team’s fourth quarterback most of last season behind Bledsoe, John Friesz, and Michael Bishop, drew praise from Belichick and the coaching staff for his work in spring minicamps, to which he showed up noticeably bigger. Brady was diligent in offseason workouts, adding at least 10 pounds of muscle to his 6-foot-4-inch, 210-pound frame.

Brady held Belichick’s attention during training camp and exhibited great poise in four exhibition games, completing 31 of 54 passes for 384 yards and two touchdowns, with no interceptions. But it wasn’t the numbers that convinced Belichick Brady was better-suited to step up in the event of an injury to Bledsoe. It was Brady’s ability to direct the offense, which he did well even last year as a rookie.

“I don’t think there was any question in anybody’s mind that Tom had clearly taken over the leadership of that entire group [of last year’s rookies] — offense, defense, everybody that was involved,” said Belichick. “I think he was well-respected.

“Tom has a lot of natural leadership. [It] was something that all those players saw and looked up to, and it was easy to see that it was a natural thing for him and he was very comfortable doing it.”


Brady said he didn’t come into the season with aspirations of overtaking anyone.

“I think I approached it like I’ve always approached it,” said Brady, who was inactive for 14 games last year and played in one (three attempts, one completion for 6 yards against Detroit). “Whether I’d be No. 2 or No. 3, I’d always be ready to play.

“I’ve always taken the approach that you control the things you can control, and that’s just your own performance. So you go out there and you do the best you can. It just all worked out this week that I’m No. 2.”

The move was prompted more by what Brady did than what Huard didn’t. Against the Giants Aug. 10, Huard was first to relieve Bledsoe and looked sharp, completing 9 of 12 for 85 yards despite taking a number of hits. But Brady also played well in that game (8 for 14, 92 yards), and Belichick wanted to see how he would do against a first-string defense.

The following week against Carolina, Brady took advantage of the opportunity, subbing for Bledsoe after the first series and going 11 of 18 for 122 yards and a touchdown, New England’s first of the preseason.

Neither Huard nor Brady played much against Tampa Bay, and Brady got all of the relief duty in the exhibition finale against Washington. He hit on 11 of 19 for 166 yards, including a 54-yard touchdown toss to Kevin Faulk.


“Nobody’s down or disappointed with Damon in any way,” Belichick said. “We just think that Tom has had a real good preseason, and he’s played well in some opportunities that he’s gotten against good competition. Maybe it’s because he’s been here for a year and has a little bit more knowledge of the system, but I just feel like, right now, he’s the next-best in terms of being able to handle the whole team.”

Huard handled the demotion with class.

“Certainly you’d like to have the first crack at it if something happens to Drew — hopefully, nothing does,” said the 27-year-old Huard, who got a $375,000 signing bonus and will count $600,000 toward this year’s salary cap, an expensive third quarterback. “But either way, the guy who goes in there next better do well, because I’m on his tail, or he’s on my tail, one way or the other.”

In the offseason and at the beginning of camp, Belichick insisted that Huard (5-1 in six career starts) was the No. 2 QB because “he’s won in this league, and that’s not easy to do.” When asked what changed his mind, Belichick said simply, “Four preseason games.”

But experience has taught Huard that depth charts aren’t etched in stone.

“I’ve been around this game for a while now, and I realize how fast things change, how you have to be prepared because you never know when your opportunity is going to come,” Huard said. “All you can do is stay positive.”


Patriots fans may remember that Huard, playing in place of an injured Dan Marino, beat the Patriots twice in 1999 — a 31-30 come-from-behind victory at Foxboro and a 28-17 win five weeks later in Miami. He threw two touchdown passes in each game.

“I’ve had some success in this league and I’ve won before, and I plan on doing that again,” said Huard. “You just keep fighting. It’s a long season, so you always have to be prepared and ready to go.”

Bledsoe, Brady, and Huard all are good friends, and even though he was disappointed, Huard was complimentary of Brady.

“He’s a great competitor, a real high-energy guy, and he plays with lots of enthusiasm,” said Huard. “He’s very intelligent. He’ll play a long time in this league.”