When I studied quarterbacks before this year’s draft, Jacoby Brissett stood out. I thought he was a very good prospect.

Here’s what I wrote about him in my notes:

“Overall a big QB with a strong arm and excellent movement, looks the part of an NFL QB and has the tools to be a quality starter with coaching and refinement.”

While the ideal scenario for his rookie year with the New England Patriots would have been to sit and learn by watching Jimmy Garoppolo and then Tom Brady, Brissett doesn’t have that luxury anymore. Garoppolo has a shoulder injury, is listed as doubtful, and Brissett is New England’s likely starter on Thursday night against the Houston Texans.

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I think what we saw from Brissett last week, after he came in for Garoppolo, is what we’ll see Thursday night (assuming Garoppolo doesn’t make a tremendous recovery before kickoff). The Patriots managed and controlled Brissett by the play calling, giving him safe throws. The approach really wasn’t much different than what the Patriots did with Garoppolo, though.

Brissett threw just nine passes off the bench last week, so we don’t have much to analyze, but there are some things we can look at heading into Thursday’s game.

What instantly stood out was that all of Brissett’s throws were safe and required no reading of the defense. The Patriots used very simple concepts when he was in the game.

Brissett’s fourth throw was a good example. The Patriots ran a fake screen to James White on Brissett’s left, then came back to a screen right to Martellus Bennett. It went for 15 yards. This is a good play call to help a rookie quarterback who is getting his first NFL snaps.

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Brissett’s third throw of the game also went to Bennett on a good concept. It came out of hard stretch-run action to the tight end side, then a throwback to Bennett crossing the formation against a Dolphins linebacker group that tends to be over-aggressive and at times, undisciplined. Bennett gained 37 yards.

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