This is a list of every starting quarterback for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL).
History There have been 30 starting quarterbacks for the Patriots since their founding in 1960. Babe Parilli was the franchise's first longtime starter, leading the Patriots to their only playoff berth and championship game appearance while a member of the American Football League (AFL). Following the AFL–NFL merger in 1970, Jim Plunkett was drafted by the Patriots first overall to become the starting quarterback, but an unsuccessful tenure resulted in him being traded after five seasons. Plunkett was succeeded by Steve Grogan, who served as the team's primary starter during the late 1970s and helped lead them to their first NFL playoff appearances. A series of injuries caused Grogan to lose his starting job by the 1980s, although he remained on the team until 1990.
The Patriots lacked a steady quarterback for most of the 1980s, with five (including Grogan) starting in the 1987 season. First-round selection Tony Eason, the longest-tenured of the decade, contributed to the Patriots making their Super Bowl debut, but lasted only three seasons as the primary starter. In the 1990s, first overall pick Drew Bledsoe ended the Patriots' search for a quarterback by bringing the team to consistent playoff contention after five losing seasons.
Bledsoe's success would be eclipsed the next decade when an injury caused him to be relieved by backup Tom Brady. As the franchise's longest-tenured quarterback from 2001 to 2019, Brady is credited with the Patriots dynasty that saw them set the records for Super Bowl appearances and wins. Following Brady's departure, the Patriots have alternated between multiple starting quarterbacks in the 2020s. The current starter is Drake Maye, who has held the position since his rookie season in 2024.
Regular season
The number of games they started during the season is listed to the right in descending order: Season(s) Quarterback(s) Ref.Boston Patriots 1960 (AFL)Butch Songin (12) / Tom Greene (2) 1961 (AFL)Babe Parilli (8) / Butch Songin (6) 1962 (AFL)Babe Parilli (10) / Tom Yewcic (4) 1963 (AFL)Babe Parilli (14) 1964 (AFL) 1965 (AFL)Babe Parilli (13) / Eddie Wilson (1) 1966 (AFL)Babe Parilli (14) 1967 (AFL)Babe Parilli (11) / Don Trull (3) 1968 (AFL)Mike Taliaferro (7) / Tom Sherman (7) 1969 (AFL)Mike Taliaferro (14) 1970 Joe Kapp (10) / Mike Taliaferro (4)New England Patriots 1971 Jim Plunkett (14) 1972 1973 1974 1975 Steve Grogan (7) / Jim Plunkett (5) / Neil Graff (2) 1976 Steve Grogan (14) 1977 1978 Steve Grogan (16) 1979 1980 Steve Grogan (12) / Matt Cavanaugh (4) 1981 Matt Cavanaugh (8) / Steve Grogan (7) / Tom Owen (1) 1982 Steve Grogan (6) / Matt Cavanaugh (3) 1983 Steve Grogan (12) / Tony Eason (4) 1984 Tony Eason (13) / Steve Grogan (3) 1985 Tony Eason (10) / Steve Grogan (6) 1986 Tony Eason (14) / Steve Grogan (2) 1987 Steve Grogan (6) / Tom Ramsey (3) / Tony Eason (3) / Bob Bleier (2) / Doug Flutie (1) 1988 Doug Flutie (9) / Steve Grogan (4) / Tony Eason (2) / Tom Ramsey (1) 1989 Steve Grogan (6) / Marc Wilson (4) / Tony Eason (3) / Doug Flutie (3) 1990 Marc Wilson (6) / Tommy Hodson (6) / Steve Grogan (4) 1991 Hugh Millen (13) / Tommy Hodson (3) 1992 Hugh Millen (7) / Scott Zolak (4) / Tommy Hodson (3) / Jeff Carlson (2) 1993 Drew Bledsoe (12) / Scott Secules (4) 1994 Drew Bledsoe (16) 1995 Drew Bledsoe (15) / Scott Zolak (1) 1996 Drew Bledsoe (16) 1997 1998 Drew Bledsoe (14) / Scott Zolak (2) 1999 Drew Bledsoe (16) 2000 2001 Tom Brady (14) / Drew Bledsoe (2) 2002 Tom Brady (16) 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 Matt Cassel (15) / Tom Brady (1) 2009 Tom Brady (16) 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Tom Brady (12) / Jacoby Brissett (2) / Jimmy Garoppolo (2) 2017 Tom Brady (16) 2018 2019 2020 Cam Newton (15) / Brian Hoyer (1) 2021Mac Jones (17) 2022Mac Jones (14) / Bailey Zappe (2) / Brian Hoyer (1) 2023Mac Jones (11) / Bailey Zappe (6) 2024Drake Maye (12) / Jacoby Brissett (5)2025Drake Maye (17)2026Drake Maye (4)
Postseason
Season(s) Quarterback(s) 1963 (AFL) (1–1) 1976 (0–1) 1978 1982 1985 (3–1) 1986 (0–1) 1994 (0–1) 1996 (2–1) 1997 (1–1) 1998 (0–1) 2001 (3–0) 2003 2004 2005 (1–1) 2006 (2–1) 2007 2009 (0–1) 2010 2011 (2–1) 2012 (1–1) 2013 2014 (3–0) 2015 (1–1) 2016 (3–0) 2017 (2–1) 2018 (3–0) 2019 (0–1) 2021 (0–1) 2025 (3–1)
Most games as starting quarterback
These quarterbacks have at least 40 starts for the Patriots in regular season games.
GP Games played GS Games started W Number of wins as starting quarterback L Number of losses as starting quarterback T Number of ties as starting quarterback % Winning percentage as starting quarterback
Name Years GP GS W L T % 2000–2019 285 283 219 64 — .768 1975–1990 149 135 75 60 — .556 1993–2001 124 123 63 60 — .512 1961–1967 94 83 44 32 7 .572 1971–1975 61 61 23 38 — .377 1983–1989 72 49 28 21 — .571 2021–2023 42 42 18 24 — .429
Team career passing records
These quarterbacks have over 10,000 career passing yards with the Patriots in regular season games.
Name Comp Att % Yds TD Int 6,377 9,988 63.8 74,571 541 179 2,544 4,518 56.3 29,657 166 138 1,879 3,593 52.3 26,886 182 208 1,140 2,413 47.2 16,747 132 138 729 1,503 48.5 12,665 62 87 876 1,500 52.3 10,732 60 48
See also Lists of NFL starting quarterbacks List of New England Patriots first-round draft picks History of the New England Patriots
Notes The regular season expanded to 16 games. Strikes by the National Football League Players Association in the 1982 and 1987 seasons resulted in shortened seasons (9- and 15-game schedules, respectively). The regular season expanded to 17 games.
References General
Specific