Matt Light was starting at left tackle when Drew Bledsoe exited the game on Sept. 23, 2001 after that infamous hit from Mo Lewis. That’s when Tom Brady took over in relief of Bledsoe, and kicked off one of the greatest quarterbacking careers in NFL history.
The circumstances weren’t so different from what Jarrett Stidham will experience as the Patriots hope he’ll replace Brady. Stidham won’t get as much practice time as is typically afforded to a quarterback, with the novel coronavirus pandemic shutting down the team’s OTAs and minicamp. Then again, Brady hadn’t had much in the way of practice when he replaced Bledsoe.