He wasn’t afraid to play a rookie because he had no other option once his backup QB went out for the game and his starting QB was back in Boston with a bad ankle.Bill isn’t afraid to play a rookie!….
Based on how conservative the Patriots offense was, Belichick obviously didn’t trust his rookie QB to do more than hand the ball off. Because if he actually trusted his rookie QB, he would have let him open up the offense by passing the ball more often.
Under the same set of circumstances, MCDaniel will play Thompson if Bridgewater goes out with an injury next week because like Belichick today, his third string QB will be his only option in that case.