INDIANAPOLIS — It seems more likely than not the Patriots will be drafting a quarterback in April's draft, and the hope is that quarterback will be Tom Brady's successor.
Fortunately for the Patriots, it appears this is a good draft to do it, as there are a number of good quarterbacks and they aren't all at the top. Potential NFL starters will be found in the middle rounds.
Top prospects Sam Darold, Josh Rosen and Josh Allen will almost certainly be off the board by the time the Patriots pick at No. 31 overall, so they can be taken off the board.
Even not counting these three, New England will have plenty of options at the position, and not just at No. 31 overall. If they want to wait until the second round, or even the third round, the Patriots should be able to find a solid player.
The Patriots have two second-round picks (No. 43 and 63 overall) and then a third-round pick (No. 95 overall).
Here's a look at the quarterbacks the Patriots could be targeting.
Baker Mayfield, OklahomaProjected round: 1-2Quick thoughts: Mayfield is one of the more interesting prospects in the entire draft. The Big 12 offensive player of the year completed 70.5 percent of his passes for 43 touchdowns and just six interceptions. He is one of the most fiery players in the entire draft and just wants to win. Sometimes this gets used against him as him being cocky. It seems likely he will go in the first round, but his meetings with teams will go a long way.Quote: "Absolutely, and if you don't have that mindset then something's wrong. Everybody else is probably thinking that same thing." -Mayfield on if he's the best quarterback in the draft
Lamar Jackson, LouisvilleProjected round: 1-2Quick thoughts: There were questions this week of if Jackson is actually a NFL quarterback and not viewed as a receiver, but when he spoke Friday he made it clear he's a quarterback. He's very athletic and can make a lot of plays with his feet. He's more known as a runner, and it's unclear how the Patriots view this from a quarterback.Quote: "Oh no, I feel I'm cool under pressure. Yessir. I'm cool under pressure. No pressure with me." -Jackson on if he would feel pressure succeeding Brady.
Mason Rudolph, Oklahoma StateProjected round: 2-3Quick thoughts: Rudolph had a great season, passing for 4,091 yards on a 63.4 completion rate with 28 touchdowns and only four interceptions. His strength is throwing the deep ball, which he did a lot at Oklahoma State. One of the things to watch is how he throws his out routes, as these have given him some issues. Another question is how he can command a huddle, as he was mostly running a no-huddle offense in college.Quote: "Well, we played Colorado, Washington and Virginia Tech and we beat the crap out of all of them in the offseason. Those are not Big 12 defenses, and weplayed pretty well against those guys. So you throw on that tape and I think that'll kill that argument right there." -Rudolph on going against poor defenses in Big 12
Luke Falk, Washington StateProjected round: 2-4Quick thoughts: Falk has idolized Brady his entire life and models his game after him. Playing under Mike Leach in college, the NFL will be much different for him, but he showed at Senior Bowl practices he can run a pro-style offense. Falk is recovering from a broken left wrist and sustained a concussion this past season, so his durability and health may be an issue. Falk is arguably the closest player to Brady in this draft.Quote: "I definitely try to emulate Brady, and I just think he's the best at what he does. He's definitely a good guy to try to model your game after." -Falk on Brady
Kyle Lauletta, RichmondProjected round: 2-4Quick thoughts: Lauletta already has a connection to the Patriots as his father Joe played quarterback at Navy in the 1980s while Bill Belichick's father Steve was on the staff and also has a lacrosse background. He's also one of the most accurate passers in the draft and has some mobility in him, as well as being compared to Jimmy Garoppolo in recent weeks. The knock against him is the competition he played against at Richmond, but he's been rising the rankings after winning MVP of the Senior Bowl.Quote: "I've heard it a few times from friends and non-football people. But you don't even think about stuff like that. It's really a waste of my energy to try to make the connections. I'm just going to keep doing what I've been doing and try to put my best foot forward each day and try to impress the scouts as best as I can." -Lauletta on being told he's Belichick's dream quarterback
Mike White, Western KentuckyProjected round: 3-4Quick thoughts: White has one of the best arms in the entire draft, as he was drafted by the Blue Jays as a pitcher, but has gone the football route. As a senior he completed 65.7 percent of his 560 throws for 4,177 yards, 26 touchdowns, and eight interceptions. Of course his strength is throwing the ball down the field, but his awareness and decision-making in the pocket still is a question mark.Quote: "For the most part, yes. I haven't had my hands on their playbook, so I don't know exactly the ins and outs. I did get to play under Coach O'Brien in the Senior Bowl and from what I understand their offenses are very similar so I got a little bit of a taste. I'm sure we didn't even begin to dive into that playbook. But I do think my skill sets can fit into that, just being able to facilitate the ball and being accurate with it and getting it to your playmakers is what I do best." -White on fitting in Patriots offense
Logan Woodside, ToledoProjected round: 5-7Quick thoughts: Woodside is more of a long shot, but there's a lot to like. He battled to be the starter at Toledo in his first few seasons, but made the most of it when he started as a junior and senior. He is a very accurate passer, but does lack size. At 6-foot-1 and 201 pounds, some view him as being too small to play in the NFL. Quote: "That'd be a dream come true. I get cold chills just thinking about it. I grew up a huge Tom Brady fan. Everything that he went through at Michigan and it was kind of a similar situation to what I had at Toledo honestly. Nobody really believed in him so he went out there and proved it to them. And he's still proving it." -Woodside on if he was drafted by the Patriots, via NBC Sports Boston's Mike Giardi
