INDIANAPOLIS -- It's not hard to connect the Patriots to Richmond quarterback Kyle Lauletta.
His father Joe played quarterback at Navy in the 1980s while Bill Belichick's father Steve was on the staff, and Lauletta has a lacrosse background as well.
He's also been compared to Jimmy Garoppolo, and speaking Friday at the NFL combine, he understands where the comparisons are coming from.
"I’ve watched him quite a bit," he said. "I definitely see some similarities. He’s obviously an FCS guy. He has quick feet. He’s accurate. He’s an outstanding leader from the soundbites I’ve seen. As a QB, you have to be a great communicator, and Jimmy is a great communicator. It just seems like he has a mojo to him, a little bit of a swagger to him, that is infectious. He’s a player I’d love to model my game around."
Lauletta's stock has risen quite a bit in the last few weeks after winning MVP of the Senior Bowl.
"It was huge," he said. "Being an FCS guy, anytime you can get on a platform where you’re playing with the best players in the entire country, that’s what you play for. That’s what you live for. I went into the Senior Bowl just trying to make the most of my opportunity, and I think I did that."
There's been a ton of people connecting him to the Patriots, but he isn't thinking about it. He added he met with some Patriots scouts at the Senior Bowl, but has no formal interviews set up at the combine.
"That’s one of those things that you can’t really think about one team drafting you or buy into any of that. Because you really have no idea," Lauletta said. "The team that drafts you might end up being the team that didn’t even talk to you much. So I’m just controlling what I can control and just hoping for the best."
New England seems likely to select a quarterback and Lauletta may be available in the second round. If it happens, Lauletta would be excited.
"That would be a dream come true," he said. "I think any quarterback would love to be in that position. Learning from a guy like Tom Brady, you can learn so much just by the way he work and observing the way he goes about his business day to day. Wherever I am, I think I’ll be in a good spot. But that would definitely be a good one."