The New England Patriots are looking for a backup quarterback that could serve as heir-apparent to veteran signal-caller Tom Brady, who is expected to play until he’s 45 years old. The Patriots are expected to pick a quarterback who could serve as the backup until Brady retires. Suddenly, the Patriots saw the need for a backup quarterback after trading Jimmy Garoppolo to the San Francisco 49ers for a 2018 second-round pick. The Patriots also shipped third-string quarterback Jacoby Brissett to the Indianapolis Colts for wide receiver Philip Dorsett before the start of last season.
Earlier, Todd McShay of ESPN predicted that the Patriots might pick Kyle Lauletta of Richmond as a possible replacement for Brady. Lauletta made his mark after winning the Most Outstanding Player trophy in the Senior Bowl. In that game, Lauletta completed 8-of-12 passes for 198 yards, with three touchdowns and no interceptions. In his last season at Richmond Lauletta tossed for 3,737 yards with 28 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. Lauletta finished his career at Richmond with 10,465 passing yards with 73 touchdowns and 35 interceptions. Lauletta is also a dual-threat quarterback with 12 rushing touchdowns to his name. Patriots practice squad player David Jones highly recommended Lauletta to the team, saying he could take over as a possible backup to Brady.
Patriots could take a look at Washington State QB
However, McShay said Luke Falk of Washington State could draw the interest of the Patriots. In his four-year career at Washington State, Falk completed 68.3 percent of his passes for 14,481 yards with 119 touchdowns and 39 interceptions.
With the Patriots slated to pick 31st overall, either 41st or 42nd and 63rd overall in the 2018 NFL Draft, they will miss out on big-name quarterbacks such as Baker Mayfield, Josh Allen, Josh Rosen, Mason Rudolph and Lamar Jackson.
Mayfield interested in playing for Patriots
If he will have his way, Mayfield said he wants to have an opportunity to learn under Brady. Mayfield won the 2017 Heisman Trophy after completing 285-of-404 passes for 4,627 yards and 43 touchdowns with six interceptions.
In his four-year college career, Mayfield completed 1,026-of-1,497 passes for 14,607 yards and 131 touchdowns with 30 interceptions. Mayfield is also known as a dual-threat quarterback, rushing 404 times for 1,083 yards and 21 touchdowns in his college career.
