Quarterbacks will take the field Saturday morning at the 2018 NFL Scouting Combine. Will Tom Brady’s eventual successor be among them?
Following their decision to trade Jimmy Garoppolo in 2017, there’s a strong chance the New England Patriots will look to draft a young QB to back up and, ideally, one day replace Brady, who’ll turn 41 in August.
It’s unlikely the Patriots, who don’t pick until No. 31, will be able to draft UCLA’s Josh Rosen, Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield, USC’s Sam Darnold or Wyoming’s Josh Allen without trading up, so let’s take a look at some prospects who might interest them beyond those top four.
Mason Rudolph, Oklahoma State
Height: 6-foot-4 1/2
Weight: 234 pounds
Hand: 9 1/8 inches
Opinions vary on Rudolph, who put up huge numbers in Oklahoma State’s Air Raid offense, but many draft experts seem to view him and Louisville’s Lamar Jackson as the second tier of QBs behind Rosen, Mayfield, Darnold and Allen. We should have a clearer picture of when he’ll come off the board after Saturday’s workouts. NFL Media’s Mike Mayock sees him as a potential Patriots fit.
Lamar Jackson, Louisville
Height: 6-foot-2 2/8
Weight: 216 pounds
Hand: 9 4/8 inches
Jackson, the 2016 Heisman Trophy winner and a Heisman finalist in 2017, shot down the notion that teams had asked him to move to wide receiver, saying he’s “strictly a quarterback.” He was wildly productive as a dual-threat QB and played in a pro-style offense at Louisville. There are some concerns over how successful he’ll be at the NFL level, though, especially because he wasn’t particularly accurate in college. His potential has been the No. 1 topic of conversation this week.
Kyle Lauletta, Richmond
Height:Â 6-foot-2 5/8
Weight:Â 222 pounds
Hand:Â 9 6/8 inches
Many have connected Lauletta to the Patriots because of his lacrosse background and Navy lineage, and the rest of the league began to take notice after his strong performance at the Senior Bowl, where earned MVP honors. He has been compared to Jimmy Garoppolo.
Luke Falk, Washington State
Height: 6-foot-3 5/8
Weight: 215 pounds
Hand: 9 2/8 inches
Falk showed great accuracy at Washington State, but his arm strength is a question mark. That’ll be something to watch in positional drills. Projected to go in the middle rounds, Falk has been mentioned as a player the Patriots could target.
Logan Woodside, Toledo
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 201 pounds
Hand: 9 3/4 inches
Everyone loves an underdog story, and Woodside certainly fits that narrative. He’s been lauded for his football IQ, competitiveness — the first line of his official NFL draft profile calls him “gritty and determined” — and accuracy, though he lacks prototypical size, and his arm strength is a question. He led all of FBS with 45 touchdown passes as a junior in 2016 and completed 65.1 percent of passes in his college career.
Mike White, Western Kentucky
Height: 6-foot-4 5/8
Weight: 224 pounds
Hand: 9 4/8 inches
Great size, a big arm and good accuracy. His footwork and decision-making need work, though, and he played against less-than-stellar competition in Conference USA. White took a step back as a senior this season after an impressive junior campaign.
Chase Litton, Marshall
Height: 6-foot-5
Weight: 232 pounds
Hand: 9 3/8 inches
Litton hasn’t received the same type of coverage locally that guys like Lauletta and Woodside have. His size and pocket presence make him an interesting prospect, but his lack of accuracy (14 interceptions in 2017) is a concern.
