Adam Schefter Pinpoints Two Veteran Quarterbacks Patriots Could Target

NFL free agency kicks off next week and there’s a good chance the New England Patriots sign a veteran quarterback.

Perhaps it won’t be a splashy move for someone like Baker Mayfield. But the Patriots received lackluster QB play from Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe last season, and adding an established signal-caller could be helpful as Jerod Mayo navigates his first season as New England’s head coach.

So, if not Mayfield, then who?

“I’m not going to tell you that New England is not going to be interested in Baker. I could see it,” ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter said Monday on “The Pat McAfee Show.” “But I think when we’re talking New England, the first two names that come to my mind would be Joe Flacco and Jacoby Brissett.”

Flacco, who won Super Bowl XLVII with the Baltimore Ravens, had a solid stretch run with the Cleveland Browns last season. He spent the previous three seasons with the New York Jets, playing sporadically after a one-year stopover with the Denver Broncos, and turned 39 in January. But there’s obviously familiarity between him and new Patriots offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt, who was the Browns’ OC last year.

Same goes for Brissett, who played for Cleveland in 2022. Bill Belichick no longer is with the Patriots, who picked Brissett in the third round of the 2016 NFL Draft, but maybe the 31-year-old would welcome a chance to return to New England after stints with the Indianapolis Colts, Miami Dolphins, Cleveland and the Washington Commanders.

All told, the Patriots wouldn’t be looking for Flacco or Brissett to solve all of their problems. Instead, they’d simply be searching for some stability, perhaps while New England grooms its quarterback of the future.

The Patriots hold the No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft and the expectation is they’ll select a quarterback, with Caleb Williams, Drake Maye and Jayden Daniels widely considered the top three QBs available.

“Essentially, it’s a situation where if you sign one of those guys — Flacco or Brissett — you still can go ahead and draft one of those other guys at (No.) 3,” Schefter said. “And now, you don’t have to rush them onto the field.”