Nick Caserio says Patriots will add a third quarterback
By Ty Anderson, 985TheSportsHub.com
Through the first two nights of the 2020 NFL Draft, and after five selections from the New England Patriots, that quarterback pick ‘everybody knew’ was coming has yet to arrive.
But that will change at some point, according to Patriots director player of personnel Nick Caserio.
“We’re going to have a third quarterback on our roster, pair them up with Jarrett and Brian,” Caserio offered on Friday night. “These guys are working hard at the start of the off-season program. We’re going to have another player here at this position. Where he comes from and how he gets here is sort of yet to be determined. There’s a few guys I think that we like and we feel comfortable with. Now it’s just a matter of how we get them on the team.”
(It’s probably worth noting that this could mean that the Patriots venture into the free agent or trade market for a quarterback with NFL experience, though that’d feel relatively surprising given their current cap space situation.)
In defense of the Patriots, the quarterback board didn’t necessarily break the way some had hoped on the first night, as neither Tua Tagovailoa (No. 5 overall) nor Justin Herbert (No. 6 overall) dropped, which left the Patriots with Utah State’s Jordan Love as their lone real option at No. 23. Love wasn’t of much interest to New England, clearly, as they traded out of the No. 23 spot for a second and third, and watched Love go to Green Bay at No. 26 overall.
And night two wasn’t much different, as the Eagles came through with a shocker pick of Oklahoma’s Jalen Hurts at No. 53 overall, which was seven picks before the Patriots’ trade-up to draft Michigan’s Josh Uche.
But some notable options still remain on the draft board, including Georgia’s Jake Fromm and Washington’s Jacob Eason, entering the third day. James Madison’s Ben DiNucci could be another name to watch, too, as the Patriots reportedly held ‘numerous’ video conferences with the potential late-round pick in the weeks leading up to the draft.
The list goes beyond those names, of course, and Caserio essentially said as much.
“There’s still some players I think that have a possibility ending up on this team,” Caserio admitted. “We have the picks sort of spread out tomorrow. There’s different ways that you can get the players on your team.”
The Patriots enter the third and final day of the 2020 NFL Draft with another six draft picks to their name, including a fifth-round pick (159 overall), four sixth-round picks (195, 204, 212, and 213 overall), and a seventh-round pick (230 overall).