Patriots Draft Preview 2025: Quarterbacks

With the initial wave of free agency in the books, the next major event on the offseason calendar is the 2025 NFL Draft. From here, it'll be a six-week sprint until players names start getting announced in Green Bay on April 24.

Like we've done the last few years, we'll count down to the draft with a position-by-position look at this class. We'll have a new piece on a position every Tuesday and Thursday between now and draft week. Each preview will be formatted a little differently but the goal will be to get familiar with the top overall players for this class, and players that stand out specifically as fits for the Patriots.

As always, we'll start with the quarterback position. Not only is this year's quarterback class weaker than last year's, it's a generally weak class overall. It's not quite as bad as the 2022 class (which saw Kenny Pickett go 20th overall as the only first round QB), but certainly closer to that than last year or even 2023.

The good news is that for the most part, this isn't a major need for the Patriots this year. They have a true high-upside starter in Drake Maye, a promising backup in Joe Milton, and a veteran in the room in free agent signing Josh Dobbs. The Patriots could look to add another athletic upside quarterback late on Day 3 or as a UDFA, especially if they end up trading Milton. That should be the extent of their interest in the position in this draft.

Still, that doesn't mean that this year's quarterback class doesn't impact the Patriots. In fact, it's quite the opposite. While they won't be taking a quarterback at the top of the draft, whether other teams do or don't will set the stage for their top pick at fourth overall.

So, before we get to the potential Patriots fits on Day 3, let's start at the top of this class and the players the Patriots need selected to push guys like Travis Hunter and/or Abdul Carter down the board.

Entering the draft, there are two quarterbacks expected to be in play at the top of the board. That's Cam Ward from Miami and Shedeur Sanders from Colorado.

Ward is generally viewed as the top prospect, was viewed as a second-round pick last year before deciding to go back to school where he was an All-American in 2024. Of the two top quarterbacks Ward is the more high-ceiling player with his big arm and ability to play off schedule, but he will be a 23-year-old rookie.

Sanders is the more high-floor candidate. One thing that stood out about Sanders - repeatedly - at Colorado was his ability to make plays under pressure behind a shaky Buffaloes offensive line. He also has a very clean delivery and sees the field well.

With three quarterback-needy teams at the top of the draft, it stands to reason both would go before the Patriots pick. However there has been speculation that one if not both could fall if those teams find other options and/or decide they're willing to wait for a better quarterback draft. Those teams taking quarterbacks would push better players down the board to the Patriots.

So far, the Patriots have had help in that regard. The veteran quarterbacks that have moved this offseason have gone to other quarterback-needy teams drafting after the Patriots. It's the Tennessee Titans, Cleveland Browns, and New York Giants - in that order - still needing players at the position.

There are still a couple of veteran options available. Russell Wilson has met with the Browns and Giants. It's possible that given Wilson's age a team that signs him still might take a quarterback to develop behind him, but adding Wilson could move that priority to a Day 2 need.

Aaron Rodger also remains unsigned. Reports have tied him to the Minnesota Vikings - who pick well after the Patriots - but the Giants have been a rumored landing spot as well. Rodgers may be less likely to work with a young quarterback, and could take the Giants off the board all together.

The Giants are really the team to watch here. Tennessee still has Will Levis, and president of football operations Chad Brinker said earlier this offseason that the team "won't pass on a generational talent with the first pick in the NFL draft." Meanwhile Cleveland still has Deshaun Watson under contract (although injured) and traded for Kenny Pickett last week. Quarterback is a need, but so is just about every other position and they could punt it to Day 2.

As for the Giants they have just one quarterback on their roster - Tommy DeVito. GM Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll are both likely on the hottest seats compared to their counterparts on the other teams (although there should be an argument for Kevin Stefanski in Cleveland). They need to come out of this season with a clear starting QB, whether it be in the veteran market or the draft.

Assuming the Giants are penciled in for a QB, the Patriots would need just one of the Titans or Browns to join them. If the Giants add a veteran, the Patriots may need a trade to get both quarterback going ahead of them on April 24.

Then, there's the question of who will be QB3 in this draft. Will any other quarterbacks sneak into the first round or even early second, potentially pushing an extra player down to the Patriots at 38th overall or setting up a potential trade-up?

There are a couple of candidates to be QB3. The list includes Jaxson Dart from Ole Miss, Jalen Milroe from Alabama, and Will Howard from Ohio State. Dart seems to have the most momentum in the pre-draft process, Milroe has the highest upside due to his athleticism, and Howard has the most successful regular season, which was capped by Ohio State's national championship. Which quarterback goes third could come down to simply the stylistic preference of the team making the pick.

Now, back to the Patriots. Again, while the team shouldn't take a quarterback high Eliot Wolf comes from the 'Packer Way' of thinking, part of which is regularly adding quarterbacks due to the importance of the position.

If the Patriots do take a quarterback it will likely be later on in the draft. It would also make sense for that quarterback to be similar stylistically to the players they currently have in the room, since it's advantageous for any backup quarterback to be similar to the starter to limit changes in the offense if the backup has to play.

In a scenario where the Patriots get more aggressive at the position (this could be following a trade of Joe Milton), the player to watch would be Tyler Shough from Louisville. Shough is a projected early Day 3 pick after a strong performance at this year's Senior Bowl.

At 6-foot-5, 219 pounds Shough has flashed NFL-level arm talent and while he's not a threat as a runner he does have good pocket mobility. He's also one of the more experienced quarterbacks in this draft - he played seven college seasons (three at Oregon, three at Texas Tech, one at Louisville) making 32 starts, and he'll turn 26 years old in late September. Not great for a player a team looking to find the future of the franchise, but more of a fit for a team looking to quickly develop a backup.

Brady Cook from Missouri and Seth Henigan from Memphis are both later Day 3 or potential UDFA candidates for the Patriots. Cook is a bit on the smaller side at 6-foot-2, 209 pounds but he can really sling it and brings a rushing element as well. Cook is an interesting prospect - he had a breakout year in 2023 leading Mizzou to a 11-2 record with 3,317 passing yards and 29 total touchdowns. However his production came crashing back down, as did his draft stock. He has the makings of a project player but turns 24 in October.

Henigan, who will be a 22-year-old rookie, is another experienced QB. He started all four years at Memphis, beginning as a true freshman and owns many of the programs major career passing records. Despite that experience it seems like Henigan can still learn how to make better use of his physical talents.

If the Patriots really want to go for a project - and want to address the position simply through the UDFA market - their target might be Taylor Elgersma of Laurier. If that school sounds unfamiliar it's because they don't compete in the NCAA but U Sports, which is the Canadian equivalent.

Elgersma was the second U Sports player ever invited to the Senior Bowl, and held his own at the event this year. His arm strength looks like a plus trait on the bigger Canadian fields (which are both longer and wider than in the American game), and he can create on scrambles when he gets outside of the pocket at 6-foot-4, 216 pounds. He has a long way to go to catch up to the nuances and speed of the NFL, but if the Patriots are looking for a camp arm with some intriguing tools to work with he'd fit the bill. Elgersma reportedly had a strong workout at the University of Buffalo pro day.