Belichick: Draft's QB class an 'interesting group' with 'decent depth'

As the New England Patriots embark on their post-Tom Brady era, the franchise could look to the upcoming draft for its next long-term quarterback.

This year's crop of potential first-round picks includes Joe Burrow, Tua Tagovailoa, Justin Herbert, and Jordan Love.

The Patriots own the 23rd overall selection, so those passers may not be available, but the talent doesn't end with those four names.

"There's a lot of interesting players and guys who have really good arms, can really throw the ball, and some very athletic players, some players that have won a lot of games and have shown their competitiveness and instinctiveness. So, interesting group and probably one that has decent depth to it," Belichick said Monday in a pre-draft conference call.

For the past two decades, the Patriots operated under the same system with Brady as their quarterback. Now that players at the position are becoming more athletic - including the past two NFL MVPs, Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson - New England may have to consider a future with such a QB.

"Over the last two decades, everything we did, every single decision we made in terms of major planning, was made with the idea of how to make things best for Tom Brady," Belichick said.

He added, "I don't really see that changing: Whoever the quarterback is, we'll try to make things work smoothly and efficiently for that player and take advantage of his strengths and skills. ... Each quarterback has a different skill set, and whatever things that particular player does well, we'll try to work towards and feature, or at least give him an opportunity to do those."

The quarterbacks currently atop the Patriots' depth chart are veteran Brian Hoyer and second-year pro Jarrett Stidham, and Belichick is comfortable with letting the two compete for the starting job.

"I think we - (offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels) and myself - certainly have a pretty good feel for both those players," the coach said. "The circumstances will be different this year and we'll see how everything plays out. But again, to start with, I think the main thing is to give everyone a chance to compete, to get comfortable with the position and the skills that they're playing, the communication that's involved."