New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is turning 43 years old come August which brings the question back yet again.
Who is the heir apparent?
At first, it appeared to be Jimmy Garoppolo, who was given away to the San Francisco 49ers for a measly second-round draft pick. Then, fans turned to Jacoby Brissett, who was also traded away for Phillip Dorsett. The promising receiver was nowhere to be seen down the stretch of 2019.
Danny Etling was not the answer and Jarrett Stidham has not done anything to make you think he is capable of starting.
The Patriots and their fans may see their fortunes change for the future in Georgia quarterback Jake Fromm.
Georgia QB Jake Fromm has officially declared for the 2020 NFL Draft.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 8, 2020
Patriots fans, when they think of a Brady successor, probably think of the two quarterbacks that played in the National Championship. Even if the Patriots do not win 12 games a season, much like they did for the better part of this past decade, the team will never be set up to select the top quarterback in the country.
As sure as the sky is blue, Burrow will not be available and it is almost certain that Tua Tagovailoa will be snagged within the top-five picks as well. Cross Justin Herbert off that list as he will be taken with a pick in the middle of the first round.
While Jacob Eason and Jordan Love are enticing options, Fromm is the way to go; here is why.
The Patriots have more pressing needs to address
As bad as the offense played this past season, the fault was not all on the shoulders of quarterback Tom Brady.
After the departure of Rob Gronkowski, the tight end production took a Titanic-esque plunge into the depths of obscurity and never climbed out.
With the likes of Matt LaCosse, Ryan Izzo, and a geriatric Ben Watson, the only thing efficient about the tight end production was that it was consistently dead-last in the National Football League.
The former Super Bowl champions need an extreme makeover at that position which includes actually signing a tight end skilled at his job and spending a high draft pick. Most mock drafts have the Patriots taking Notre Dame tight end Cole Kmet in the first round and there could not be a better marriage.
A crisp route-runner with great size and speed, Kmet is the ideal investment for an offense that starved for tight end production. But Kmet will almost certainly not be available outside of the first round. If the Patriots want tight end production to be a focal point of their offense again, they need to go big or go home. That means putting off the need for a quarterback until the second round.
The Patriots do not have a second-round pick after the Sanu trade but it is an option to trade back using the two third-round compensatory picks they will likely receive from free agent departures.
The Patriots can grab a great tight end to help Brady and the offense (assuming he returns) and his heir apparent (Fromm), making the 42-year-old happy as well as shoring up the future under center.
Ties to Georgia
If you look at the better part of the last half-decade, the six-time Super Bowl champions have been one of, if not the, biggest draft-capital spenders on Georgia Bulldog prospects.
In 2016, the Patriots drafted wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell in the fourth round. He went on to have one of the most productive seasons for a rookie receiver in team history.
In 2018, the Patriots used not one but two of their first-round picks on Georgia players, Isaiah Wynn and Sony Michel.
Head coach Bill Belichick has a great relationship with Kirby Smart and has praised the college coach’s program for being superb at grooming professional talent.
“I think Kirby’s program is an excellent program to prepare players for the NFL,” Belichick told FOX Sports. “The way they practice, the way they prepare and hold each other accountable and so forth is certainly similar and consistent to what we try to do. It’s different but consistent with that.”
In his rookie season, Mitchell got all the chances in the world to start and made the best of it. In the fourth quarter of the 2016 Super Bowl, he was trusted by Brady and delivered, catching all of five targets on their way to defeating the Atlanta Falcons.
Michel has taken the reins as starting running back in his first two season and has rushed for a combined 1,843 yards even with the lingering offensive line issues this past season.
If Brady returns, Fromm will by no means take the reins from the six-time Super Bowl champion in his rookie season. But the next category makes it all the more enticing if Brady departs.
Fromm’s skill set matches the Patriots’ system
Looking back at Fromm’s film, it was hard to find a play where he did not stay in the pocket and look through his progressions.
Finding a quarterback who goes through his first read and then tucks and runs is all too common in today’s college and professional levels. Fromm is a true pocket passer who goes through his reads much like Brady does. One can argue that the overall offense that Georgia runs is eerily similar.
Looking back at Georgia’s matchup against Notre Dame, Fromm not only was throwing passes over the middle but also running screens to tight ends as well as receivers.
That is not to say that Fromm is not a mobile quarterback when he needs to be. Inside the red zone against Notre Dame, Fromm took an RPO play to put his team inside the five-yard line. It was not spectacular in any sense of the word, but that is because that is not his strength.
Throws and progressions first and run if you have to.
That is what the Patriots look for in a quarterback.
That is what makes Fromm the perfect quarterback to groom to take over under center.
