NFL Draft: Lamar Jackson would like to be mentored by Tom Brady

ARLINGTON, Texas — Tom Brady has said he’d like to play into his mid-40s, but Patriots coach Bill Belichick might be readying an eventual succession plan involving one of this year’s top draft-eligible quarterbacks.

The Patriots have conducted two private workouts with Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson, whose versatility as a passer and a runner have intrigued the defending AFC champions. Jackson is intrigued by the possibility of going to New England, which currently has the 23rd and 31st overall picks.

Jackson on Wednesday even suggested he could teach Brady a thing or two.

“I could probably teach him out to move a little bit, even though he’s at an older age,” Jackson said of the 40-year-old Brady, a pocket passer who has little mobility. “But he could teach me a lot — the fundamentals, just the quarterback core, period. The position, learning more about the position.”

The Patriots might have to move up in a trade to land Jackson. Asked about the talk of such a scenario, he said, “Hopefully. Hopefully I’ll get picked first. It doesn’t matter. I just want to go wherever they want me.”

If he does wind up in New England, he’d have no problem backing up Brady.

“I would not mind,” he said. “That is the GOAT [greatest of all time] himself.”

Jackson is generally considered the fifth-best quarterback in this year’s draft, with the quartet of Sam Darnold, Josh Rosen, Baker Mayfield and Josh Allen rated ahead of him by most scouts.

“It’s all good,” said Jackson, who visited with five teams — the Patriots, Bengals, Ravens, Saints and Browns.

“It’s about what the coaches think. It’s not about predictions and stuff like that. I don’t even look at the predictions. It’s been like that all my life. Coming off my Heisman-winning year [in 2016], people said it was going to be hard for me to get back in the race, and I’m second-team All-America coming back, after all I did my sophomore year. So it really doesn’t matter to me. I’m just ready to get this process over with.”

With Andy Friedlander

By Bob Glauber

Special to NewsdayBobGlauber

Bob Glauber retired in 2022 after covering the NFL for nearly 40 years. He was selected in 2021 for the Bill Nunn Career Achievement Award by the Pro Football Writers of America, and is a three-time winner of the New York State Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. President of the PFWA for the 2018-20 seasons, he is the author of “The Forgotten First” and “Guts and Genius.”