With soon-to-be 41-year-old Tom Brady and veteran journeyman Brian Hoyer the only two quarterbacks on the roster, it'd be a surprise if the Patriots didn't draft a signal-caller in the 2018 NFL Draft. 

Heck, we all thought Jimmy Garoppolo was picked in the second round in 2014 to be Brady's heir apparent, and that certainly wasn't the case, even if, let's say, a few "key" figures in the New England organization wanted that to be the case. 

This is probably the best and certainly the most hyped quarterback class in 35 years, yes, since the famed 1983 class which featured six signal-callers in Round 1, three of which became Hall of Famers -- John Elway, Jim Kelly, and Dan Marino. There's a strong likelihood five quarterbacks are picked in the first round this year, and six going in the first 32 selections is not out of the question. 

Assuming the Patriots aren't going to be a team to move all the way from the late first round into the top 10 to pick one of the consensus top 4 quarterbacks -- Sam Darnold, Josh Allen, Josh Rosen, and Baker Mayfield -- these are the signal-caller prospects who'd make the most sense in New England. 

Kyle Lauletta, Richmond 

Hello, Captain Obvious. I mean, the Garoppolo-Lauletta parallels are easy to piece together. Small school. Not 6-foot-5. Impressive production. Quick release. Decent athleticism. Lauletta does get the ball out to his first read in a hurry and showcased some ability to go through his reads, but a lot of his work was on half-field looks, and he struggled down the field. With Brandin Cooks in the fold last year, the Patriots' offense got more vertical than it'd been since the Randy Moss days, but it's still based on short passes and yards after the catch. Second or third round for Lauletta? It's a good possibility the Patriots will be zeroed in on him. 

Lamar Jackson, Louisville

It would be classic Bill Belichick to go against the grain and pick the super-elusive Jackson after he's won five Super Bowls with the stoic Brady under center. Jackson operated an Erhardt-Perkins offense at Louisville, which is the same system the Patriots run. He's definitely improved each year in vital passing areas -- accuracy, pocket movement, going through his progressions -- and has no known off-field or maturity concerns. Belichick has made a career out of staying ahead of the curve, and if Jackson is available even close to when the Patriots go on the clock in Round 1, it'd be vastly intriguing if New England drafted him.

Mason Rudolph, Oklahoma State

Rudolph is a tall, pocket passer with loads of collegiate experience but less-than-ideal arm strength. And there's a relatively good chance he'll be on the clock in the later portions of the first round. He was the maestro of a spread-option offense predicated on him reading different levels of the defense and making very quick decisions. His head coach Mike Gundy incorporated a fair amount of play-action and rollouts into the offense that allowed him to learn important footwork and ball-handling skills. In a league trending toward more spread concepts, Rudolph is more ready for the NFL than signal-callers who played in that type of system in the past.

Logan Woodside, Toledo

Yet another quarterback who played in a wide-open, spread-option offense in which four and five receiver sets were normal. Woodside is truly the deep sleeper quarterback prospect in this class, as he hasn't gotten nearly the same level of attention as Lauletta, and he played at Toledo. Woodside isn't the biggest quarterback and doesn't possess a huge arm, but he does seem to understand how coverage dictates where to go with the football, and he has a fast release. On Day Two -- or even Day Three -- it'd make sense if the former Rockets signal-caller was in the Patriots' sights.