Patriots Reportedly Showing Interest In James Madison QB Ben DiNucci
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Patriots have been connected to a handful of quarterbacks in the NFL Draft, which was to be expected when Tom Brady took his talents to Tampa Bay this offseason. The majority of those quarterbacks would cost New England an early round pick.
Now we're hearing about a late-round passer who could fill up New England's depth chart: James Madison's Ben DiNucci.
The Patriots have held numerous video conferences with DiNucci during the pre-draft process, according to Tony Pauline of Pro Football Network. The Carolina Panthers and Chicago Bears have also spoken with the quarterback.
After spending his first two seasons at Pittsburgh (plus a red-shirt freshman year), DiNucci transferred to James Madison of the FCS. He was a two-year starter for the Dukes, putting up some big numbers with his arm and his legs.
In his junior season, DiNucci completed 68.3 percent of his passes (211-of-309) for 2,275 yards while tossing 16 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. He also ran for 433 yards while averaging 4.0 yards per carry, rushing for a team-high nine touchdowns.
He was even better in 2019, completing 70.9 percent of his passes (268-of-378) for 3,441 yards and 29 touchdowns. He also cut down his interceptions to just six in his senior season. He again did some damage with his legs, rushing for 569 yards and seven touchdowns, upping his yards per carry to 4.7.
Those big numbers earned DiNucci CAA Offensive Player of the Year and First Team All-CAA honors. DiNucci helped lead James Madison to the FCS title game, where they fell to North Dakota State, 28-20. DiNucci completed 22 of his 33 passes in that game, tossing two touchdowns and racking up 204 yards, but was picked off at the goal line with two seconds left as the Dukes tried to mount a comeback.
The 23-year-old is expected to be a late-round pick in next week's draft. The Patriots have 12 picks at the moment, with seven of those coming in the sixth or seventh round.
New England has also been connected to Utah State's Jordan Love -- a potential first-round option -- and Florida International's James Morgan -- expected to go on Day 2 -- in the pre-draft process, and there was a rather flimsy rumor that they "love" Oregon's Justin Herbert, a rival GM told Peter King. Drafting Herbert would require Bill Belichick jumping up in the first round.
Heading into the draft, the Patriots have 2018 fourth-round pick Jarrett Stidham and veteran Brian Hoyer on their quarterback depth chart.