Behren Morton Drafted by New England Patriots: A Texas Tech Legacy Heads to Foxborough
On April 25, 2026, the New England Patriots made one of the final selections of the NFL Draft's seventh round, choosing Texas Tech quarterback Behren Morton with the 234th overall pick. It's the kind of pick that rarely generates headlines on draft day — a late-round quarterback with injury concerns and modest athleticism, heading to a franchise that already has its franchise signal-caller locked in. But for Morton, the selection caps one of the more quietly remarkable college careers in recent Big 12 history, and for the Patriots, it addresses a genuine roster need while costing almost nothing to find out if the answer is yes.
Here's what you need to know about Behren Morton, why the Patriots wanted him, and what realistic expectations look like for a seventh-round quarterback entering one of the most high-profile backups competitions in football.
The Pick: 234th Overall, Round 7, New England Patriots
The Patriots selected Morton with pick No. 234 in the seventh round of the 2026 NFL Draft. New England entered draft weekend thin at quarterback — Drake Maye is the clear starter and the centerpiece of the franchise's rebuild, but Tommy DeVito was the only other signal-caller under contract. The Patriots had released Joshua Dobbs earlier this offseason, leaving an obvious gap at the QB3 spot.
Morton fills that hole at the lowest possible cost. A seventh-round pick carries virtually no cap implications and no real expectations — if he sticks on the roster, it's a win; if he doesn't, nothing was lost. The Patriots reportedly brought Morton in for a pre-draft visit, which was likely used to review his injury medicals and assess how his shoulder is progressing before committing even a late pick to him.
According to MassLive, New England is now drafting another quarterback to address the roster gap left by Dobbs' departure, with Morton expected to enter camp competing for the QB3 role.
Five Years, One School: Morton's Texas Tech Career in Context
In an era defined by the transfer portal — where quarterbacks routinely change programs every season in search of better situations, more visibility, or improved draft positioning — Behren Morton spent his entire five-year college career at Texas Tech. That kind of loyalty to a single program is increasingly rare and speaks to something about Morton's character that NFL teams tend to notice.
Morton is a native of Eastland, Texas, a small town roughly 100 miles west of Fort Worth. He grew up in Red Raider country and chose to stay in it. Over five years in Lubbock, he became a three-year starter, a two-year team captain, and accumulated over 1,200 career passing attempts — the kind of volume that gives teams real data on who a quarterback is under pressure.
His most productive stretch came across his final two seasons, during which he threw for 5,900 yards and 47 touchdowns against just 14 interceptions — a turnover rate that compares favorably to many players drafted far higher. That 47-to-14 touchdown-to-interception ratio reflects the kind of decision-making and ball security that translate to value as a backup, even if the raw athleticism isn't there to project as a starter.
The statistical achievement is made more impressive by context: Morton was doing this while playing through injury. He underwent shoulder surgery in late 2024 and then suffered another injury in the 2025 season opener. The fact that he continued producing at a high level — 5,900 yards, 47 touchdowns — while managing a compromised shoulder is either a testament to his toughness and mechanics, or a significant red flag about the long-term health of that arm. Probably both.
Texas Tech's Big 12 Champion: Leading the Red Raiders to the Playoff
What often gets lost in the clinical analysis of Morton's draft profile is what he actually accomplished on the field. Morton led Texas Tech to the Big 12 Conference championship and the College Football Playoff — a program milestone that had seemed far out of reach for much of the Red Raiders' history.
On December 6, 2025, Morton played in the Big 12 Championship game against BYU Cougars at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas — a homecoming of sorts for a kid from western Texas playing for the conference title in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. Texas Tech won that game and earned a CFP berth.
The Red Raiders' run ultimately ended with a loss to Oregon in the Orange Bowl despite Morton's efforts — a tough ending to what was otherwise an outstanding season. But the arc of that campaign, from shoulder surgery to Big 12 champion to College Football Playoff participant, represents exactly the kind of leadership-under-adversity narrative that NFL scouts pay attention to even when the measurables don't scream "future starter."
As USA Today noted, Morton's decision to remain at Texas Tech for his full five years while leading the program to a conference title is a rarity in modern college football — the kind of career arc that generates genuine goodwill even when the NFL projection is uncertain.
Draft Grades and Analyst Reaction: The Cold Water Treatment
The analytics community was not particularly enthusiastic about the pick. Instant grades for the selection ranged from D to C+, with the central criticism being consistent: Morton doesn't have the athletic tools to project as an NFL starter. He's not a runner, he's not particularly mobile in the pocket, and his arm was already under scrutiny before the shoulder surgeries added another layer of uncertainty.
One analyst drew a direct comparison to Bailey Zappe — the Patriots' previous late-round quarterback experiment — and predicted Morton would not make New England's final 53-man roster. That's a reasonable baseline prediction for any seventh-round quarterback; statistically, most of them don't stick. But it also somewhat misses the point of what New England is doing here.
The Patriots are not drafting Morton because they think he's going to be good. They're drafting him because they need a third quarterback, because his injury medicals apparently passed muster at the pre-draft visit, and because at pick 234 in the seventh round, you can afford to be wrong. The floor is "practice squad arm." The ceiling is "functional backup if Maye or DeVito gets hurt." Neither outcome requires Behren Morton to be an NFL starter.
The more interesting question isn't whether the grades are accurate — they probably are — but whether Morton's football intelligence and decision-making translate to the next level in a way his athleticism doesn't. That's a harder thing to grade, and it's what training camp is for.
The Patriots' Quarterback Room: Where Morton Fits
Understanding Morton's role requires understanding the room he's entering. Drake Maye is the unquestioned starter and one of the more promising young quarterbacks in the league — a former top-three overall pick now entering his second full season as the clear face of the franchise. Maye is not a question mark; he's the answer.
Tommy DeVito backs him up. DeVito is a known quantity at this point — a game manager who can keep a team functional in a pinch but isn't going to win games on his own. His presence on the roster is about insurance, not competition for Maye's job.
Morton slots in as QB3, competing for a spot that may ultimately be a practice squad assignment rather than an active roster position. Yahoo Sports analyzed why the Patriots drafted Morton despite already having Maye under contract, pointing to the Dobbs release leaving a genuine gap that needed addressing at minimal cost.
The Patriots' decision to bring him in for a medical visit before the draft suggests this wasn't a blind swing — New England did their homework on the shoulder and apparently liked what they saw, or at least found the risk acceptable at this price point.
This draft also saw the Patriots and other teams make interesting positional decisions throughout the weekend. Zane Durant was selected by the Buffalo Bills in the draft, while Seydou Traore landed with the Miami Dolphins — meaning the AFC East is adding multiple young players across all draft classes this weekend.
What This Means: The Bigger Picture
The Behren Morton pick tells you several things about the New England Patriots and about the value of late-round quarterback selections more broadly.
First, it confirms that the Patriots are being methodical about how they build depth around Maye. Rather than overpaying for a veteran backup or using meaningful draft capital on a project quarterback, they identified a player with real college production, leadership credentials, and legitimate football intelligence — and grabbed him at a price where the downside is negligible.
Second, Morton's career arc is itself a data point about how to evaluate college quarterbacks. His 47-to-14 touchdown-to-interception ratio over two seasons, achieved while managing shoulder injuries, suggests someone who processes the game at a high level even when the physical tools are declining. That's not nothing. NFL teams have built functional backup careers out of players with exactly that profile.
Third, the injury history is the real variable here. Shoulder surgery in late 2024, another injury in the 2025 season opener — that's two red flags on the same arm in quick succession. If Morton's shoulder is genuinely healthy, he's an interesting developmental project. If the surgeries have permanently affected his velocity or durability, this is a player who never makes a meaningful NFL snap. The Patriots' medical staff will know more by the time training camp opens than any draft analyst does right now.
The pick also fits a broader pattern in how successful teams manage quarterback depth. You don't need your QB3 to be a starter — you need him to be smart, prepared, and healthy enough to hold the fort in an emergency. On that rubric, Morton's college career — the leadership, the preparation, the decision-making under pressure while injured — reads better than the pure athletic measurables suggest.
Frequently Asked Questions
What round was Behren Morton drafted in the 2026 NFL Draft?
Behren Morton was selected by the New England Patriots in the seventh round of the 2026 NFL Draft, 234th overall. The pick was made on April 25, 2026, the final day of the draft.
What college did Behren Morton play for?
Morton played his entire five-year college career at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. He is from Eastland, Texas, making him a native Texan who remained in-state throughout his college career. He was a three-year starter and two-year team captain for the Red Raiders, leading the program to the Big 12 Conference championship and the College Football Playoff.
What injuries has Behren Morton had?
Morton underwent shoulder surgery in late 2024. He then suffered another injury in the 2025 season opener before returning to lead Texas Tech to the Big 12 Championship. Despite these setbacks, he threw for 5,900 yards and 47 touchdowns with just 14 interceptions across his final two seasons. The Patriots brought him in for a pre-draft visit, which was widely interpreted as an opportunity to review his medical records before committing a pick.
What is Behren Morton's role with the New England Patriots?
Morton enters the Patriots as the third quarterback on the depth chart, behind starter Drake Maye and backup Tommy DeVito. He is expected to compete for the QB3 roster spot or potentially a practice squad assignment. The Patriots had released Joshua Dobbs earlier in the offseason, creating a vacancy that Morton was drafted to fill at minimal cost.
What do analysts think of the Patriots' Behren Morton pick?
Draft grades ranged from D to C+, with most analysts noting that Morton lacks the athleticism to project as an NFL starter. At least one analyst compared him unfavorably to Bailey Zappe and predicted he would not make the final 53-man roster. However, at pick 234 in the seventh round, the downside risk is minimal — this is a low-cost depth addition, not a projection of starter potential.
Conclusion: A Long Shot With a Real Story
Behren Morton will likely never start a regular-season game in the NFL. That's the honest assessment, and pretending otherwise would be a disservice to what the pick actually is. He's a seventh-round quarterback with two shoulder surgeries on his ledger, limited mobility, and the kind of athletic profile that generates C+ draft grades.
But Morton also spent five years building something at Texas Tech — a conference championship, a College Football Playoff appearance, a 47-to-14 touchdown-to-interception ratio while playing hurt, and the kind of leadership credentials that coaches notice even when the measurables don't pop. He did it at one school, in one program, without chasing transfer portal opportunities when things got hard. That's not irrelevant.
The New England Patriots drafted him knowing the odds. They did their medical homework, liked the risk-reward at pick 234, and added a player who understands what it means to lead a football team under adverse circumstances. Whether that translates to an NFL roster spot is genuinely uncertain. Whether it was a rational, low-cost, defensible roster move — that's not uncertain at all.
Morton heads to Foxborough with a chip on his shoulder and a surgery scar to match. In the NFL's unforgiving developmental landscape, that combination has produced surprises before.
