New England Patriots select Behren Morton in seventh round of 2026 NFL Draft

The New England Patriots have selected Texas Tech quarterback Behren Morton with the No. 234 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. Morton was taken with a seventh round selection.

Morton helped lead a talented Texas Tech squad to the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff in 2026. There will be some question about how well Morton can handle the big stage after he struggled mightily against Oregon.

The Red Raiders gunslinger threw for just 137 yards in the playoff contest. He was picked off twice.

Still, that can’t fully diminish what was an excellent overall season for Behren Morton. The fifth-year Texas Tech product threw for 2,780 yards and 22 touchdowns, while throwing only six interceptions on the season.

In five years at Texas Tech, Behren Morton totaled 8,986 yards passing and 71 touchdowns. He threw 28 interceptions. In addition, Morton also scored on the ground seven times.

What NFL Draft analysts are saying about Behren Morton

One of the things that made Morton a tricky prospect to evaluate heading into the draft was his injury history. On the one hand, he showed incredible toughness playing through some knocks. On the other, you worry about durability.

In any case, other potential weaknesses are failing to identify changing and zone coverages at times. Still, there’s a lot to like.

So what are the experts saying? Here’s how the NFL Network’s Lance Zierlein evaluated Behren Morton:

“Morton is a challenging evaluation given his injury history, but I studied his tape from 2024 and 2025 for my analysis here. He appears to lack the functional arm talent to push the ball into windows or beat safeties over the top into sideline buckets. He’s average with his anticipation and field-reading but is willing to get through progressions while trusting his pocket.

“He’s extremely tough and has the desired level of competitive spirit needed for the position. He can buy time for his receivers when needed and gets what he can when it’s time to run. Morton’s medicals will be critical, but it will likely be an uphill battle for him to make a roster.”