Report: Scout lobbied Jets to draft Brady in ’00

Where would the Jets be if they drafted Tom Brady? (Getty Images)

Six quarterbacks were taken before Tom Brady in the 2000 NFL Draft, a fact the future Hall of Famer hasn't forgotten. But the Patriots' 199th pick might have gone to the Jets 20 picks earlier, according to a report from the New York Daily News' Gary Myers.

The scout, Jesse Kaye, was responsible for the Midwest region and badly wanted Brady, who played at Michigan -- even though the Jets had used a first-round pick on Chad Pennington. A source in the team's draft room told Myers that, ultimately, Kaye was unable to persuade then-coach Bill Parcells, "despite the scout's deep conviction that Brady was going to be an excellent player."

Instead, the Jets drafted defensive back Tony Scott with the 179th pick and fans have since had to endure nine different starting quarterbacks: Vinny Testaverde, Pennington, Quincy Carter, Brooks Bollinger, Kellen Clemens, Brett Favre, Mark Sanchez, Greg McElroy and Geno Smith.

Scott played 23 games over two seasons before he was waived and eventually signed by -- you guessed it -- the Patriots. He lasted just six weeks in New England before a brief stint in Seattle.

More from Myers: "Kaye, who became the Jets' scouting director in 2002, is now a consultant for the team. When I contacted him about the Brady story, he declined comment through a team spokesman. Parcells, whose lukewarm endorsement of Peyton Manning when the Jets had the No. 1 pick in the 1997 draft helped Manning decide to return to Tennessee for his senior year, said he doesn't recall being lobbied to take Brady."

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