Tom Brady sends heartfelt message following the passing of Ryan Mallett

Tom Brady sent prayers to the family of Ryan Mallett, the former NFL quarterback and Brady’s former teammate, after his passing.

Mallett, 35, reportedly drowned in Florida and died Tuesday. He was most recently coaching high school football at White Hall High School (Ark.). Mallett most recently played in the NFL in 2017.

But at one point, he was a backup to Brady with the New England Patriots

“We lost a great man,” Brady wrote on his Instagram story. “Thank you for everything Ryan. Praying for the Mallett family and all their loved ones tonight.”

Mallett played football at Arkansas from 2008-2010. He began his college career at Michigan, before transferring after one season.

One of the top high school quarterback prospects in the nation in the 2007 signing class, Mallett chose the Wolverines out of Texas (Tx.) High School in Texarkana, Texas. But the Batesville, Arkansas, native returned to his home state after his season in Ann Arbor.

After redshirting the 2008 season, Mallett started for the Razorbacks in 2009 and 2010.

He was solid in 2009, completing 55.8% of passes on 403 attempts for 3624 yards. He tossed 30 touchdowns to seven interceptions that year as Arkansas went 8-5 and won the Liberty Bowl. Mallett was the MVP of that game, throwing for 202 yards and a touchdown as the Razorbacks prevailed, 20-17, in overtime.

Mallett offered an encore in 2010 that placed him seventh in the Heisman Trophy voting at the end of the year. He threw the ball 411 times and completed 64.7% of his attempts, racking up 3869 passing yards. He did throw 12 interceptions, but they were overwhelmed by his 32 touchdowns. The Razorbacks went 10-3 that year, playing in the Sugar Bowl to end the year.

After his college career, Mallett entered the 2011 NFL Draft. The New England Patriots selected him with the 74th overall pick in the third round of the draft.

Mallett played three seasons in New England as a backup before signing with the Houston Texans, where he played the 2014 and part of the 2015 season. He signed with the Baltimore Ravens during the 2015 season after being released by the Texans, and stayed in Baltimore through 2017.

Over the course of his NFL career, Mallett threw for 1,835 yards, nine touchdowns and 10 interceptions.

He was named the head coach at White Hall High School in 2022.

Andrew Graham contributed to this report