What if top needs can’t be filled in draft?
With free agency and the NFL Annual Meeting behind the Patriots, the franchise’s primary focus is on pro days and next month’s NFL Draft.
Patriots fans have plenty of questions about what the team will do and what’s real and what’s not. Let’s dig into them.
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@godiroc Are you team QB at 3 or team let’s add 4 players in the top 45 this year and get a few more picks next year too?
I’m Team QB at 3. Get the quarterback when you have the chance, because you don’t know when that opportunity will arise again. The Patriots have the third overall pick, and there are at least three top quarterbacks in this class worthy of a topfive pick in USC’s Caleb Williams, UNC’s Drake Maye and LSU’s Jayden Daniels.
I don’t think there should be any expectations for the Patriots to be overly competitive in 2024. They know they can get a quarterback in this year’s draft. They can try to fill needs at wide receiver and left tackle in the second and third rounds. And if they can’t, then they can always sit their rookie quarterback for a year and grab those players early in 2025.
It just seems like too big of a risk to pass when they’re in the perfect opportunity to get a franchise QB, because there’s always the risk that they won’t have this chance in 2025.
@TheDTSB Do you believe the Washington/Daniels hype or do you think they’re still taking Maye? I won’t be convinced they’re going Daniels until his name is announced. Also do you stay at 3 and pick JD if they take Maye?
The latest hype at the NFL Annual Meeting, courtesy of my buddy Tom Pelissero from NFL Media, was that the Commanders could take Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy at No. 2 overall.
So, it’s really anyone’s guess where the Commanders will go at No. 2. I think some people in the Patriots’ organization would enjoy getting to pick between Daniels and Maye at No. 3 overall.
If Maye is picked No. 2 overall, then I know there are fans of Daniels in the organization.
@littleashtag What wide receiver do you personally want the Patriots to draft? Would they have to move back into the end of the 1st round before KC or Buffalo get can get them?
They need an “X” receiver, since they’re currently loaded with slot and “Z” receivers. LSU’s Brian Thomas is a good fit, but they might need to package their second- and thirdround picks to move up high enough to take him in the middle of the first round. Florida State’s Keon Coleman could be in range when the Patriots are picking 34th overall.
Unfortunately, most of the receivers in that secondor third-round range are “Z” or slot receivers. It would be interesting to package Maye and UNC’s Devontez Walker.
I like UCF’s Javon Baker too.
@Taco_Stevep What would a successful rest of the off-season look like?
Draft your future starting quarterback, “X” wide receiver and left tackle with your first three picks.
It’s interesting to look at the Patriots’ roster and see who would be their top players at those positions right now. It would be Jacoby
Brissett at QB, either Jalen Reagor or Kayshon Boutte at “X” receiver and either Chukwuma Okorafor, Calvin Anderson, Vederian Lowe or Tyrone Wheatley Jr. at left tackle.
It’s funny that of those three, the quarterback situation would be the least concerning. But I do still believe it’s a must to take a QB at No. 3 overall, because this draft isn’t about the 2024 season. It’s about the future of the franchise.
Wide receiver might actually be more troubling than left tackle. But it’s not ideal to head into the draft needing starters at those three positions.
There is still the possibility of a trade or add in free agency, but I don’t believe the Patriots are looking for one-year fill-ins.
@TrevorJayCFB As of right now on March 29th, what is the likeliest scenario: pick QB at 3, pick WR at 3, or trade down?
League executives expect the Patriots to take a quarterback at No. 3 overall. So, I think that’s the likeliest scenario. I do truly believe the Patriots need to be “convicted,” as head coach Jerod Mayo said this week, to take a QB at No. 3. I don’t believe they’ll force it.
@SportsFellow_ If the Pats trade down, should they aim at taking Michael Penix Jr at QB?
I’d personally be surprised if Michael Penix was the quarterback that winds
up in New England, barring him falling pretty far.
@KevinPOBrien Do the patriots really believe there are 5-6 franchise QBs in this draft instead of 3-4?
Not from most people I’ve spoken to.
@FFFTakes Is there a world where the Pats trade back with the Vikings for a haul including 11 & 23 for this year, then use 11 and change to move back up with Falcons or Titans to jump Chicago for one of the three top WRs? Cardinals of last year scenario…
Thanks Doug.
It’s possible, that’s almost too complicated to predict.
I do think one of the issues with trading back with the Vikings is that the drop from No. 3 to No. 11 is too far.
If the Patriots were to accept that deal, they would almost need another trade agreed to in order to move back up.
@ronnie09795147 Do you get the sense the Krafts realize the fan base is not happy with “Dynasty” and the lack of spending in FA?
Based on his answers at the NFL Annual Meeting about free agency and “The Dynasty,” yes.