Ex-NFL GM pushes back on idea of Patriots trading No. 3 pick

Ex-NFL GM pushes back on idea of Patriots trading No. 3 pick originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The New England Patriots will make one of their most important decisions in recent franchise history this spring.

That may sound like overstatement, but the Patriots’ No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft is their highest selection since 1993, when they took Drew Bledsoe first overall. How New England chooses to use that pick could determine the success of the team for years to come.

The options are plenty: The Patriots could take a stud quarterback in UNC’s Drake Maye or LSU’s Jayden Daniels, draft the consensus top wide receiver in Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison Jr., shore up the trenches with an offensive tackle or trade down from No. 3 to acquire additional draft capital.

Our Patriots Insider Tom E. Curran has advocated for New England to trade down and amass resources to address its multiple roster needs. But when former Atlanta Falcons general manager and Patriots personnel man Thomas Dimitroff joined the Patriots Talk Podcast on Monday, he pushed back on Curran’s take.

🔊 Patriots Talk: The case for the Patriots trading down | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube

“Look, as much as I want to understand what you are saying … I picked Matt Ryan,” Dimitroff told Curran and co-host Phil Perry from Super Bowl Radio Row in Las Vegas, “My very first pick ever (in Atlanta) was the third overall pick and because I wanted him so much — if we did not pick Matt Ryan, I would have been in this business two years, not 13. So I have a little bit of a different perspective.”

The Falcons had plenty of needs entering the 2008 NFL Draft after going 4-12 the season prior. But Dimitroff stuck with his guns at No. 3 overall and took Boston College QB Matt Ryan. The move paid off: Atlanta went 11-5 and made the playoffs in Ryan’s rookie year, and Ryan went on to earn four Pro Bowl nods and an NFL MVP award while guiding Atlanta to a Super Bowl appearance in 2016.

While…


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Author : NBC Sports Boston

Publish date : 2024-02-06 14:22:14

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