Should Patriots consider this hypothetical trade package for No. 1 pick?

Should Patriots consider this hypothetical trade package for No. 1 pick? originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The New England Patriots haven’t owned the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft since 1993 when they took Washington State quarterback Drew Bledsoe. In many ways, that selection was a turning point for the struggling franchise.

Could they explore a move up to the No. 1 pick in 2024?

USC quarterback Caleb Williams is the consensus No. 1 ranked prospect in the 2024 NFL Draft. The 2022 Heisman Trophy winner has all the physical tools scouts love. He’s also able to improvise and throw from outside the pocket, even drawing comparisons to Patrick Mahomes in that regard.

The Patriots badly need a quarterback. Neither Mac Jones nor Bailey Zappe represent a good short- or long-term solution at the position. The Patriots will be able to get one of the three top-tier QB prospects — Williams, UNC’s Drake Maye and LSU’s Jayden Daniels — with the No. 3 pick.

But what if they value Williams so much that a trade with the Chicago Bears for the No. 1 pick makes sense? What would be the cost to make that kind of move up in the draft order?

ESPN’s Field Yates talked with people around the league and came up with three hypothetical trade packages for the top pick, one involving the Washington Commanders, Atlanta Falcons and Patriots.

Here is the package he created for the Patriots:

Patriots receive: No. 1 pick

Bears receive: No. 3 pick, 2024 second-round pick (No. 34 overall), 2025 first-round pick

That’s an extraordinary price to pay to move up only two spots. Giving up the No. 34 overall pick would hurt the Patriots’ ability to surround Williams with enough talent on offense, particularly at offensive tackle and wide receiver. This draft is considered pretty deep at offensive tackle, with possibly eight or 10 players expected to go in the first two rounds. New England would miss out on those tackles if they dealt their second-rounder.

🔊 Next Pats Podcast: Is it worth it for the…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/patriots-consider-hypothetical-trade-package-204627271.html

Author : NBC Sports Boston

Publish date : 2024-02-21 20:46:27

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.