As we get closer and closer to tonight’s NFL Draft, the fate of the first few picks has become more and more clear. Now that the first two picks seem set in stone, the New England Patriots are unofficially next on the clock.
According to Patriots insider Tom E. Curran, the Patriots are expected to take UNC quarterback Drake Maye with their No. 3 overall pick. The assumption there is that quarterbacks Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels will have been taken first. However, Curran added that the team could be compelled to move down if they get a suitable trade offer from the Minnesota Vikings or New York Giants.
“Expect the Patriots to take Drake Maye at number three tonight unless someone – Vikings or Giants – makes them an offer they just can’t refuse,” Curran wrote.
The Patriots recently jettisoned former first-round pick and Pro Bowl quarterback Mac Jones after just three years with the team. They have a new head coach in Jerod Mayo and a new front office that surely wants to go in a new direction.
But with veteran Jacoby Brissett currently on the roster, maybe the Patriots are comfortable enough that they’ll just let him have the job and try to rebuild their team before investing a lot of time and assets into a quarterback.
If the Patriots take Maye, he’ll have a lot of pressure on him in year one regardless of if he gets the starting job or not. But if the Patriots don’t take him, they could wind up using 2024 as a rebuild year.
Either way, it feels like some growing pains are on the horizon.