FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Quick-hit thoughts and notes around the New England Patriots and NFL:
1. What’s in the ‘bag’? Patriots owner Robert Kraft recently referred to the No. 3 draft pick as an advantageous position because teams behind New England could be “really desperate” to move up, and thus top decision-maker Eliot Wolf will be open to listening to trade offers.
First-year coach Jerod Mayo put his spin on it, saying if someone offers “a bag,” the Patriots would “definitely have to talk about it.”
So what would have to be in the bag? Former Vikings general manager Rick Spielman (2012-21) has an idea of what he would require if trading down.
“I know if any team is coming up to No. 3, they’re coming up to get a premium position. So I’m going to squeeze them for everything I can,” said Spielman, who is now an analyst for CBS Sports and the podcast “With The First Pick.”
“And if I need a quarterback, too, as New England does, then the deal better be pretty rich for me to pass up one of these quarterbacks and move down. They would have to pay above a premium.”
Using the Vikings as an example, Spielman opined that two 2024 first-round picks (No. 11 and No. 23), a 2025 first-round pick and a future second-round pick would be the starting point.
But even that might not be enough for the Patriots, who likely won’t want to move too far down the board and also could prefer to see an established veteran as part of any package, similar to how the Bears acquired receiver DJ Moore from the Panthers last year — along with 2023 first- and second-round picks, a 2024 first-round pick and a 2025 second-rounder — in the deal for the No. 1 pick.
In landing Moore, who was already established after five seasons in the NFL, the Bears eliminated the unknown that comes with any draft pick.
Along those lines, the “pipe dream” for the Patriots, per Spielman, would be the Vikings trading receiver Justin Jefferson as part of a package that includes multiple first-round picks. Or maybe starting left tackle Christian Darrisaw.
Receiver and left tackle are two of the Patriots’ top needs, alongside quarterback, and the latter is why former Buccaneers general manager Mark Dominik (2009-13) isn’t sure any trade — other than a blockbuster in the pipe dream category — would be worth it for New England.
“It depends on what you really think of the quarterbacks that you have a chance to select. Because if you feel Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye or J.J. McCarthy is the guy — having three 1s or the right quarterback, I’d rather have the right quarterback,” said Dominik, now a Sirius XM NFL and college football analyst.
“The reality is that you have to find that position. Especially where the Patriots are sitting right now — with Tua [Tagovailoa], Aaron [Rodgers] and Josh [Allen]; wow, that’s going to be an uphill battle in the division. So that being said, I just don’t think it’s a bag you can open — unless you just don’t like these [top] quarterbacks.”
And therein lies the primary mystery with the Patriots and director of scouting Wolf, who has final personnel authority. What do they really think of the top quarterbacks?
“Maybe in their world, they’d be just as happy to pull [Oregon’s] Bo Nix at the bottom of the first or top of the second because that’s the guy they really like,” Dominik said. “The most important part is the quarterback spot, and if they trade down and get all these other players,…
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