NFL Draft rumors: Patriots are laughing at trade offers for No. 3 pick

With the Chicago Bears taking Caleb Williams first and the Washington Commanders definitely taking a quarterback second, all eyes are now on the New England Patriots picking third. As it is with the first two teams on the clock, all signs point to the Patriots taking a quarterback third overall in Thursday night’s NFL Draft. Apparently, the Patriots are laughing at offers to trade back, according to Mark Daniels of MassLive. They want a “serious” offer to move down the draft board, per Daniels.

See, this is Jerod Mayo and Eliot Wolf’s first draft in New England without having Bill Belichick involved. His draft boards were … something else, alright. He helped destroy the Evil Empire by reaching on one pulling guard out of a Division III school after another. Thus, it serves Mayo and Wolf to take a blue-chip quarterback prospect third, either Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye or J.J. McCarthy.

Mass Live reported previously that the Patriots would be happy with either Daniels or Maye at No. 3, whoever Washington doesn’t choose. This was before McCarthy became a fast riser up the draft board. Do the Patriots view him like they do Daniels or Maye? What happens if the Commanders actually take McCarthy instead of Daniels or Maye? Oh, New England would be in such a great spot.

I would take Daniels over Maye and Maye over McCarthy, but I am not the one calling the shots here.

New England Patriots have not received serious offers for No. 3 pick

This probably indicates that if a team like the Minnesota Vikings or the Las Vegas Raiders are that interested in trading up for a quarterback, they are going to have to give up more than an arm and a leg to strike a deal with New England. The reason for this is if the Patriots were to move back to No. 11 with Minnesota or No. 13 with Las Vegas, New England would have to settle for someone like a Bo Nix.

While I do like Nix as a prospect more than most, the Patriots are not the team to take him. This has nothing to do with the current regime in place, as I love Alex Van Pelt being their new offensive coordinator. It has everything to do with New England just pivoting off a similar version of Nix as a prospect in Mac Jones. Maybe you go with Michael Penix Jr. out of Washington in you do trade back?

Ultimately, the Patriots should hone in on drafting either Daniels or Maye. It will probably end up being Maye, as Washington will probably take Daniels second overall. Maye could be an ideal fit to run Van Pelt’s system in New England. He needs a bit more refinement at the quarterback position. Thus, I expect that he will spend a good part of this upcoming NFL season backing up Jacoby Brissett.

If the Patriots are that set on taking a quarterback, keep an eye on the Arizona Cardinals at No. 4…