Patriots Draft Rumors: These Two Teams Could Trade For Third Pick

Patriots fans might riot if New England trades down in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

But that doesn’t mean it would be a bad idea.

The Patriots, with control of the No. 3 pick, are in a position of power. They’re guaranteed a shot at drafting Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, Jayden Daniels or Marvin Harrison Jr. However, other teams might covet the No. 3 pick and could present the Patriots with a trade package they can’t refuse.

But what teams could pursue such a trade? ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler identified two — the Las Vegas Raiders and Minnesota Vikings — in a piece published last Saturday.

Here’s the full excerpt from Fowler’s column:

Most people I talked to in Mobile expect the Chicago Bears to make the pick at No. 1, presumably for Williams. That leaves the Washington Commanders (No. 2) and New England Patriots (No. 3) with the ability to control the draft, though both might take quarterbacks at their respective spots, too. Maye and Daniels are considered the next quarterbacks up.

The Las Vegas Raiders (No. 13) might be a team to watch. New coach Antonio Pierce is a big fan of Daniels from their days together at Arizona State, and word is that Pierce evaluated offensive coordinators with the loose possibility of Daniels in mind. People around the league are keeping an eye on the Minnesota Vikings at No. 11, too. They did a lot of quarterback homework last offseason and could eventually target one high in the draft with free agent Kirk Cousins’ future in Minnesota uncertain. But moving from No. 11 into the top three would cost GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah a ton of draft capital.

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Boston Sports Journal’s Greg Bedard shared similar intel in a story published Sunday.

“The Raiders (13th pick) and Vikings (11th) are two of the teams that could be aggressive trading up for one of the top three quarterbacks,” Bedard wrote. “Minnesota coach Kevin O’Connell was on the field watching Michael Penix and Bo Nix closely.”

Given all the options on the table, the Patriots are one of the more fascinating teams to monitor as the draft approaches. They could land their next franchise quarterback, select the best receiver prospect in decades or trade back for another position of need, like offensive tackle.

The 2024 NFL Draft is scheduled to start Thursday, April 25.