How Patriots Should Operate During Day 2 Of 2024 NFL Draft

FOXBORO, Mass. -- The New England Patriots opted not to trade into the back half of the first round, making quarterback Drake Maye their lone 2024 NFL Draft addition Thursday night.

The Patriots addressed their biggest need with the selection of Maye, who was selected third overall. Patriots de facto general manager Eliot Wolf, first-year head coach Jerod Mayo and Maye himself are all thrilled with the pick. Patriots fans should be, too.

New England now will be tasked with filling its next biggest needs: offensive tackle and wide receiver.

Ranking which is a bigger need is up for debate. If the Patriots were to start the 2024 season Sunday (they don't), Wolf said it would Chukwuma Okorafor at left tackle. That's not overly inspiring. On the other hand, New England's good-not-great group of receivers lacks a game-changing talent but does have depth with Kendrick Bourne, Demario Douglas, K.J. Osborn, etc. It's not a great group, but New England's options at offensive tackle aren't great either.

Leading up to the draft, NFL draft expert Daniel Jeremiah made the case the Patriots should draft an offensive tackle at No. 34. He said he was more confident in second-round tackles and third-round receivers as opposed to second-round receivers and third-round tackles. He pinpointed to Jordan Morgan as a possible selection but called it "no man's land."

Well, Morgan was drafted 25th by the Green Bay Packers. Tyler Guyton, another player thought to be an option for the Patriots at No. 34, was drafted 28th by the Dallas Cowboys.

Seven tackles came off the board in the first round. There also were seven receivers taken.

The difference, though, is the high-end talent at receiver is superior to tackle. Jeremiah and others entered the draft noting that there isn't as large of a gap between the receivers as there are in the tackles.

It's ultimately why the Patriots should select a wide receiver at No. 34.

There are some really good receivers still available. They include Texas product Adonai Mitchell, a 6-foot-2, 205-pound wideout who ran a 4.34 40-yard dash, and Georgia route-running aficionado Ladd McConkey. They are first-round talents available in the second round. Keon Coleman and Jalen McMillan, who was called a "juiced-up" Jakobi Meyers, are available as well.

Only the Buffalo Bills have a second-round pick before the Patriots, meaning regardless what the receiver-needy Bills do at No. 33, the Patriots can still get one of the two best receivers available.

If the big goal for Wolf and the Patriots is to weaponize the offense, which Wolf said again Thursday night, then New England should take one of the true weapons left. Reaching on an offensive tackle simply because you need to address the position is not the answer.

The best offensive tackle still available, per ESPN, is Notre Dame's Blake Fisher followed by Washington's Roger Rosengarten and BYU's Kingsley Suamataia.

While Mitchell and McConkey are the fourth and fifth-best players available, per ESPN, Fisher is viewed as the 24th-best player available. Rosengarten and Suamataia rank No. 30 and No. 42, respectively. The Patriots can address their need at tackle in the third round, when those players (or others) should be drafted. The second round should be reserved for wideout.

Another wideout option? Perhaps the Patriots could trade the No. 34 pick to the San Francisco 49ers for either Deebo Samuel or Brandon Aiyuk. San Francisco reportedly had trade talks centered around the two wideouts throughout the first round, and their first-round selection fueled trade speculation.