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The New England Patriots are tipping their hand hours before the 2024 NFL draft, according to Tom E. Curran of NBC Sports Boston.
Curran reported Thursday the Patriots are expected to select North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye with the No. 3 pick unless another team “makes them an offer they just can’t refuse.” He cited the Minnesota Vikings and New York Giants specifically as possibilities.
NFL insider Jordan Schultz added the Giants have been making a play for the No. 3 pick in hopes of landing Maye:
Jordan Schultz @Schultz_Report
The <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/Giants?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#Giants</a> have been trying to trade up to No. 3 with the <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/Patriots?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#Patriots</a>, with the belief being they want UNC QB Drake Maye, according to multiple league sources. <br><br>The prevailing belief is it’s a long shot to happen — but New England is listening to all calls. <a href=”https://t.co/gezy1er4W6″>pic.twitter.com/gezy1er4W6</a>
Leaking this now is a bit of a leverage play by New England. If the Vikings or Giants covet Maye, they know what it will take to get him.
For the Pats, it helps that they probably aren’t bluffing.
Maye is the No. 3 overall player on Bleacher Report’s final big board and was projected to land in New England with the third pick in B/R’s final mock.
“Simply put, as one Patriots source said late last week, ‘you can’t win without a quarterback'” Reiss wrote. “[Head coach Jerod] Mayo and some top decision-makers have privately acknowledged that their legacies will be tied to whatever they decide at quarterback.”
There’s no bigger need for New England than quarterback going into the draft. After trading Mac Jones to the Jacksonville Jaguars, the team is for now looking at Jacoby Brissett or Bailey Zappe as the starter in 2024. Neither is somebody you’d expect to help lead a major rebuild.
Trading back would allow for Mayo and director of scouting Eliot Wolf to strengthen more areas of the roster, and Maye isn’t considered the kind of can’t-miss prospect who’s a surefire lock to emerge as a perennial Pro Bowler.
But the Patriots better be getting a king’s ransom in the event they move out of the No. 3 spot.
