The Patriots’ new regime led by de facto general manager Eliot Wolf and head coach Jerod Mayo got off to quite the start on Thursday night, drafting North Carolina’s Drake Maye to be their next quarterback and face of the franchise.
Now? It’s time to “support him in any way [they] can”, as Eliot Wolf said on Thursday night, with weapons to throw to and offensive linemen to protect him.
With plenty of talent left on the board, and others potentially available for trade, here’s how the board could fall for New England on Friday:
TRADE: Round 2, Pick No. 34 to San Francisco 49ers for WR Brandon Aiyuk
The Patriots’ usage of their first pick on day two of the NFL Draft shouldn’t be a pick at all — but rather a trade.
The San Francisco 49ers are cap-strung at wide receiver heading into the near future with Brandon Aiyuk set for a massive extension and Deebo Samuel heading into the final two years of his second contract with the team. John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan drafting Florida WR Ricky Pearsall with the No. 31 overall pick adds yet another log to the smoke building that they’ll trade one of the two.
According to reports, they’ve fielded trade calls on both Samuel and Aiyuk and according to NBC Sports Boston’s Tom E. Curran, the Patriots have been working on an Aiyuk trade with San Francisco.
Make it happen.
Aiyuk is 6-foot-0, 205 pounds, and at 26 years old still has plenty of football left in him. The 2023 Second-Team All-Pro fills the X-receiver role that Eliot Wolf touted as a need for the Patriots last week, and that Van Pelt heavily relies on in his offense (i.e. Amari Cooper).
Aiyuk caught 75 passes for 1,342 yards and seven touchdowns from Brock Purdy last season. Just imagine what he could do with a guy with Drake Maye’s potential.
Round 3, Pick No. 68: OT Kiran Amegadjie, Yale
After pushing the offensive tackle need off until Round 3, New England pounces on a somewhat falling Kiran Amegadjie.
The Yale product stands at 6-foot-5, 326 pounds and was a First-Team FCS All-American in 2023. He needs some work with his technique, but after Eliot Wolf mentioned last week that he believes the Patriots could start next season with free-agent acquisition Chukwuma Okorafor at left tackle, they’re seemingly set up internally for a bridge at the position.
Maye, Aiyuk, and Amegadjie in Rounds 1, 2, and 3. I’m sure Pats Nation could get down with that.
Day Two of the NFL Draft kicks off on Friday at 7 p.m.
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