Patriots’ pursuit of Justin Fields heating up at second pro day?

The New England Patriots have been a hot topic of conversation this offseason.

Though their groundbreaking free agent spending spree was as compelling as it gets, it paled in comparison to the current pre-draft buzz they’re generating regarding their first-round pick.

According to reports, the Patriots are a prime candidate to trade up several picks in order to nab their quarterback of the future.

While Alabama star Mac Jones was long viewed as an ideal fit, the stars appear to be aligning for him to land with the 49ers at No. 3 overall.

That has led to Ohio State stud Justin Fields somehow emerging as a realistic target for the Patriots. In fact, some of the latest mocks have projected him to fall outside of the top 10, meaning the Pats might not have to give up a backbreaking haul to move up.

Well, the Fields-Patriots rumors are seemingly only growing louder with draft night less than three weeks away. In his weekly Monday column for Sports Illustrated, insider Albert Breer reported that New England is scheduled to attend Fields’ second pro day this week — and they might be sending some heavy artillery.

The Patriots are expected to attend Justin Fields’ second pro day.

It’s worth noting that San Francisco will likely also be in attendance, but the real takeaway here is that offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels (!) is rumored to be leading the Patriots’ team of scouting personnel at the pro day.

For context, front office consultant Eliot Wolf was the only Patriots representative present during Fields’ first pro day, when he ran an unofficial time of 4.4 seconds in the 40-yard dash and made a number of eye-popping throws.

After watching the highlights of Fields’ initial pressurized session, it’s clear New England didn’t want to waste another opportunity to get a front row seat to what he brings to the table under center as a dual-threat quarterback.

If you remember, head coach Bill Belichick and McDaniels both attended Jones’ Alabama pro day a few weeks ago and cameras appeared to catch them shaking their heads after he overshot a couple of deep balls while faced with absolutely zero pressure (in terms of a pass rush).

Again, the Patriots attending Fields’ second pro day doesn’t confirm that they’ll end up selecting him, but the fact that it’s being speculated that McDaniels (among others) could be present tells us that they’re giving serious thought to trading up for him in the first round.

That will likely hinge on how much New England will have to give up in order to do so, but fans should still be excited that the front office is aware of how important it is to find their long-term answer at quarterback in this year’s draft.

After all, it could be quite a while before they’re in this position again.

Patriots: Kirk Herbstreit rips Dan Orlovsky for Justin Fields ‘report’

In regards to New England Patriots draft news, Kirk Herbstreit ripped colleague Dan Orlovsky for his "report" about Justin Fields.