How does Broncos-Panthers Teddy Bridgewater trade affect Patriots?

We made it, folks. At this point tomorrow, there will be no more overreacting to mock drafts, which almost never end up being accurate. No more micro-analyzing prospects and no more predicting what the New England Patriots are going to do with their first-round pick.

The NFL Draft is a little over 24 hours away, and Patriots fans will surely be relieved to wave goodbye to all the conflicting rumors hovering over the franchise.

However, that also means the final round of pre-draft hysteria has just started to get underway.

In fact, the first big trade has just materialized. The Broncos have acquired quarterback Teddy Bridgewater from the Panthers in exchange for a sixth-round pick.

It’s unclear how this trade will impact New England’s draft plans, but ESPN’s Adam Schefter followed up the big news with a pretty noteworthy scoop, reporting that Denver could still be in the market for a quarterback on Thursday night.

As for Carolina? Well, this trade either confirms their conviction in Sam Darnold, or indicates they’re targeting a gunslinger and want an open QB competition at training camp.

What does the Teddy Bridgewater trade mean for the Patriots?

The Broncos have a mess of a quarterback situation on their hands, but would it really make sense for them to add a third player to the mix … especially if it’s one of the top five prospects, who could potentially start from Day 1 as a rookie, after they just traded for Bridgewater?

Perhaps they’ve already turned the page on Drew Lock, who looked anything but the part last season, but do we really believe that to be the case? If we were to assume that Denver acquiring Bridgewater takes them out of the running for a QB, the Patriots’ chances of of snagging either one of Justin Fields, Trey Lance or Mac Jones would increase dramatically.

Getting back to the Panthers’ side of things, it’d be a tough sell to the fan base if they drafted a quarterback at No. 8 overall after they just gave up three draft picks (including a second- and fourth-rounder) to land Darnold from the Jets. Assuming he’s penciled in as their starter, drafting one of the top tackle prospects would make the most sense for them.

That scenario would take another team out of the running for a QB, and that is undoubtedly positive news for the Patriots, who could look to acquire the No. 8 overall pick from Carolina. After all, the two teams have reportedly done some groundwork on a potential trade.

Again, the NFL Draft is as unpredictable as anything in sports. Who knows? Maybe both the Broncos and Panthers end up targeting quarterbacks. However, unless we’re failing to see a certain angle to all this, this trade greatly improves the Patriots’ chances of walking out of the first round with a new signal caller.

Here’s why Patriots should really be hoping the Broncos trade for Teddy Bridgewater

Here's why the New England Patriots should be hoping that the Denver Broncos strike a trade for quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.