Besides the obvious downsides of how a team lands in the top-5 picks of an NFL Draft, the Patriots are fortunate to have the fourth overall pick this year to use on one of the best prospects of the incoming class, with most hoping it will be for an offensive player.
For much of the last few months, there has been an emphasis on Colorado CB/WR Travis Hunter for good reason, with LSU left tackle Will Campbell creeping in as another solid option as the draft nears, especially if Hunter is already off the board by the time the Patriots are on the clock.
The preference has long been to address the receiving corps and give quarterback Drake Maye the best possible weapons to work with for the 2025 season, prompting most analysts and fans to have their eyes set on Hunter specifically. As the widely considered best receiver of the draft, pairing him with Maye and a wide receiver room that now has Stefon Diggs leading the way feels like a recipe for success.
The problem New England has run into recently, however, is the chance that one of the three teams ahead of them will pass on taking a quarterback and instead draft someone like Hunter. The Titans (at No. 1), the Browns (at No. 2), and the Giants (at No. 3) are all in a position to select their next franchise quarterback, but that's far from official.
That means the Patriots will have to consider Plan B if Hunter is chosen before it's their turn to pick, which could be the worst-case scenario to start the draft. Fortunately, the latest update regarding how the first three picks might go is great news for New England, as long as it stays that way come the first round.
The latest update about the 2025 NFL Draft suggests two quarterbacks will go in the top-3 picks
For much of the offseason, the assumption has been that at least one of the top three teams will select the best quarterback available from the incoming class, Cam Ward. All three could benefit from taking him, so which team might pick him is not certain.
That's good news for the Patriots, knowing at least one team will pass on picking Hunter. However, they have just received even more good news, with an NFL Scout telling ESPN's Matt Miller that the Giants are the team that loves Shadeur Sanders, the expected second quarterback to be drafted this year.
"New York loving Shedeur is the worst-kept secret in the league right now."
It could be just smoke and mirrors, as this point in the offseason is full of teams trying to deter other teams from pursuing their favorite players. But the Giants do need a quarterback and it would be a big miss if they chose to pass on one this year, screwing the Patriots chances of getting their most desirable player.
If the scout is right and the Giants select Sanders, that means the Patriots only have to worry about one team taking Hunter, which might not even happen, given the rise of Penn State EDGE Abdul Carter over the last several weeks.
There is a good chance he will be the first non-quarterback taken this year, meaning Hunter would likely fall to No. 4 and allow the Patriots to add a dominant dual-threat player to their roster. They're now in a spot to hope that's what happens, or they'll have to put together a solid backup plan that will also ultimately benefit Maye in the long run.