The Patriots might have been embarrassed by the Chargers on their home turf last Saturday, but they came out as the biggest victors of Week 17 thanks to the Giants unexpectedly beating the Colts to move them into the first overall pick for the 2025 NFL Draft.
They had long been holding on with the second selection, a coveted position to be in for a team that does not need a quarterback, and now they might be in an even better spot with the first pick with the trade-down opportunities that come with it.
While they could certainly hold onto the first pick instead, history shows it might be more worthwhile to get on the phone with quarterback-needy teams and see what they're willing to offer. Because signal callers are the most critical position to fill on a roster, teams have proven willing to give up quite a haul to get the pick they need to draft their next franchise player.
If the Patriots want to build the team for now and in the future, there's good reason to look back at the most recent trades and consider doing the same.
The Patriots might not be able to pass up the opportunity to trade down if they remain atop the draft board
Looking at some of the most recent trades for the first overall pick, the most desirable is the trade between the Bears and the Panthers for the 2023 NFL Draft.
The Panthers had struggled to find a quarterback since they chose to move on from Cam Newton and were invested in one of the top prospects of the draft class: Bryce Young. That prompted them to give the Bears their 9th and 61st overall picks in 2023, their first-round pick in 2024, second-round pick in 2025, and receiver D.J. Moore.
Just for reference, here’s what it looked like the last two times the first overall pick in the NFL Draft got traded pic.twitter.com/uWsq46Rojv
— Alex Barth (@RealAlexBarth) December 29, 2024
That's quite a haul from which the Bears benefitted, especially offensively, as they were able to draft QB Caleb Williams earlier this year and insert him into an already impressive offense to work with. That could be the case for the Patriots, just backward,
With Drake Maye as the primary focus for much of what the Patriots will do during the offseason, trading down to acquire more picks and even offensive talent would be significant. At this point, they could easily do that with the Raiders, who hold the 8th overall pick and receive a similar haul in their pursuit of presumably Colorado's QB Shadeur Sanders.
Given how steep of a haul they could receive for the trade, it won't be an easy move to pass up on, no matter who is calling the shots in New England. It's even more complicated when considering the lack of impressive talent expected in the 2025 Draft, making the first overall pick desirable to get the best non-quarterback prospect of the class.
Right now, that's CB/WR Travis Hunter, and because the Patriots need help with their receiving corps and their secondary, the idea of passing up on a blue-chip player like Hunter doesn't seem too appealing, either.