Patriots will regret trading away key players if latest rumors are true

With the 2024 NFL trade deadline just two days away, teams are rushing around to trade away or acquire players to improve their rosters now and in the future. The Patriots are one of the more noteworthy teams that are reportedly prepared to be sellers, as they showed with the trade of linebacker Joshua Uche to the Chiefs last week.

More reporters indicated that was just the beginning, and more moves were likely to come, with a long list of players allegedly available for teams to inquire about.

While some players make sense for the team to want to trade, like receivers K.J. Osborn and Tyquan Thornton, far too many of the rumored names would be massive mistakes for a team in the Patriots' position to give up on at the start of a rebuild.

The new regime has made it clear that they prefer to build their roster through the draft, and accumulating more draft capital is a big goal ahead of next offseason. They added another third-rounder with the Matthew Judon trade and a sixth-rounder for Uche in 2026. But they hope to add even more with trades ahead of the deadline, as their reported list of available players has grown over the last few days.

That is a smart way to build a solid team for years to come, but The Athletic's Dianna Russini revealed who exactly the Patriots might be willing to part with, many of whom would be regrettable to trade now and in the future.

Rumored available players for trade make zero sense for the Patriots

Plenty of names have circulated over the past month in trade proposals and rumors of who the Patriots should and/or could decide to trade. Some are not surprising, while others make no sense.

That's the case with the latest reporting from Russini, who wrote about rumored players the Patriots are listening to calls for ahead of the deadline on Tuesday.

"The 49ers have called around looking to add to their defense; New England defensive tackle Davon Godchaux is available, and the Niners know it. The Patriots also are open to moving wideouts Tyquan Thornton and Kendrick Bourne as well as safety Kyle Dugger."

At first glance, most might not feel any of these players should be considered off limits. However, guys like Davon Godchaux are far more important to the Patriots defense than what he has been given credit for, especially in the absence of Ja'Whaun Bentley.

The nose tackle has been one of the best run stoppers on the defensive line since his teammate went down with a season-ending injury in Week 2. On top of that, he received a contract-extension this past offseason to keep him tied to New England for the next three seasons, making his potential availability even more questionable.

The same can be said about Kendrick Bourne and Kyle Dugger, both earning extensions over the past year.

Trading away Bourne, who would likely bring the Patriots the highest compensation, would be a mistake for their receiving corps. Although he's still not 100% from his ACL tear last year, Bourne is a proven talent for the team and a solid leader for the locker room. The receivers have been part of the problem this season with their constant social media controversies and sound bites to the media, making Bourne's presence even more valuable.

Then there's accounting for Drake Maye and his success leading the offense. Leaving him with only young and mostly inexperienced receivers won't bode well long-term. He needs at least one reliable veteran to keep the offense afloat, and that should be Bourne.

As an entire list, the names make little sense for the Patriots to make available given their current stance in the league and their ultimate goal to become a contender again.

To accomplish that, you don't trade away every good player your roster currently has in hopes of replacing them with rookies in the next draft. That is not how you successfully build a competent roster, and it brings up far more concerns about what the new staff led by Eliot Wolf are thinking if these rumors are true.

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