5 reasons why the New England Patriots have to draft Jayden Daniels

The New England Patriots are now a once-formerly great franchise in need of a new direction, image, and face of the franchise. The "old" face, Tom Brady, was broomed after the 2019 season by Bill Belichick with the acquiescence of owner Robert Kraft, and things have gone considerably downhill since then, to say the least.

Yet, that was then, and this is now. Bill Belichick has left the building, and the Pats have a new Head Coach who's had a promising beginning in Jerod Mayo and a new de facto GM, Eliot Wolf. They'll be running things in free agency and the draft. Both are critical to setting building blocks in place, especially on offense, for the new Patriots. There's not a whole lot of room for error.

The most critical decision that Wolf has to make will be the selection/choice of who'll be quarterbacking the 2024 New England Patriots. It's the most important position on the team and the absolutely most critical decision of the entire offseason (when good teams are constructed) to get right.

Lots of speculation and rumors abound about possible signings of or trades for veterans or drafting this or that college player to fill that role. But all things considered, the choice has to be drafting 2023the Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback, Jayden Daniels of LSU with pick No. 3 (assuming he's still on the board) of the NFL draft.

Here are five reasons why.

Jayden Daniels is right for a whole host of reasons

The Patriots need a quarterback. Selecting Daniels at three immediately and demonstrably fills a position of dire need. It's a win-pick for new GM Eliot Wolf all day long. It guarantees an A grade in the first minutes of the NFL draft for the Patriots and Wolf. It also signals to the NFL, particularly the AFC East, that the new Patriots will be a completely different opponent.

Secondly, Daniels is a consensus top-three quarterback in the 2024 NFL draft. Consensus drafting is good and the best opportunity (not guaranteed) for success. Wolf and the Pats, in selecting him, stick to the mantra of consensus drafting. In addition, they use the team's highest pick in decades to make a clear case that head-scratching "reaches" for players in the draft are history, and consigned to the dustbin of poor drafting that was the hallmark of the prior personnel regime.

A third reason Daniels makes perfect sense is his proficiency as a passer, the most important technical aspect of the position. His 2023 throwing stats are off-the-charts great. He connected on 72.2% of his passes for 3812 yards and an astounding 40 touchdowns. For a team that was near the bottom of the NFL in scoring, that's a most welcome attribute.

Phil Perry and Greg Bedard comment on Daniels on NBC Sports Boston YouTube,

Jayden Daniels provides everything the Patriots need at quarterback

In addition to being a top passer, Daniels also does something the Patriots quarterbacks couldn't last season: he protects the ball. He threw only four interceptions in 327 attempts. Therefore, Daniels's TD-to-interception ratio was a spellbinding 10 to one. That's a percentage you want to see yet seldom do. Daniels isn't going to help lose games by errant throws that wind up in the hands of the opposition very often. How much is that worth? A lot.

And a final reason Jayden Daniels is the choice at pick No. 3, and again, that's assuming he lasts until that pick (not at all a given at this point), is that he's a quarterback built to perform in the 2020s National Football League. He's a dual-threat quarterback who can beat you not only with his uber-accurate arm but also with his explosive running ability.

Need stats?

In 2023, Daniels ran for an additional 1134 yards on 135 carries, an 8.4 yards-per-carry average. And, oh yeah, he also scored ten touchdowns on the ground to go along with his 40 through the air. That's 50 total TDs scored. Daniels' is a threat to take it to the house whenever he touches the ball. His explosive running ability makes Daniels a dual-threat quarterback who fits the mold of a modern NFL signal-caller to a tee.

All those reasons add up to one thing: the Patriots should make a clear decision to take Jayden Daniels if he's available at pick No. 3 in the NFL draft on April 29th. Don't hesitate; just send the card up to Commissioner Roger Goodell and select Daniels.

If there is one thing other than the now-retired Tom Brady staring in the faces of AFC East and any other defensive coordinators in the NFL, it's a bona fide dual-threat quarterback with an offensive coordinator who knows how to employ him. That will hopefully be the Patriots' new Offensive Coordinator, Alex Van Pelt.

This future eventuality will send shivers down the spines of AFC East and other defensive coordinators who have to defend against the new Patriots with Daniels at the helm. It's a veritable "Nightmare on Elm Street" scenario for the Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills, and New York Jets.

Those teams have been skating much easier since Brady left Foxborough for Tampa Bay in 2020. But that will all change if and when the Patriots select Jayden Daniels on April 25th. And, ain't that going to be something to behold? Indeed it will!

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