Bleacher Report proposes insane quarterback trade for the Patriots
Momentum surrounding the Patriots perhaps not sticking with Mac Jones is gaining, as Bleacher Report is proposing an insane trade to improve the team's QB situation. Mac Jones is in his third year as the QB of the New England Patriots. In his rookie season, Jones looked every bit of a young, ascending franchise QB.
Then, in year two, he confusingly assigned Matt Patricia, a defensive coordinator, to run the offense, and in turn, Mac Jones hit a total wall and regressed. Now, in year three with an actual offensive mind in Bill O'Brien, Jones is statistically worse in 2023 than he was in 2022. Whatever is going on with the QB situation in New England simply isn't working, and perhaps Jones' year two regression has had a more permanent impact on the QB.
The New England Patriots are 1-3 and don't have a ton going for them. Both Matthew Judon and Christian Gonzalez are set to miss an extended period of time, so the solid defense is going to take a hit. The offense hasn't really worked thus far either. They can't really pass the ball consistently and haven't been able to run the ball all that well.
Even though Mac Jones is not the only issue, he is a big part of it, and Bleacher Report seems to think that the Patriots need to make a significant quarterback move, specifically for Kirk Cousins:
"With the most cap space available of any team in 2024, the Patriots have the finances to give Kirk Cousins an extension to be their starting quarterback for several years.
- Ryan Fowler
Mac Jones doesn't look to be the answer right now for head coach Bill Belichick, and losing simply doesn't exist in the DNA of the future Hall of Famer.
With a similar skill set to that of Jones—both make their money inside of structure—Cousins' transition period could be seamless within Bill O'Brien's offense.
The Vikings drafted former BYU signal-caller Jaren Hall on Day 3 this spring. He isn't Cousins, but trading Cousins would free up money and allow him to showcase if he could be the guy moving forward.
If he isn't, Minnesota would have New England's second-rounder (and its own first-round pick) to potentially grab a quarterback in the position-rich 2024 draft."
The proposed trade package is a 2024 2nd-round pick and a 2025 4th-round pick. For many reasons, this might be a good idea for the Patriots moving forward. First of all, Cousins is objectively an efficient QB and has been consistent for years. He'd bring stability to the position.
Secondly, if this trade proposal could land Cousins, the Pats would still have their 1st-round pick in 2024 and could still use that to draft a QB of the future. On the other side of that, this trade might also make sense because Cousins is a pure pocket passer who plays within the offense, and I think this skillset can age nicely as Cousins approaches 40 years old.
Tom Brady and Kirk Cousins each play a similar style of football. Obviously I am not saying that Cousins is Brady, but both are pure pocket passers with average, accurate arms who play best when they are within the structure of the offense. It's not outrageous to suggest that the Patriots would be better off on offense with Cousins under center.
He is a free agent at the end of the year, so they'd obviously need to extend him for a year or two. This could also buy the Patriots some time to try and draft and develop a long-term solution at quarterback.