With the New England Patriots in the market for a new starting quarterback, one prominent NFL insider believes former No. 1 overall draft pick Baker Mayfield could be considered in free agency.
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This is going to be one of the most important offseasons in New England Patriots history. After one of their worst seasons ever owner Robert Kraft decided to end the legendary tenure of head coach Bill Belichick in January. They now enter the offseason with a boatload of cash, a top pick in April’s draft, and a new head coach in Jerod Mayo.
The next few months will be about trying to change the culture and put together a winning team in 2024. A key element of succeeding in that pursuit is to find a viable long-term option at quarterback. There have been rumblings the organization could take a top QB prospect this spring, but there is the free-agent route as well.
- Baker Mayfield stats (2023-24): 4,044 passing yards, 28 TDs, 10 INTs, 94.6 passer rating
New England Patriots front office has unique links to Baker Mayfield
While using their salary cap space on Kirk Cousins — the top signal-caller on the market — could be an option in March, ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler recently made the case for them to go in an unexpected direction.
“While Tampa is the clear-cut favorite to re-sign [Baker] Mayfield, now a coveted free agent after a banner year with the Bucs, anything can happen in free agency. And the Patriots’ new brain trust — including lead personnel man Eliot Wolf and personnel executive Alonzo Highsmith — were part of the Cleveland regime that took Mayfield No. 1 in the 2018 draft,” Fowler wrote on Friday.
“They believed in him. Yes, the Patriots can take a quarterback at No. 3 overall. But who’s to say they wouldn’t still need a veteran? Or, if they believe Mayfield is a long-term answer in this case, they could draft Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison Jr. or trade back for more capital.”
Mayfield had a career year in 2023-24 for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and he has made it known he wants to return to the organization. However, things can certainly change quickly when big contracts get thrown around in negotiations.
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