It remains to be seen whether head coach and de facto general manager Bill Belichick believes his New England Patriots are a playoff contender.
New England had won two consecutive games before an embarrassing 33-14 home loss to the Chicago Bears this past Monday night. The backdrop here is Belichick’s handling of the quarterback situation between Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe.
At 3-4 on the season, New England is in last place in the AFC East. However, it is also just one game out of the final wild card spot with the NFL trade deadline mere days away.
According to this report from Doug Kyed of Pro Football Focus, New England has recived a ton of calls about a number of players on its roster. That includes running back Damien Harris and wide reeciver Jakobi Meyers. Fellow pass-catchers Nelson Agholor and Kendrick Bourne join safety Jabrill Peppers in being on the radar of other teams.
While New England is not actively shopping any of these players, it would not be a surprise if the team made a move or two. Perhaps, the outcome of Sunday’s road date with the division-rival New York Jets will clear things up. What we do know is that Belichick and Co. have not been afraid to sell off veteran assets who they don’t believe have a long-term future with the organization. Below, we look at three ideal trade scenarios to help the Pats build for the future.
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Pats send Kendrick Bourne to the Los Angeles Chargers
Los Angeles continues to deal with injuries at the wide receiver position as the team looks to overcome a ho-hum 4-3 start to the season. Keenan Allen missed a ton of action earlier in the campaign to a hamstring injury. Fellow starter Mike Williams is now sidelined for at least four weeks with an ankle injury.
- New England Patriots get: 6th round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft
- Los Angeles Chargers get: Kendrick Bourne
While this might seem like a small bounty for New England to receive for its second-leading pass-catcher from a season ago, Bourne has done very little in 2022. In fact, he’s found himself out of the receiver rotation having played a combined 106 snaps in six games this season. Acquiring anything of substance for him would be a win.
New England Patriots trade Isaiah Wynn
While Wynn was not mentioned in the aforementioned report, we already know that New England had conversations about moving the former first-round pick and impending free agent ahead of Week 1. He’s precisely the type of player these Pats have traded in the past. That is to say, a player on his rookie deal who will likely cash in big time once free agency opens in March. Why not collect draft capital right now?
On the other end of the spectrum, the Raiders continue to struggle at right tackle. It’s been a glaring issue for them since they actually traded Trent Brown to New England back in 2021.
New Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler have a built-in relationship with Belichick dating back to their days with the Pats. They seem to have a good working relationship. Vegas can offer up a second-round pick in 2023 and a future mid-round selection to make this worth the Patriots’ while.
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Damien Harris heads to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady is on pace to match his total of 719 pass attempts from a season ago. In fact, he could very well break the single-season record. That’s not an ideal scenario for a 45-year old quarterback who is obviously on the downswing.
At issue here is a lack of a rushing attack. Tampa Bay ranks dead last in rushing yards per game as Leonard Fournette continues to prove he’s inconsistent. The Bucs need to fix this.
- New England Patriots get: 2023 4th-round pick, 2024 5th-round pick
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers get: Damien Harris
This move enables New England to pick up two mid-round selections for a player who might not have a future with the team. After all, second-year back Rhamondre Stevenson has actually outplayed his counterpart thus far this season.