We are now a little over a week away from the NFL Trade deadline (November 10, 4 p.m.). A handful of sizeable deals have already been made, and I’m sure one or two more could shock the system.
If you hoped the Patriots would be in on anything that costs something substantial, I don’t get the sense that’s in their future. They made their big moves in the offseason, signing Alijah Vera-Tucker in free agency and trading for A.J. Brown. Neither is making the impact Mike Vrabel and company hoped for, but there is still time.
Meanwhile, the Pats still have holes that an infusion of outside talent could plug. The team can make a trade or two without giving up any day-one or day-two picks. Yes, draft capital can be overrated, but given how talent-starved the 2024 (one player), 2023 (two), 2022 (one), and 2021 (two) drafts were, you should understand why cost-controlled, younger players matter for the Pats going forward.
That said, I’d gladly part with some day-three selections; the team has two fifths, four sixths, Minnesota’s seventh in 2027, and an extra sixth in 2028, to help this team. So, with an eye on the budget (an NFL-low $1.5 million in cap space, which obviously can be rectified...