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In the last two weeks, the race for the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft has gone off the rails.
The Raiders have won back-to-back games, the Giants dropped 45 points on the Colts in a Week 17 victory, and the Patriots have consecutive losses.
Of course, the 3-13 Browns and Titans are in the running entering the final week of the season, but after their totally discombobulated 40-7 loss to the Chargers, let’s explore the three main options for New England if it indeed stays put and secures the No. 1 overall pick at the conclusion of this regular season.
1. Trade Down
Unless a team is selecting a quarterback who checks all the boxes said team looks for in a passer, I genuinely believe trading down should be the first option to explore for a club with the No. 1 overall pick. With Drake Maye, New England will be looking elsewhere whenever it selects in Round 1, and despite flashes from Maye and the entire team throughout the 2024 season, this is still a 3-13 club entering Week 18 — clearly there are massive holes to be filled to properly build around the quarterback they took at No. 3 overall in the 2024 draft.
Having rights to the first player in a given draft is the ultimate luxury, and oftentimes another team will pay exorbitantly to obtain that ability. And for a rebuilding club, the most vital element to said rebuild is extra draft selections, particularly early ones.
If the Patriots could slide a few spots down the board while netting a 2025 second and third, a 2026 first, and another Day 2 pick, it’s a course of action they absolutely need to consider. Simply being the first team to make a selection is enticing and easy. But nothing can kickstart a roster reconstruction than more draft capital that becomes youthful, inexpensive labor for four seasons.
As for pinpoint trade-down partners and draft-board locales, the Jaguars, currently at No. 5, would be…
Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/2025-nfl-draft-order-patriots-now-in-control-of-top-pick-exploring-their-options-at-no-1/
Author : Chris Trapasso
Publish date : 2024-12-30 18:35:00
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