The New England Patriots own the No. 32 pick in the first round and 11 other selections in the 2019 NFL Draft. The Patriots own two picks in the second round, one pick each in the third and fourth rounds, three in the seventh round and received four compensatory picks from the NFL. With these picks, the Patriots can fill some of the team’s needs, especially at tight end after the retirement of veteran Rob Gronkowski.

However, the Patriots are also looking at a possible successor to veteran quarterback Tom Brady and to beef up their wide receiver corps.

There are available talents in the 2019 NFL Draft that could fill these voids, but at No. 32, the Patriots have no other option but to move up to the Draft to take a big name that could immediately create an impact in New England.

Patriots have many needs to address

Case in point, tight ends T.J. Hockenson of Iowa and Alabama’s Irv Smith, who visited Gillette Stadium recently. Hockenson is considered to be the best tight end in the 2019 NFL Draft, with some experts expecting him to be selected in the top 10. There is a chance that he could drop in the 20s, but the Patriots should trade up to take a shot at him. Smith could be taken in the latter part of the first round, and head coach Bill Belichick has a shot to take him at No.

32.

Several wide receivers also visited the Patriots recently, including A.J. Brown of Ole Miss, Deebo Samuel of South Carolina and Baylor’s Jalen Hurd. If the Patriots want a big outside target for Brady, then Hakeem Butler of Iowa State is their man. However, Butler is expected to be taken early in the first round. At quarterback, the Patriots are high on Duke’s Daniel Jones as a future successor to Brady, but his Draft stock has risen in the past days so he might be off the board when New England makes its pick at No.

32.

What’s the next move for the Patriots?

Colin Cowherd, host of Fox Sports 1’s The Herd, floated a possibility where the Patriots could trade up to No. 8 with the Detroit Lions. While he has no concrete basis on his assessment, Cowherd maintained that the Patriots are tight with the Lions, especially with the latter’s front office.

Lions head coach Matt Patricia worked as assistant, and defensive, coordinator for Belichick for a long time while Lions general manager Bob Quinn spent 15 years as a top front office man for the Patriots before accepting a job in Detroit. Also, Cowherd maintained that the Lions want to move down so a trade is a possibility.

However, Jay Glazer of The Athletic said he doesn’t expect Belichick and the Patriots to trade up, saying doing it would be unusual for the team. Glazer told a fan who wrote him that trading up is not the Patriots’ style, saying they usually “let treasure drop to them because they’re always looking for a different kind of player.” “The Patriots have a different style where they have certain players that will fit their system in the Patriot Way better than they will fit other teams,” said Glazer.
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