In recent months, there has been considerable speculation about the Patriots trading their No. 31 pick in this year's NFL draft. One avenue New England might explore is swapping this pick for Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown.
If the Patriots can’t pull off a trade for Brown, they might consider trading down from their pick. CBS Sports NFL writer Jordan Dajani put together a mock draft on Saturday in which he has New England trading the No. 31 pick to the Rams. This move would enable Los Angeles to select Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson.
"The Patriots allow the Rams to jump in front of their NFC West rivals in Seattle to grab who Sean McVay hopes is his quarterback of the future in Ty Simpson," Dajani wrote. "The Alabama product was a one-year starter who's not ready to play right away but flashed his NFL potential early in the season. Simpson being selected in the first round gives the Rams another year of control with the fifth-year option. I can't imagine a better mentor than Matthew Stafford, so I'm hoping for this potential marriage over teams like the Cardinals, Steelers or Browns."
New England may secure both a second and third-round pick in this year’s draft from the Rams, along with a potential pick for next year as well.
There's a strong possibility the Patriots won't be selecting at No. 31, whether they trade down from that spot or move up to secure a star player within the top 25.
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