Patriots NFL Draft Rumors: What's Real, What's Smoke, and What to Watch
A little more than 24 hours until the first round of the NFL Draft kicks off, and the New England Patriots are in a position they haven't found themselves in for quite some time. No longer are they walking into the draft with a sure-fire idea of who they'll be selecting, though Drake Maye and Will Campbell were fun additions at the time.
Now sitting in the penultimate selection in the first round, the Patriots have options about how they'll use the 31st overall pick. Do they want to add to their defensive front and get after the quarterback more this season? Does Morgan Moses' climbing age trigger a need for a right tackle? Maybe a pass catcher to help ease the loss of Stefon Diggs and/or Austin Hooper will do the trick? See what I mean?
There's plenty of rumors and speculations about what New England will walk out of the first round with, but trying to narrow it down will certainly help. What to watch out for -- from the positions the team is heavily interested in, to what rumors you should try and avoid -- are all below. Good luck reading between the draft lines!
What's Real: Offensive Tackle Interest Is Legit
Moses is entering his second season with the Patriots and isn't getting any younger. He didn't show any signs of slowing down in 2025, but he just turned 35 and a succession plan needs to be established at some point.
That's why the Patriots potentially grabbing a right tackle in the first round is trending upwards. Arizona State's Max Iheanachor and Clemson's Blake Miller appear to be the top two choices at the end of the first round, and the Patriots have done plenty of work on Iheanachor. Head coach Mike Vrabel was present at his pro day, getting one-on-one time with the draft prospect on the field.
Vrabel loves to build his teams from the inside out. That means establishing the trenches before anything else. Last year, it was Campbell with the fourth overall selection. If Iheanachor or Miller is on the board when New England is on the clock, there's a real possibility offensive line is the pick.
Remember: Moses will hit unrestricted free agency after 2027 and right guard Mike Onwenu is in a contract season this year. Protecting Drake Maye is a major concern for this team, and it starts with building a wall upfront.
What's Smoke: Wide Receiver Early Doesn't Seem Plausible
With reports of the Patriots "likely" trading for Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown in June, that puts more of a microscope on the position as a whole. There's been chatter that the Patriots could find a way to snag Texas A&M's KC Concepcion with their first round pick, but if Brown is seriously happening, wide receiver will absolutely not be the choice.
Think about this. If the report of Brown is true, it puts more pressure on both parties to make it happen. Philadelphia would have a hard time explaining to Brown how that deal, one he's certainly happy to welcome, fell apart. Same goes for the Patriots, who have been slowly ramping up fan support for the move for months.
If the trade doesn't happen, that won't be a decision made in the next two days. While a deal for Brown remains "likely," it's safe to say that drafting a rookie wideout in the first or even second round is "unlikely." This wouldn't take New England out of any depth selections on day three to build their reserves, but they won't be addressing the position high.
Signing Romeo Doubs to a four-year, $68 million contract, then spending draft capital on a first round rookie and trading more picks for Brown seems like a wildly misuse of capital for one position on the roster.
What To Watch: Trading Out Of First Round
Plenty of people across the league have called the back of the first round more of a sweet spot in this draft. It's a relatively weaker draft class at certain positions, Patriots de facto general manager Eliot Wolf admitted earlier this month. That means the Patriots don't need to spend a first rounder on a player that may not be deserving of it.
With quarterback-needy teams sitting right behind them (New York Jets, Arizona Cardinals), the Patriots could swing a trade to move from the end of the first to the top of the second -- adding more draft capital to their bank in the process.
Edge rusher is a deep class, where several first round talents could slide into day two. Same goes for the offensive linemen and off-ball linebackers. If the Patriots want a chance to grab Texas Tech linebacker Jacob Rodriguez (considered a second round pick), they'll likely need to split the gap between 31st overall and 63rd overall.
It will be a fun three days for New England fans. Not because they can already envision how a rookie will fit into the team's schemes, but that they can't expect anything until the pick is turned in.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/patriots/onsi as Patriots NFL Draft Rumors: What's Real, What's Smoke, and What to Watch.
Copyright ABG-SI LLC. SPORTS ILLUSTRATED is a registered trademark of ABG-SI LLC. All Rights Reserved.
This story was originally published April 22, 2026 at 11:00 AM.