Getty Patriots potential trade target Tee Higgins.
The Patriots are still sitting on nearly $50 million in cap space, more than anyone in the league. While their attempts to dole out that money to available players this offseason has not exactly gone well, they still have opportunities to make a move or two—in the trade market. And the most prominent name on the trade market here as March wraps up happens to play the position the Patriots are most desperate to fill: wide receiver.
That would be Bengals star Tee Higgins.
After the Patriots failed in their attempt to land Calvin Ridley, who spurned the team late in the process to sign with Tennessee, they moved on to signing Vikings receiver K.J. Osborn, who does provide an upgrade to one of the worst receiving corps in the NFL.. But Osborn and returning starter Kendrick Bourne are both No. 2-3 receivers, at best.
The Patriots are badly missing a top-level target. Higgins, who has requested a trade from Cincinnati after the Bengals franchise-tagged him, is a player ready to step into a No. 1 role after spending his career behind Bengals star Ja’Marr Chase. At Bleacher Report, the Patriots are tagged as one of the potential suitors for Higgins as he looks for a big, new long-term contract.
Tee Higgins Wants a Trade & a Contract
B/R’s Kristopher Knox projects Higgins warranting a three-year deal worth $71 million. That would work well with the Patriots’ current cap structure.
Wrote Knox: “While Higgins has largely filled the No. 2 receiver role in Cincinnati, he’s shown plenty of signs that he could be a No. 1 elsewhere. Despite splitting the target share with Chase, the 25-year-old had 1,000-yard campaigns in both 2021 and 2022.
“The New England Patriots need a No. 1 target and are open to trading for receiver help, according to head coach Jerod Mayo. ‘One hundred percent. We’re still open on the trade market,’ he told reporters.”
Spotrac has Higgins projected to warrant a four-year, $74 million deal in the offseason. If the Bengals don’t re-sign him, that could wind up being a bargain once he is out from behind Chase’s shadow.
Patriots Could Reshape Their Offense
It’s not clear what kind of package would have to be offered up in order to land Higgins, but it would likely require something along the lines of what the Eagles gave up to get A.J. Brown from the Titans in 2022—a first- and third-round pick—though Higgins is a step down from Brown’s level.
The Patriots, with the No. 3 pick in this year’s draft, won’t be sending that away for Higgins, but could perhaps give the Bengals their second-rounder (No. 34 overall) and a third-rounder this year. Or, they could offer a 2025 pick. It’s a considerable cost, but that’s how badly the Patriots need a receiver.
And there’s no one better available than Higgins. At just 25 years old, Higgins struggled with injuries in 2023, but still averaged 15.6 yards per reception when healthy, in 12 games.
There’s still the question of who will be throwing passes to Higgins and the other Pats receivers, as the Pats are still figuring out whether to draft a quarterback at No. 3 or move the pick. But the current quarterbacks are Jacoby Brissett and Bailey Zappe, and there’s no point in crafting a very good receiver room with Higgins, Osborn, Bourne and Pop Douglas in place if Brissett is the starter.
But one thing at a time. If there is a chance to get Higgins, the Patriots should do so, and sort out whom they’ll take at quarterback thereafter.
#PostPulpit Mailbag: Breaking down reader-submitted Patriots mock drafts
Brian Hines explores your mock drafts in this week’s mailbag.
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The 2024 NFL Draft is officially less than one month away. So, instead of the usual questions submitted and answered in our #PostPulpit mailbag, we will be going through your own mock drafts where we hopefully will comment on a vast majority of prospects, trades, and all sorts of scenarios.
With that, let’s get into some New England Patriots mocks.
— Raul Gutierrez (@raulguti_10) March 27, 2024
Drake Maye? A+.
If Maye falls to No. 3 the Patriots should run up the card faster they did for Christian Gonzalez last April. You can read a more in-depth report on Maye here, but he has all the talent and upside teams should be looking for in a quarterback prospect.
From there, Raul does a nice job of taking care of New England’s next two biggest needs at LT and WR. Suamataia — who has a 30 visit on his radar with the Patriots — is an intriguing left tackle prospect with an incredible athletic profile. Pearsall was also one of the top athletic testers at the receiver spot in the Combine and is one of my favorite day two options in this class when you add his route running ability, hands, and toughness to his athletic profile.
As for the later rounds, Theo Johnson is a intriguing day three tight end to add to the room. Penn State tight ends don’t put up much production, but Johnson showed flashes on film before having a strong week in the Senior Bowl. He followed that up with a 9.93 Relative Athletic Score (RAS) at the Combine. Lastly, Wright is an explosive back but not sure if they’ll opt for the position that high after the Antonio Gibson signing.
— jeff paquette (@jpak12) March 27, 2024
If Maye is off the board, that should leave Daniels as the top rated quarterback remaining. While I have more questions with his game compared to Maye, he still is an electric talent that is worthy of the selection.
Adding a pair of Texas’ pass catchers afterwards is certainly how you weaponize the offense. AD Mitchell is a smooth mover at the X spot who would be a nice addition to the current receiver group. Sanders is one of the top tight ends in this class who is a tough cover for defenses. He’d project well in Alex Van Pelt’s offense where David Njoku caught 81 passes for 882 yards last season.
Beyond adding some defensive depth to conclude the draft, Brenden Rice is a strong option for the middle rounds to add a X receiver. However after already adding Mitchell, the skillset may be a tad redundant. I also like Rosengarten, who’s a very athletic tackle who guarded Michael Penix’s blindside last season as a right tackle.
Trying to help fix this offence pic.twitter.com/Wt9trxLhqt
— DPogue (@Prostarr27) March 27, 2024
Starting with Maye again is a great start, along with giving him Xavier Legette at No. 68. As a former quarterback, Legette is still learning the wide receiver position but is a freakish athlete. He posted over 1,200 receiving yards last season and if teams think he’ll continue to trend upwards, Legette has tons of potential.
Morgan is an interesting tackle prospect. His arms measured in under the 33-inch threshold which could mean a move inside is in his future. However, Morgan features elite speed grades which may allow him to be a fit in a zone run scheme like Van Pelt’s. And while we all love New Hampshire’s own Dylan Laube, he may be overlapping Gibson’s skillset.
Also Joe Milton is extremely fun. Might not be good at football, but he’s fun (watch him launch an orange and tell me that’s not fun).
People will hate, but oh well pic.twitter.com/THWHTNw7jT
— _enny_ (@EnnyBrandO) March 27, 2024
Let’s do the Marvin Harrison Jr. debate. MHJ is going to be an awesome receiver, but is he the right pick for the Patriots? Even if they don’t love the available quarterback, adding the receiver is usually the last piece of the puzzle — just ask Garrett Wilson and the Jets.
Elsewhere, I like the double dip at tackle with Patrick Paul and Walter Rouse. Paul is a massive presence (6-foot-7, 331 pounds) who also is a strong athlete along the outside, while Rouse comes into the league with over 3,400 snaps of collegiate experience.
Lastly, Barner would be a good addition to the tight end room due to his blocking ability, while Hardy is freakishly fast as he ran a 4.38 40-yard dash at the Combine. He may be limited to a nickel role at the next level but should continue to play a factor on special teams.
Realistic? Probably not. But was fun! Picked this off the dozens I've done pic.twitter.com/ITphx8dTxG
— Joshua Culver (@DJ__Cov) March 27, 2024
We got a trade down, folks. This is the popular package with the Vikings, acquiring their two first-round selections this year (No. 11 & 23) and at least a future first-plus. Still landing Joe Alt — the best left tackle in the class — would be a dream scenario, but agree with you Joshua that it may not be realistic.
While I have my doubts about Penix (injury history, throwing over the middle of the field), I’m also not sure if he’ll make it all the way to 38 due to the fact that he plays QB.
Beyond the first two rounds, tons of prospects here I like. T’Vondre Sweat is an interesting case as a massive defensive tackle (6-foot-4, 366 pounds) who DeMarcus Covington saw first-hand at the Texas’ Pro Day. While he’ll likely be limited to a two-down player, Sweat next to Christian Barmore is a deadly duo inside.
Cam Hart’s game is very intriguing as a lengthy outside cornerback (6-foot-3, 33-inch arms) who still ran a 4.5 40. Guerendo dominated the Combine while Tip Reiman is another one of the day three tight ends who features a good athletic profile (9.91 RAS) despite weighing 271 pounds. Lastly, I love Jordan Whittington as a late double-dip option at the position. Good football player who should help on special teams.
Patriots trade down with the Titans.
NE receives: TEN 1 (7th overall), TEN 2 (38th overall), TEN 2025 4th
TEN receives: NE 1 (3rd overall) pic.twitter.com/cQ2eov78L1
— The Sports Fellow (@SportsFellow_) March 27, 2024
Lots to unpack here. First of all, a trade down for a quarterback rarely happens in the NFL. If you believe in a player, you don’t risk losing him. Secondly, this is the type of trade I’d consider if moving off of No. 3. While the aforementioned Minnesota offer is intriguing, I’d rather stay in the top 10 and guarantee the addition of a blue chip player.
Now for McCarthy, I still don’t see the hype for him in the top 10. There’s tools to like in the player (good arm/mechanics, pocket mobility, solid athlete) that could lead to him being a good pro in the right situation. Maybe that is even in Alex Van Pelt’s run-first west coast style. But, I still have questions about how high his final ceiling is which is why I would look elsewhere at the top of the draft.
Outside of the first-round, I’m a fan of both Worthy and Wilson. Worthy is obviously a speedster as his 4.21-second 40-yard dash broke the all-time record but he is a strong route runner as well. Speaking of route running, Wilson is as pure as there is. However, getting both might be a bit redundant.
As we said above, trading down for your QB doesn’t happen. And I especially don’t see it in this scenario with Drake Maye getting all the way to No. 6.
Focusing on players we haven’t hit on yet, Miami’s safety Kamren Kinchens is an interesting name to watch due to his connection with Patriots senior personnel executive Alonzo Highsmith, who previously worked with Miami. Kinchens didn’t test well at the Combine, but looks more explosive on tape in the free safety mold.
Speaking of the free safety mold, Dadrion Taylor-Demerson is one of my favorite safeties in this class. He’s a playmaker on the backend (10 interceptions, 15 PBUs last three years) that is extremely versatile despite primarily playing free safety. Tanor Bortolini also features elite athletic traits for a center who would provide good depth along the interior.
We’ll end here with a(n unknown package to) trade down — and then up — to grab Georgia’s top two pass catchers. Bowers is the the clear cut top tight end in the draft who has great hands, is strong after the catch, and is a solid blocker. He’d be a great fit in Van Pelt’s offense, but using a first-round selection on the tight end position may be too rich.
As for McConkey, he may be the best pure route-runner in the class. He has elite agility and speed grades that easily translate to the playing field. As long as he can stay healthy (played in just nine games last season) he should be a day one contributor in the NFL.
If quarterback is avoided in round one, I wouldn’t mind a dart throw on Rattler in the middle rounds. He’s smaller for the position and not a great athlete, but has a lively arm and is strong in the pocket. The Oklahoma offense he played in last year was a disaster, so perhaps a better situation at the next level could help tap into his pure talent.
Elsewhere, Fiske is an awesome interior lineman who’s explosiveness jumps off the screen. However, his shorter arms and attacking mindset might not make him a fit for New England’s run defense style. Jones is a sturdy and versatile lineman but takes a ton of penalties. On the positive, All is another on the long list of intriguing day three tight end options due to his size and athleticism, while Vaki is versatile defensive back who can even play running back.
