Baker Mayfield has suddenly become the quarterback that every QB-needy team wanted in the NFL Draft, and even the team with the greatest player to ever play the position felt the need to get a closer look at the former Oklahoma star. But would they have actually been willing to pay the cost to trade up for him?
Doubtful, at best.
Mayfield’s agent, Jack Mills, said on Andrew Brandt’s podcast Tuesday that he was informed the Patriots were planning to trade up to No. 2 to draft Mayfield if the Cleveland Browns passed on him. According to Jeff Howe of The Athletic, there is more to it than that.
A source told Howe that the Patriots wanted to meet with Mayfield in the weeks leading up to the draft, but the QB kept denying the request because he didn’t want to waste his time with a team that didn’t pick until No. 23 overall. So, in order to secure the meeting, Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels reportedly told a member of Mayfield’s camp that New England was considering a big move up the board. Mayfield then agreed to chat with the Pats.
Howe adds that the Patriots never actually told Mayfield’s agent that they would move up to No. 2, but Mayfield was supposedly informed by the New York Jets that they would be taking him if he was available at No. 3. Therefore, the only way the Patriots could concoct a situation in which they might be able to draft Mayfield would have been to move up to second overall.
Bill Belichick likes to do his due diligence on as many players as possible, so it would not be a surprise if he was enamored with Mayfield and wanted to be prepared in the rare event that the 23-year-old slipped a little further down the board. After all, this is not the first we have heard about The Hoodie being interested in Mayfield. While he may not have been willing to give up several picks to move up to No. 2, moving from Nos. 23 and 31 to, say, No. 10 may not have been as far-fetched.
