If the NFL regular season ended today, the New England Patriots would own the No. 2 pick in the NFL Draft. The good news is that the Patriots already have their franchise quarterback in Drake Maye, so they could be open to trading the selection.
Keagan Stiefel of NESN thinks New England will do just that and has the Pats trading their first-round pick to the New York Jets in exchange for the eighth overall pick, the Jets’ second-rounder, a 2026 first-rounder and a 2026 second-rounder.
“The Patriots are going to trade the No. 2 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft to the New York Jets in our latest mock, which allows them to fill a number of needs while missing out on the likes of Hunter, Carter and McMillan,” Stiefel wrote. “New England also lands first- and second-round picks in the 2026 NFL Draft, which if we know anything about New York, means it will be picking very early.”
Stiefel then has the Pats selecting Texas Longhorns offensive tackle Kelvin Banks at No. 8.
“Banks is the pick for us, as he not only fits the mold of what Patriots executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf typically looks for, but we’ve seen more of him than Campbell,” added Stiefel. “New England locks in its left tackle for the present and future with this selection, while opening up spots to address other needs later on.”
The Patriots are in desperate need of offensive line help, so Banks would definitely make sense at that spot. And as Stiefel noted, adding the extra 2025 second-round pick would also help New England fill more roster holes.
The Pats have a whole lot of needs, but they are especially in dire need of playmakers, offensive linemen and pass rusher.
We’ll see if the Patriots experience more success in the 2025 NFL Draft than they did last spring where it was basically just Maye and not a whole lot else.