NFL GM says Bill Belichick traded down just to mess with the Jets
"Bill will try to screw them over any chance he gets. He knew exactly what he was doing"
The Patriots moved down three sports during the NFL Draft last week and nabbed an extra fourth-round pick from Pittsburgh while selecting Oregon cornerback Christian Gonzalez.
Gonzalez was expected by many analysts, including ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr, to be selected in the top 10. The silky-smooth, 6-foot-2 cornerback ended up all the way to New England at No. 17.
But there may have been another reason that Bill Belichick and the Patriots made the trade, according to an anonymous NFL general manager who spoke with Jason La Canfora of the Washington Post.
According to the general manager, the asking price for such a swap should have been a third-round pick instead of the fourth-round pick that the Patriots got in return.
“Belichick did it just to (expletive) the Jets,” the general manager said. “He sold low because he knew the Steelers were going to take the kid the Jets wanted to take.”
The Steelers picked offensive tackle Broderick Jones from Georgia with the No. 14 pick. The Jets were reportedly set on taking him at No. 15 and were “totally blinsided” by the trade, which left New York scrambling, according to the GM.
“Bill will try to screw them over any chance he gets. He knew exactly what he was doing,” another anonymous executive told La Canfora.
The Jets took Will McDonald, the 2021 Big 12 defensive lineman of the year from Iowa State, at No. 15, and spent their next two picks on offensive linemen.
The Jets initially had pick No. 13, but swapped it for No. 15 in the Aaron Rodgers trade with Green Bay.
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