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Bill Simmons pitches plan for how Patriots can land another first-round pick in 2024
The Patriots need to shore up several areas of their depth chart this offseason.
The Patriots have the means of bolstering their league-worst offense this offseason thanks to the No. 3 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
But given the flaws present at several critical areas of New England’s depth chart, the Patriots are in desperate need of an injection of talent at multiple positions.
Even though a franchise QB stands as New England’s top priority as it looks to rebuild following a disastrous 2023 season, the Patriots could also use a proven No. 1 wide receiver (such as Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison Jr.) and a left tackle for the future to bolster their play in the trenches.
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As valuable as that No. 3 pick might be for New England, the Patriots won’t be able to fix all of their issues on offense over the winter.
One thing that could aid New England’s efforts is another first-round pick, allowing the Patriots to potentially kill two birds with one stone on April 25.
But given how coveted first-round selections are, do the Patriots really have the means of acquiring such valuable capital in the coming months?
Longtime Boston sports scribe and The Ringer founder Bill Simmons mapped out a potential offseason plan where New England could add another first-round pick — and it involves trading Bill Belichick to another team.
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With Belichick acknowledging on Monday that he’s still under contract in New England, Simmons offered up a scenario where the Patriots ultimately deal Belichick to the Falcons — gaining Atlanta’s first-round pick (No. 8 overall) in return.
“This leads me to think the Falcons are going to be granted permission to talk to Bill Belichick,” Simmons said Tuesday morning in a video posted to X. “[New England will say] ‘Sure, we’ll give you permission. Go talk to them.’ They have the eighth pick in the draft.
“The Patriots’ second-round pick is No. 35. I think this leads to the Patriots release Belichick from his contract, the Falcons give them the eighth pick, the Patriots give them Belichick and No. 35, which would give the Patriots the third and the eighth picks in the draft. Everybody’s happy.”
Such a move would likely be a coup for the Patriots, at least if New England is already set on moving on from Belichick and appointing a new head coach like Mike Vrabel or Jerod Mayo.
But it’s a scenario visualized through some Patriots-tinted lenses.
Even though the Falcons have reportedly expressed interest in Belichick, Belichick would also need to want to go to Atlanta in order to actually facilitate a deal.
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But beyond that, Atlanta (and frankly, any team) likely isn’t going to want to part ways with a top-10 pick for Belichick. Even with his unquestioned resume, Belichick isn’t exactly a long-term fixture for any franchise at 71 years old.
And even though he could be just what a contending team needs in 2024, Belichick’s track record during the post-Brady Era in Foxborough (29-38 record, one playoff win) has been far from sterling.
Considering that the writing could be on the wall that Belichick’s time in New England is coming to a close, Atlanta could either wait things out and see if the Patriots just fire Belichick — or make the swap with lower draft compensation, considering that the Patriots don’t exactly have the leverage here.
Regardless of what Robert Kraft and the Patriots decide to do with Belichick, it seems like a long shot that New England enters the 2024 Draft with another top-10 pick.
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