Patriots Daily: Draft Implication of Week 9 Game vs. the Titans

I am not an advocate of tanking for a better draft position. If the New England Patriots were ever going to lose games intentionally, 2020 was the season to do it. Many factors were working against them that season. These included Tom Brady leaving, significant dead cap space, leading the NFL in COVID opt-outs, and more. An elite quarterback prospect, Trevor Lawrence, was also going first overall in the 2021 NFL Draft.

Players do not tank. There is too much at stake for players from a personal standpoint to not perform their best whenever they play. This includes health risks, as playing at less than 100% is dangerous. Perhaps some players try to build themselves up with a big play instead of playing within a scheme, but that happens whether or not teams are tanking.

Franchises can opt against doing what helps their chances of winning. Those decisions would come from higher up than players. Teams can opt to keep players sidelined who could help them win, trade useful players for future assets, or utilize schemes that don’t maximize the team’s potential to succeed. However, anybody green-lighting such a plan has to feel great about their job security.

This brings us to the Patriots Week 9 matchup against the Tennessee Titans.

2025 NFL Draft Implications

If the 2025 draft order were set today, the Carolina Panthers (1-7) would have the first overall pick. They’d be followed by the Titans (1-6) and Patriots (2-6) rounding out the top three. However, if the Patriots had one more win, they could fall out of the top ten in the draft order. Ten teams currently have either one or two wins, so the potential for significant movement at the top of the draft order each week is great.

If New England had “earned” the first overall selection in the 2024 NFL Draft, my preference would have been to take the top quarterback on my board. Fortunately, that was the same player the Patriots drafted third overall, Drake Maye. New England is no longer searching for their franchise quarterback because they already have him. A higher draft position generates a better opportunity to pick their preferred player or get more in return for a trade. However, the stakes aren’t nearly as high this time around.

Maye Day, Maye Day🚨 @DrakeMaye2 is the @Patriots pick at No. 3

📺: #NFLDraft on NFLN/ESPN/ABC
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/9VoLjqXLkt

— NFL (@NFL) April 26, 2024

The focus for the New England Patriots should be establishing a winning culture around their new front office and coaching staff. Show the players and fans that their vision for the team can work. Gain the confidence of a deflated fanbase. Players have opportunities to show they should be a part of the team’s core moving forward. Coaches need to show they are worth keeping around. The best way to do all of this is to play competitive football for the rest of the season and earn a few victories.

If playing hard and playing well knocks New England back a few spots in the 2025 NFL Draft, so be it. The trade-off is worth it. And everyone needs to remember the Patriots and Titans are playing in Week 8, not Week 18. In theory, New England can still finish anywhere from 2-15 to 11-6. Why not stay optimistic in October?

Also in Tuesday’s Patriots Daily:

Patriots Fact of the Day

The New England Patriots have never drafted in the top three of consecutive NFL Drafts. However, they did have top-three picks in consecutive drafts in 1990 and 1991.

New England held the No. 3 overall pick in 1990. They traded it as part of a package to the Seattle Seahawks to move down in the draft and pick up extra picks. Seattle received Nos. 3 and 29. New England got back Nos. 8, 10, 64, and 101. The Seahawks drafted Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive lineman Cortez Kennedy third overall and linebacker Terry Wooten in Round 2. The Patriots used their first-round picks on Chris Singleton (No. 8) and Ray Agnew (No. 10). The later picks were packaged as parts of other deals.

Today would have been the great Cortez Kennedy's 54th birthday.

On this day, we pause not only to remember his football career, but also reflect on the many lives he touched along the way. #HOFForever pic.twitter.com/Y9pk9CDbR0

— Pro Football Hall of Fame (@ProFootballHOF) August 23, 2022

In 1991, the Patriots were scheduled to pick first overall. On the day of the draft, Raghib “Rocket” Ismael signed a contract to play for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League. He was rumored to be going first overall to New England. The Patriots opted to trade back once again, this time to the Dallas Cowboys, who selected Russell Maryland. The defensive tackle won three Super Bowls with Dallas.

New England received a modest return. They got the Cowboys’ first and second-round picks, along with veteran players David Howard, Eugene Lockhart, and Ron Francis. The draft picks were used to take Pat Harlow (No. 11 overall) and Jerome Henderson (No. 41).

Post of the Day

Boston Sports Throwback for the win:

I cannot fathom being a Jets fan pic.twitter.com/XCDOZQjfF7

— Boston Sports Throwback (@BOSthrowback) October 27, 2024

More From Patriots Football Now

PFF’s Best and Worst Patriots Grades of Week 8 – The New England Patriots win over the Jets meant more players landing on the honor roll this week. Pro Football Focus approved of the performances of Drake Maye, Hunter Henry, Dell Pettus, and others. Kendrick Bourne, Davon Godchaux, and Jaquelin Roy were among those on the opposite end of the spectrum.

New England Trades Joshua Uche to Kansas City – The NFL Trade Deadline is in one week. The Patriots moved on from one veteran already, sending Joshua Uche to the Chiefs. New England received a 2026 sixth-round pick in return.

Ten Takeaways From the Patriots 25-22 Win Over the Jets – The New England Patriots pulled off an upset at home against the New York Jets to improve to 2-6. Drake Maye looked excellent early before exiting injured. Meanwhile, Aaron Rodgers looked like a shell of his former self despite decent numbers.