Patriots Urged to Turn NFL Draft Upside Down With Wild Move

The New England Patriots are being urged to make an incredibly risky move that would alter the course of the NFL Draft.

Jan 13, 2025; Foxborough, MA, USA; Mike Vrabel addresses media at a press conference to announce his hiring as the New England Patriots head coach at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images | Eric Canha-Imagn Images

The New England Patriots were hoping to find a generational talent in the NFL Draft this year, but falling to fourth in the draft order has made that difficult.

Both Travis Hunter and Abdul Carter are expected to be off the board by the time the Patriots pick, which has created quite the pickle for New England.

Yes, the Pats can do the safe thing and take LSU Tigers tackle Will Campbell to fill a glaring hole, but is it possible the Patriots can stun everyone with an absolutely shocking pick?

Pete Prisco of CBS Sports explores the possibility, suggesting that New England actually takes Ohio State Buckeyes tackle Josh Simmons at No. 4.

"Yes, he's coming off a knee injury, but he is expected to be ready for camp," Prisco wrote. "He's special. He's athletic, can move and is just scratching the surface of what he can be. Plug and play at left tackle."

Simmons tore his patellar tendon back in October, which obviously caused his draft stock to take a hit. Prior to that, there was a chance he could have been a top-10 pick, but things have changed.

There is no doubt that Simmons is immensely talented, but this would be an incredibly risky pick for a Pats squad that absolutely cannot afford to misfire here.

Simmons is generally expected to go somewhere in the back half of the first round and may very well fall into the 20s, so the chances of him actually rocketing all the way up to No. 4 are slim to none.

One thing is for sure, though: if the Patriots did do this, it would change a whole lot in the picks to come, as a whole lot of teams would have to shuffle things around.

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