4 teams that blew it not drafting or trading for C.J. Stroud

1. New England Patriots have to regret not even trying for C.J. Stroud

If the cost would've been high for the Raiders and was also high for the Panthers in the actual trade up to No. 1, then it would've been absolutely astronomical for the New England Patriots. Picking at No. 17, it would've always been an uphill battle to try into trade into the range to draft one of the top quarterbacks, Stroud obviously included.

After what we've seen from Mac Jones this season, however, it's hard not to think that it still might've been worth it for Bill Belichick to ignore his past process and make such an aggressive move.

Jones has already been benched twice through five games this season in New England. In the past two weeks, he's led the offense to completely hapless performances that ultimately led to the two worst losses of the Belichick era, including a 34-0 shutout against the Saints in Week 5. The Pats hadn't been shut out since 2016 prior to Sunday.

Even if the Patriots don't have a great group of pass-catchers, that group is improved from last season. The offensive coordinator is also improved with Bill O'Brien joining the staff this offseason. The one constant in the lasting lack of performance has been Jones. He's clearly not the guy at this point and New England had to have realized that at some point.

Despite how costly it would've been in terms of draft capital, the Patriots needed a viable quarterback to get back to the playoffs, or at least to even have that chance. Stroud has proven to be that, and New England is left playing the "what if" game while Mac Jones stumbles through 2023.