A Vikings-Patriots trade that comes with a shocking twist, Mac Jones replacement

All signs point to the New England Patriots taking a quarterback in the 2024 NFL Draft. While they signed a savvy veteran backup in Jacoby Brissett, this familiar face is only going to be a stop-gap in New England. The Patriots have already moved on from Mac Jones, as they traded him to his hometown Jacksonville Jaguars after three seasons. They are taking a quarterback at No. 3, right?

Well, maybe not so fast. Nick Baumgardner and Chad Graff of The Athletic ($) outlined a series of trades that involved the Patriots moving off the No. 3 pick this year. While a trade with the Minnesota Vikings to pick up No. 11 and No. 23 in exchange for No. 3 has been discussed, there is another move the Patriots can do to move back up and still get their guy. Here's how they get J.J. McCarthy over Bo Nix.

In Scenario A, New England trades the No. 3 pick to Minnesota for No. 11 and 23 this year and next year's second-round pick. The Patriots then take Penn State tackle Olu Fashanu at No. 11 and the Oregon quarterback Nix at No. 23. Again, I don't hate that, but Nix will be no better than QB5 in this draft, depending on how much you value what Washington star Michael Penix Jr. did at his pro day.

But in Scenario B, New England does the same trade with the Vikings before doing another with the Arizona Cardinals. The second proposed trade gets the No. 4 overall pick from Arizona in exchange for No. 11, No. 68 and an additional undetermined future pick. After the Vikings select Drake Maye at No. 3, New England uses the No. 4 pick to select the Michigan quarterback McCarthy and uses the No. 23 pick on Georgia tackle Amarius Mims.

Because I like the McCarthy/Mims combo more than I do the Nix/Fashanu one, I think you go for it.

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For as much as I think Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye would be great selections for the Patriots, I have come to accept that Daniels is destined for Washington and Minnesota may covet Maye more than McCarthy. Since the Patriots haven't been this bad since before they drafted Drew Bledsoe, the Patriots have to take advantage of this situation. Otherwise, Jerod Mayo will have no shot at success.

To me, I think taking advantage of the Vikings' desperation, especially since they desperately need to get ahead of the New York Giants at No. 6, would serve New England. I also tend to believe that for the right price, Arizona will move off the No. 4 overall pick. The Cardinals may love Marvin Harrison Jr. out of Ohio State, but general manager Monti Ossenfort has proven to be a wheeler and a dealer of late.

While either McCarthy, Nix or Penix could have success playing in Alex Van Pelt's offense, McCarthy has the highest ceiling of the three. Nix has the highest floor but is closer to a finished product than all three. Do you want to draft what you essentially got rid of in Jones? Penix could be a huge get, but age, injury history and left-handedness don't serve him. McCarthy is a better version of Brock Purdy.

The idea behind getting a quarterback and a tackle in the first round is the preferred way to go for New England should the Patriots trade back. McCarthy's calm, cool and collected nature will serve him with the Patriots. As far as Mims is concerned, he is a behemoth of a man. While he did not have a ton of starts at Georgia, he was such an impactful player whenever he was out there for the Dawgs.

McCarthy to New England would be closer to Bledsoe than to Jones, with the upside of a Tom Brady.