Patriots Gridiron News: Jayden Daniels draft buzz; Falcons in hot pursuit of Bill Belichick

With Caleb Williams officially declaring for the 2024 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots will have an interesting decision to make with the No. 3 overall pick in the draft.  Do they trade up to have their choice of the top two quarterbacks in the draft, Williams or Drake Maye, or do they stay pat and take the third best available quarterback in Heisman winner Jayden Daniels?

It’s a nice problem to have for a team that finished 4-13 with an offense that was historically bad, but a potential franchise changing decision for a team looking for a fresh reset after moving on from Bill Belichick.

2024 NFL Draft: Patriots could still win draft by selecting Jayden Daniels at No. 3

While each quarterback will come with generational talent, Daniels is the wild card in this draft.  The LSU standout has outstanding size at 6-foot-4, 210 pounds with extreme athleticism at the position.  He finished the season with a 72.2 completion percentage with 3,812 passing yards and 40 touchdowns.  Not a bad consolation prize at all if Williams and Maye are off the board, or is he the prize?

NBC Sports Boston Patriots insider Phil Perry is high on Daniels.

"If the Patriots feel as though one of them [the top three QBs] will be [an outstanding pro], and they are there, then you've got to take them," Perry said, via NBC Sports Boston. "The guy that I like the most right now is the guy that is most likely to get to number three -- Jayden Daniels."

That’s even if Marvin Harrison Jr. is also sitting there when the team selects at No. 3.  The choice of Daniels over a generation talent like MHJ is enough to spark divide amongst the fanbase, but what if it turned out to be Daniels over Williams or Maye?  This is where Perry will shock some folks.

“If the draft were happening today…I’d take him [Daniels] over Caleb Williams and Drake Maye,” Perry continued.

Now, that is some big time Daniels hype.  But well-deserved hype for a 6-foot-4 dual threat QB who could transcend the Patriots’ offense way more functional than it was in 2023.  At the very least, he would bring the fun back to the offensive side of the ball.  Actually, any of the players named above would do exactly that.

New England Patriots rumors: Bill Belichick working on his next move

Where will Bill Belichick end up in 2024?

With the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles making early playoff exits, things can get interesting for the former Patriots coach if either or both of those teams make coaching changes.  In the meantime, it has been confirmed that Belichick has interviewed for the Atlanta Falcons vacant head coaching position.

The Falcons finished the season at 7-10, but they do have talent on both sides of the ball and if they can lore a veteran quarterback on the market to Atlanta, they could be an interesting squad under Belichick.  One former NFL quarterback, who was on the losing end to Belichick in the Super Bowl, feels the legendary coach is the right fit for his former squad.

During an appearance on CBS’s pre-game show on Sunday, Matt Ryan talked about the potential of Belichick to Atlanta.

"Well, here's the thing, there's a lot of baggage that comes with that because of what happened in the Super Bowl, and so it's an awkward thing,” Ryan said, as transcribed by WEEI.  “But if you look at the organization, like Jonathan said, an owner that is getting older and is anxious to win right now. And you look at their roster, we had them twice this year. They're built to win, they really are. The defense plays good football, they've got an excellent offensive line, good skill positions, but they’ve got to figure out the quarterback. I think Bill Belichick makes sense if they get a veteran guy. I think if you're drafting young, I think you go with a younger coach. Somebody that's gonna be there longer. But if you're gonna take a veteran [quarterback], I think he makes sense in Atlanta."

The Falcons have been active in their coaching search already interviewing names like Steve Wilks and Anthony Weaver.  Adding Belichick to that list tells Falcons fans that team owner Arthur Blank is swinging for the fences.