New England Patriots links 4/17/24 – 2024 Draft can return Pats to contention — If they get it right

Daily news and links for Wednesday.

TEAM TALK

• Paul Perillo’s NFL Notes: What to make of McCarthy?
• Alexandra Francisco reports Matthew Judon takes football camp to Germany with a stopat Ramstein Air Base.
• Alexandra Francisco notes Kendrick Bourne, Marcus Jones, DeMario Douglas, Tyquan Thornton, Chad Ryland, and Antonio Gibson were among Patriots players who came out to Gillette Stadium for the Monster Energy Supercross over the weekend. /Nice to see teammates doing teammate things.
• Photos: Patriots begin second week of Phase One offseason workouts.

LOCAL LINKS

• Doug Kyed identifies 10 potential Patriots Tight End prospect draft picks.
• Alex Barth’s Patriots draft preview: Safeties. This class is different, with true free safeties up and down the board.
• Tom E. Curran says that the debate surrounding which QB the Pats should take is irrelevant if whoever it is isn’t set up for success.
• Zolak & Bertrand examine the Ron Wolf QB drafting tree with Phil Perry.
• Karen Guregian looks into whether Patriots OC Alex Van Pelt has a favorite QB type.
• Christopher Gasper says the Patriots have a chance to go big in this year’s draft, and warns they best not miss. ‘You can’t play it safe for the sake of not being wrong. Mac Jones was “safe,” billed as the most NFL-ready QB in his class. Where did that get you?’
• Sara Marshall suggests Patriots’ first-round trade-down scenario looking more realistic after latest visit.
• Rhys Knott explains how the Patriots can walk away with a successful 2024 draft class in 4 ways.
• Conor Ryan highlights NFL execs offering mixed reviews on potential Patriots draft pick Drake Maye, “Thought he would be much more polished.”
• Mike D’Abate talks about the Patriots are doing their NFL Draft “QB homework” by hosting Washington QB Michael Penix, Jr. on a Top-30 visit.
• Phil Perry explains why drafting Washington QB Michael Penix wouldn’t be worth the risk for the Patriots.
• Justin Leger highlights Phil Perry and Tom E. Curran reacting to the Pats meeting with Michael Penix Jr.
• Ian Logue’s Patriots Notebook: Is New Englandputting together a contingency plan at quarterback?
• Pats procrastination podcast: Clare and Chudders discuss and debate the build up to the 2024 draft. (37 min.)
• Locked On Patriots podcast: Mike D’Abate and Steve Balestrieri discuss QB Michael Penix’s visit, his fit in New England, the Pats needs at WR and the OL, and potential late-round “diamonds in the rough.” (41. min.)

NATIONAL NEWS

• Dallas Robinson (ProFootballNetwork) Ranking the easiest and hardest (Patriots) NFL schedules for all 32 teams.
• Chad Reuter (NFL.com) Ideal top two picks for every team. Patriots: No. 3) LSU QB Jayden Daniels and No. 34) Georgia OT Amarius Mims.
• Chad Reuter (NFL.com) Five pivotal slots in Round 1 that could change the direction of the 2024 NFL Draft.
• Mike Florio (ProFootballTalk) Seven teams in the top 13 could be looking at taking quarterbacks.
• Analytics Team (NFL.com) Next Gen Stats: How three trends in pro football connect to this year’s prospect class.
• Pete Prisco (CBS Sports) Better-than team for 2024 NFL Draft: Prospects he likes more than scouts do.
• Jori Epstein (Yahoo! Sports) How much will Xavier Worthy’s 40-yard dash record influence NFL Draft? Why talent evaluators might care more than you think.
• Will Brinson (CBS Sports) 2024 NFL Mock Draft. Pats pick QB J.J. McCarthy at No. 3.
• Sam Monson (PFF) Two-round 2024 NFL mock draft. Patriots trade down, pick Penn State OT Olumuyiwa Fashanu at No. 12.
• Rob Maaddi (AP) NFL holds first medical summit aimed at improving player safety.

EXTRACURRICULAR

• Don Van Natta Jr., et al (ESPN) Inside Bill Belichick’s failed offseason job hunt. “Both Kraft and Belichick declined to comment for this story. Belichick’s long-time agent, Neil Cornrich, also declined to comment.” /Should be titled, “Unnamed source-with-an-agenda’s story”. Belichick and the Patriots should get commission for every hit piece these guys write about them.
• Nick O’Malley passes along a report that it was Robert Kraft who hurt Bill Belichick’s job hunt, warning team ‘not to trust Bill’.
• Nick O’Malley repeats a part of the report that Jonathan Kraft saved Belichick from being fired a year earlier. /I don’t take any part of this report seriously, but this angle puts Robert Kraft in a horrible light.
• Mike Florio (ProFootballTalk) Patriots deny ESPN report that Robert Kraft told Arthur Blank not to trust Bill Belichick.