New England Patriots de facto general manager Eliot Wolf is reportedly “pushing hard” for Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy, per Sportskeeda’s Tony Pauline.
The Patriots currently own the No. 3 overall pick of the 2024 NFL draft, and they could throw a major curveball on the board if they used that spot to take McCarthy over Drake Maye or Jayden Daniels.
Caleb Williams going to the Chicago Bears is probably a given, but the Patriots were expected to take whoever is left between Maye and Daniels, after the Washington Commanders are on the clock at No. 2. However, according to Pauline, there has been buzz of McCarthy to the Patriots on the pro-day circuit.
Pauline wrote:
I’m not big on McCarthy being a top-10 selection, but the UM signal caller to New England was the buzz on the pro-day circuit. De facto general manager Eliot Wolf is pushing hard for McCarthy, and he believes he has as much upside as any quarterback in this draft.
McCarthy’s stock has steadily risen over the last couple of weeks to the point where there was buzz of the Commanders considering taking him at No. 2.
Could the Patriots be blowing some smoke to try and goad the Commanders into taking McCarthy, while that leaves them with the choice between Maye and Daniels? Anything is possible at this point with less than a month until the draft.