The New England Patriots and Eliot Wolf can trade ahead of the Buffalo Bills to draft a WR in Round 1.
Beating AFC East rivals the Buffalo Bills to the “X” wide receiver Director of Scouting Eliot Wolf says they need would be a coup for the New England Patriots in the 2024 NFL draft, especially if that receiver is Texas star Adonai Mitchell.
It’s an idea proposed by Bleacher Report’s Brent Sobleski. He sees the Patriots swapping their second-round pick, the 34th-overall choice, to move back into the first round.
Mitchell would be a worthy pick as “a 6’2″, 205-pound target with excellent vertical speed (4.34-second 40-yard dash) and an outstanding catch radius. He could immediately provide the Patriots with something they currently lack and help expedite the development of their new quarterback.”
Wolf made it clear the Pats are missing a genuine outside playmaker in their receiving corps. Trading for Mitchell would solve the problem, but the true appeal of the deal is how it would hurt the receiver-needy Bills.
Trade Would Help Patriots, Hurt Bills
As Sobleski pointed out, “Mitchell has become a popular mock draft pick for the Buffalo Bills at No. 28. By trading up ahead of the Bills, the Patriots could potentially steal a preferred target from a division rival that needs help on the outside after trading Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans.”
Jumping ahead of Buffalo makes sense for the Patriots. Not only to put one over on an old enemy, but also because the Pats still need receiver help.
Only K.J. Osborn arrived in free agency. He’s joined a group headlined by JuJu Smith-Schuster, Kendrick Bourne and DeMario Douglas. The latter proved a draft steal as a sixth-round pick a year ago, but Douglas, Bourne and Osborn are all “better in Z/slot role,” per Evan Lazar of Patriots.com.
Wolf knows the offense needs a different kind of pass-catcher. Speaking to reporters, the de facto general manager admitted, “I think we have players who can line up and play at ‘X’ receiver. Do we have players that on a 3×1 can beat the backside coverage every single time? I’m not sure we have that just yet,” Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald.
Patriots director of scouting Eliot Wolf: “I think we have players who can line up and play at “X” receiver. Do we have players that on a 3×1 can beat the backside coverage every single time? I’m not sure we have that just yet.”
Fortunately, there’s no shortage of quality X-style receivers in this class. Prospects “to watch in the X receiver mold on day two are Adonai Mitchell, Keon Coleman, Ladd McConkey, Tez Walker, and Brenden Rice,” according to Lazar.
It’ll be up to Wolf to choose the best spot for the Patriots to target one.
Adonai Mitchell An Intriguing Pick for Patriots
Talent is not in question about Mitchell. Consistency and temperament are a different story, however.
Alarm bells were ringing for longtime sportswriter Bob McGinn when he viewed Mitchell’s performance at the annul Scouting Combine. Writing for Tyler Dunne’s Go Long newsletter, McGinn noted how “Based on television coverage, Mitchell staggered and fell during the gauntlet, dropped the first two slants, dropped an out and either messed up the route or failed to make the catch on his next three attempts. His performance was adequate after that.”
Any concerns about his Combine efforts are compounded by accusations Mitchell’s difficult to coach. Some of the difficulties are attributed by unnamed scouts speaking to McGinn (subscription required), to Mitchell suffering from Diabetes.
One anonymous scout told McGinn (h/t Dunne) how Mitchell’s “got Garrett Wilsonesque catch radius, athletic ability, body control. But he’s almost uncoachable. Before you even get to the diabetic part, he’s kind of going to do it his way. He’s a little bit of a wild horse. You’ve got to see if you can harness him in.”
There are also instances of questionable, on-field effort. Specifically related to what Mitchell does or doesn’t do when the ball isn’t coming his way.
This clip from Theo Ash of “Stay Hot: A Sports Podcast,” shows Mitchell at the bottom of the screen.
Average Adonai Mitchell effort when his route isn’t targeted
As Jon Ledyard of Audibles & Analytics put it, Mitchell’s core talent “makes the half-hearted reps or the wandering routes or the misreads of the ball downfield or the lack of effort after the catch even more frustrating.”
The good and bad of Mitchell’s game were summed up by this play against Washington, highlighted by ESPN College Football. It ended with him juking around man coverage to grab a touchdown.
This two-play sequence from Adonai Mitchell 👀
Plays like this, when put alongside issues with effort and attitude, make it difficult to predict where Mitchell will be drafted.
Some, including Dane Brugler of The Athletic and NFL.com’s Dan Parr believe Mitchell will go to the Kansas City Chiefs with the final pick of the opening round. Meanwhile, “Good Morning Football” co-host Peter Schrager has the Bills selecting Mitchell at 28.
If the negative noise around Mitchell makes him slide, the Patriots could stay put at 34 and get him. Alternatively, if there’s murmurings a team will make a move earlier, Wolf must decide if a trade is worth the risk.