So, a bunch of people might not have noticed with the Dak Prescott bonanza going on, but Bill Belichick just reloaded. And it’s starting to look like the New England Patriots are all in on Cam Newton, at least for now.

On Tuesday morning, the Pats brought back offensive lineman and Super Bowl LIII veteran Trent Brown from the Las Vegas Raiders (plus the Raiders’ seventh-round pick in 2022) in exchange for their own 2022 fifth round pick. So what do both sides walk away from this deal with? Let’s do some grading:

 

New England Patriots: A

This one’s easy. While signing an offensive lineman isn’t necessarily the sexiest of moves, it is necessary to build a successful team. In Trent Brown, New England gets a veteran presence in the locker room who knows how to win, but doesn’t come with the innate drama of a skill player. Moreover, they are getting a football player in the middle of their athletic prime (Brown is 27), and on the most team-friendly years of his current contract.

Now, the Patriots are short on weapons, to be sure. Hell, their best running back is probably Newton. And in this move, the Patriots get a brick wall that is flexible enough to slot in almost anywhere on the line, and the opportunity to make a statement that they are ready to invest in some dynamic talent in the draft. And while it remains to be seen who their quarterback going into next season is, New England made a cheap, efficient move that is bound to make whoever they will be very happy, short of overspending for a splashier signing like Aaron Jones.

 

Las Vegas Raiders: D, incomplete

This one stings.

Now, we all know that Las Vegas isn’t going to stop a team defensively. They love to get in shootouts. And if you’re them in this case, good god, you’re going to give up a Pro Bowl talent at the line!? Teams are wiser than ever about shoring up the line to protect their quarterbacks, so what does it say about your feelings towards relatively statuesque Derek Carr that you let go of such a valuable piece of your wall and let him go to the Patriots?

Now, some caveats to this grade. Trent Brown has simply not seen the field, and COVID or not, it’s hard to justify keeping a player on for the salary he was demanding when he simply cannot show up. Moreover, if you are confident that a top OL talent in the draft can fall to you, this move also makes sense to shed some valuable cap dollars, which could be spent to bring in a weapon like Will Fuller IV for the air attack.

But if you are giving up premium protection that can give Derek Carr more time in the pocket, and can keep the oft-injured Josh Jacobs safe, you’d better do a damn good job explaining yourself.

And to Gruden’s credit, he has earned some trust, especially after the controversial Khalil Mack deal a few years back has seemingly paid off. The knee-jerk reaction is to give this trade a near failing grade, but it will be interesting to track how they use this cap space going forward, particularly when the draft comes along. But without a question, the Patriots won this trade.