New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft received an interesting text message recently. Speaking to reporters at the NFL owners meeting in Arizona on Monday, Kraft shared that rapper Meek Mill texted him “three or four days ago” to tell him that Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson told Meek Mill he wants to play with the Patriots.

Will Kraft make an effort to add Jackson to the Patriots?

“That’s Bill’s decision,” Kraft said.

Of course, the Bill he's talking about is Bill Belichick, the head coach of the Patriots. Earlier Monday, Lamar Jackson revealed that he requested a trade from the Ravens on March 2nd before the team placed the non-exclusive franchise tag on him. Belichick spoke to the media minutes after Jackson shared his trade request and was asked if he'd consider adding him to the Patriots.

“I'm not going to talk about players on any other team. Period,” Belichick said.

Well, that isn't necessarily a no. In fact, there have been mixed rumors in recent weeks about the Patriots' possible interest in the 2019 NFL MVP. It was first reported by MassLive's Mark Daniels that the Patriots weren't expected to pursue Jackson in free agency. But ESPN's Jeremy Fowler listed New England as a possible wild card team to pursue Jackson as he remains a free agent.

There is a bit of a prior connection between the Patriots and Lamar Jackson. Ahead of the 2018 NFL Draft, the Patriots hosted Jackson for a visit as they held two first-round draft picks. New England passed on him twice, allowing Baltimore to trade up to the No. 32 overall pick and select Jackson.

Lamar Jackson remembered that trip in a positive manner ahead of the Patriots-Ravens matchup this past season. Belichick also spoke highly of Jackson then.

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“Without a doubt,” Belichick said when asked if Jackson had quelled any doubts about his passing ability. “It’s the type of player… MVP type of candidate. I think he’s more than answered them. But, we’ll see what his contract is, that will answer them.”

As for why Meek Mill was texting Kraft, the two of them have a friendship that goes back several years. The Patriots owner and the rapper created the REFORM Alliance to help reform prison systems in America following Meek Mill's imprisonment in 2017 due to violating his parole.