Patriots news: New England targeting Baker Mayfield in the NFL Draft?

The latest word around the NFL Draft campfire actually raises the idea that the New England Patriots may be interested in one Baker Mayfield.

The New England Patriots pulled off a surprising trade on Tuesday afternoon by moving veteran wide receiver Brandin Cooks to the Los Angeles Rams after just one season with the team. However, it helped the team acquiring an additional first-round pick in this year's draft at the 23rd overall spot.

This put into clear focus that the Patriots could be eyeing taking a quarterback in the first round to find Tom Brady's eventual successor. Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports has speculated that the team could be eyeballing possibly moving up to snag former Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield.

Total hunch here, but I'm thinking Baker Mayfield could be the guy Belichick targets. He's been all about mobile quarterbacks the last few years – Tim Tebow love affair, dabbling with Johnny Football, drafting Jimmy Garoppolo and Jacoby Brissett before dealing them both. Belichick can handle the kid's attitude and curb his wayward tendencies and he could be the best value play – especially if three quarterbacks are drafted ahead of him – and Josh McDaniels could coach him up and scheme him up and put him in positions to replicate what he did best at Oklahoma.

Although the Patriots are a bit out of reach at their current position to grab Mayfield, the team could easily package both picks to move up the draft board to put themselves in a spot to get him or another top quarterback. This would provide the team with a promising quarterback that could sit behind Brady over the next couple of seasons.

The behavioral issues aside, Mayfield has shown to be a highly talented player on the field that has the potential to replicate that at the next level. The Patriots could provide the stability and environment for him to develop into a highly capable starting quarterback down the road once Brady either retires or the team moves on.

With the draft still a few weeks away, the Patriots could further assess the top crop of quarterbacks while potentially work themselves up the first round to make this scenario come to fruition. There could be much movement ahead that could have a tremendous impact on the long-term future of the franchise and Mayfield may very well be in that picture.