The 2023 NFL offseason is underway and trade rumors are already swirling. Some notable star players are front and center in some of those rumors, too. Following an 8-9 season, the New England Patriots have an important offseason ahead of them and should be in the market to acquire top players as they only had one Pro Bowler in 2022.

With that in mind, here are two of the best players that the Patriots should trade for this offseason.

Jalen Ramsey

When the Patriots traded away Stephon Gilmore and decided to let J.C. Jackson walk in free agency over the last 18 months, they opted not to make a move and add a big-name veteran, instead drafting a pair of corners in the middle of the draft.

They've got a chance to fix that this offseason.

The Rams are reportedly likely to trade Ramsey sometime this offseason as a way to clear some cap space – and the Patriots should be in on it.

New England struggled mightily against some of the game's top receivers last season. Justin Jefferson had 139 receiving yards and a touchdown against them on Thanksgiving. Stefon Diggs had over 200 receiving yards combined in the Bills' two matchups against the Patriots this past season.

A big reason for that was their lack of a prototypical No. 1 corner on the boundary that could at least slow down some of the game's top receivers.

Jonathan Jones gave a valiant effort in switching from nickel corner to outside corner in 2022, actually ranking as one of Pro Football Focus' top-graded corners in the first half of the season. But he just didn't have enough by season's end.

Ramsey, on the other hand, can be that guy. The six-time Pro Bowler is still among one of the top corners in the game even if he's “older” (he's only 28) and hasn't looked as good as he did in a couple of other seasons.

He was still a pretty great player in 2022, recording career highs in tackles (88), sacks (two), passes defended (18) and interceptions as quarterbacks completed 57 of 91 passes for 659 yards and five touchdowns with an 84.5 passer rating when targeting him.

It's not inconceivable though that Ramsey could still reach that peak play that we saw just in 2021, when he helped the Rams win Super Bowl LVI. He had four interceptions and quarterbacks completed 58 of 98 passes for 624 yards and three touchdowns with a 71.1 passer rating when targeting him that season.

He earned a first-team All-Pro nod for his play that season and Ramsey's fellow players ranked him as the ninth-best player in the league following his stellar campaign.

The big question for the Patriots is the asking price for a Ramsey acquisition. The Rams would actually eat far more in dead money ($19.6 million) than it would save in cap space ($5.6 million) by trading Ramsey prior to June 1, prior to OverTheCap.com.

Could the Patriots eat more money for the Rams in order to lessen the compensation they'd have to give up? They're currently set to have around $33 million in cap space when the new league year begins, which is the sixth-most in the league.

That certainly would be worth doing if it meant they didn't have to give up the No. 14 overall pick in the draft (or another first-round pick in whatever the added cost might be).

Jerry Jeudy

It's no secret that the Patriots need to get better at multiple premium positions. If cornerback is their biggest need on defense, then wide receiver might be their biggest need on offense.

The big issue with trying to add a receiver this offseason is that the free-agent class isn't that good. In fact, Jakobi Meyers is viewed by many as the top receiver that will hit the open market this offseason. So yeah, not very good.

New England will have to get a bit creative in order to improve at receiver then. They could select one with the No. 14 overall pick, but there are only a few highly-regarded receivers in this draft class and the Patriots don't really have much time to bank on an unproven commodity.

That means they should turn to the trade market. DeAndre Hopkins has been rumored to be a possible Patriots' target. But he turns 31 in June and doesn't fit the ideal timeline with Mac Jones.

That's why I think taking a swing on Jeudy would make sense for the Patriots. The 2020 first-round pick certainly has the talent to be a top receiver in the league.

RECOMMENDED (Article Continues Below)
Adonai Mitchell, Troy Franklin, Blake Fisher New England Patriots

Conor Roche ·

Patriots' Drake Maye and Tom Brady

Conor Roche ·

Patriots' Drake Maye, Robert Kraft and Jerod Mayo

Conor Roche ·

He's a crisp route runner who's known to beat man coverage. However, injuries and inconsistent quarterback play have held Jeudy back in his first three seasons with the Broncos.

Jeudy had a bit of a breakout though in the closing weeks of the 2022 season. He had 38 receptions for 523 yards and three touchdowns in the final six games, showing that he might be on the verge of reaching that star receiver territory.

In addition, Jeudy has some experience playing with Jones. The two players spent a few seasons together at Alabama and when Tua Tagovailoa went down late in the 2019 season, Jones had the chance to play with Jeudy for a few games, producing some nice highlights along the way.

The big question is if the Denver Broncos would be willing to give up Jeudy. He was reportedly on the trade block ahead of the trade deadline, so it isn't inconceivable he could move.

They also have a bit of a pick deficiency after trading three first-round picks and three second-round picks for Russell Wilson and Sean Payton over the last two offseasons.

With a decision to be made on Jeudy's fifth-year option by late May, the Broncos could decide to cut ties early with Jeudy and recoup some assets in the process.