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Patriots trade targets: Top options if team deals early-round picks
The New England Patriots made significant upgrades to their roster during the offseason, but executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf wouldn't rule out making more ahead of the 2025 NFL season.
Wolf was asked at Monday's practice whether he would consider trading a first-or second-round pick to add talent to the team.
"Sure," the 43-year-old replied.
Why would Wolf contemplate such a move?
"Just doing what's best for the team," Wolf explained. "If there's a player out there that we feel like can help us and it costs that, then we would consider doing that."
The Patriots are uniquely positioned to target top players via trade. They are armed with a league-high $59.8 million in cap space, per so they could extend any player they acquire using an early-round selection.
Which players might be the Patriots top targets if they do get aggressive? Here's a look at a few candidates they could pursue.
Trey Hendrickson
Hendrickson is widely known to be available as he and the Bengals remain in a contract stalemate. The Patriots are among the teams to have called the Bengals to check in on veteran pass rusher, according to NFL insider Armando Salguero.
Hendrickson led the NFL in sacks last season with 17.5. He, along with offseason signees Milton Williams and Harold Landry III, would provide a shot in the arm to a Patriots defense that totaled a league-low 28 sacks in 2024.
While Hendrickson would fit well in New England, a deal between the two parties doesn't appear close, as NFL insider Josina Anderson outlined.
"I'm told the New England Patriots currently feel the cost to acquire Bengals star rusher Trey Hendrickson is 'too much,' per a league source as of Monday," Anderson reported. "The club continues to do due diligence by monitoring the market for Hendrickson."
Perhaps that will change if Cincinnati's reported asking price for the 30-year-old – a 2026 first-round pick and a young defensive player, per The Athletic's Dianna Russini – drops.
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Terry McLaurin
The Patriots signed Stefon Diggs during the 2025 NFL offseason, and added depth at receiver during free agency and the draft. Still, New England could use more proven talent at the position and a true, No. 1 target for Drake Maye.
McLaurin would qualify. The seven-year veteran has posted five consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons and generated a career-high 13 touchdowns last season as Jayden Daniels' top target. Despite McLaurin's success, he and the Commanders haven't been able to agree on a long-term extension, which prompted him to request a trade.
The Commanders are currently projected to have the fourth-most cap space in the NFL during the 2026 offseason. As such, they may eventually find a middle ground with McLaurin, who could earn a contract similar to the four-year, $92 million pact the Denver Broncos reached with Courtland Sutton during the offseason.
But if Washington is reluctant to give the soon-to-be 30-year-old McLaurin that type of contract, the Patriots could swoop in and target him to provide Maye a consistent weapon.
Micah Parsons
Like Hendrickson, Parsons and the Dallas Cowboys are embroiled in a contract dispute ahead of the 2025 NFL season. That led the two-time All-Pro first-teamer, who has recorded at least 12 sacks in all four of his NFL seasons, to request a trade out of Dallas.
Will Jerry Jones capitulate to Parsons' demands? The Cowboys owner hasn't yet shown willingness to do while the team has insisted the two parties will eventually work something out.
However, if the relationship becomes irreparable, Parsons would fetch the Cowboys a king's ransom on the trade market. There's little doubt the Patriots would be among the teams most interested in acquiring Parsons given their need for a long-term partner for Williams, a top interior rusher.
Few teams would be as well-positioned as New England to send out draft capital for Parsons and give him a record-breaking contract.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who could Patriots target if they trade early-round picks?
