If Giants want to trade up with Patriots, the cost may be astronomical

The New York Giants are open to maneuvering in the 2024 NFL draft and recently, Ralph Vacchiano of FOX Sports reported that they may consider a “blockbuster” deal to move up for quarterback Drake Maye.

Specifically, Vacchiano says, they may look to trade with the New England Patriots, who hold the No. 3 overall pick.

He is the prospect who could most entice the Giants to make a blockbuster move up from No. 6, according to multiple NFL sources familiar with the Giants’ thinking. With USC’s Caleb Williams almost certain to be taken by the Chicago Bears at No. 1, the 21-year-old Maye is believed by many around the NFL to be the next quarterback on the Giants’ list.

In fact, one league source said he believes that if Maye somehow gets past the Washington Commanders at No. 2 — which is far from a certainty — the Giants would consider making an aggressive offer to the New England Patriots to move up from No. 6 to No. 3 to draft him. It’s not clear if New York would be willing to do the same for LSU’s Jayden Daniels or Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy, the other two top quarterbacks likely to be available at that spot.

The Patriots have been the focus of much speculation in recent weeks with several analysts suggesting they could trade down despite their own need for a quarterback.

Tom Curran of NBC Sports Boston reports that if the Patriots do opt to trade down, the price to take their spot will be steep. And we’re not just talking slightly improved value based on the NFL value trade chart but rather, an astronomically one-sided haul.

“What kind of currency do the Patriots need to see coming to them? I keep circling back to it’s got to be three first-round picks,” Curran said this week. “From what I’m hearing, it’s going to take a lot more than that for the Patriots to be moved off their spot because they as a team, collectively, understand the opportunity that these three quarterbacks represent at the top of the draft.”

Curran was specifically talking about what the Patriots would want from the Minnesota Vikings, who have a longer climb to No. 3 than the Giants. However, if that’s what they’re seeking to move back, they aren’t likely to give New York a much better deal.

For skeptics, the initial response to this will be, “Well, you can hope for just about anything but…”

That’s an understandable instant reaction but it’s made with the assumption that the Patriots feel they have to trade back. They don’t. They’re in a position to grab a top quarterback and start fresh and are under no pressure to accommodate any other team.

Ultimately, if Curran’s reporting is accurate, that essentially prices the Giants out of any trade-up with New England.

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