Patriots’ 2026 draft day trades, analyzed

Feb 27, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; New England Patriots general manager Eliot Wolf speaks during the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images With 11 selections in hand, tied for second most among the league’s 32 teams, the New England Patriots entered the NFL Draft in prime position to move around the board and attempt to maximize the value of their selections. In total, they ended up swinging four trades.

The reigning AFC champions moved up the board in both the first and second rounds, and later traded back twice on Day 3. Using the different trade charts collected by NFL analyst Joseph Hefner , let’s take a look at those transactions to see how the team performed from a value perspective. Before starting out, though, a quick word on the different charts.

There are two types: trade charts and player value charts. In the simplest of terms, the first group aims at analyzing the value teams put on the different selections, while the others look at how players selected in those spots have historically performed relatively to factors such as their rookie contract values. Trade No.

1: Up with Bills The first round of the NFL Draft saw a run on offensive linemen, with eight of them having come off the board by the time the Bills were on the clock at No. 28 overall. Among those eight were five offensive tackles, leaving only one of the consensus top-tier guys left standing: Caleb Lomu out of Utah.