The Patriots enter the NFL draft needing a QB, but could trade down to fill other needs

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — The 2024 NFL draft represents the next chapter in the remaking of the New England Patriots.

Bill Belichick is gone after driving both the franchise’s on-field and personnel decisions for most of his more than two-decade run in New England.

It’s created a domino effect inside team headquarters, with team owner Robert Kraft seizing on the opportunity to take a more active role in steering the direction that his six-time Super Bowl championship franchise will move into its next era.

It started with the hiring of new coach Jerod Mayo, a former player and assistant under Belichick, but someone poised to bring a looser vibe to the locker room.

As for who will have the keys to the reshaping of Mayo’s first roster, Kraft has put that in the hands of Eliot Wolf, who has a lot more power than his nebulous director of scouting title suggests.