Could Detroit Lions trade third overall pick to New England Patriots?

This Detroit Lions team is known for its roots with the New England Patriots, so could they work out a trade for the third overall draft pick?

The Detroit Lions are no stranger to bringing in former New England Patriots players or even making trades with the organization. Whether that’s for draft picks, like in 2018, or for players, like in 2017, these teams have frequently played Let’s Make a Deal.

Now, this scenario has been mentioned before, but what if the Lions make a blockbuster trade with New England while keeping quarterback Matthew Stafford? This would be more likely since head coach Matt Patricia just said it’s ‘comical’ that the team would trade their star quarterback.

With much recent belief that Patriots quarterback Tom Brady will be moving on from New England, does that make their team desperate enough for a new quarterback? Maybe even Tua Tagovailoa? Because I know a team that might have a prime pick available in the NFL draft they might be interested in.

Here’s the tweet from ESPN’s Adam Schefter that confirms Brady will most likely be playing for another team in 2020:

Now, about that blockbuster trade – could it actually happen? The Patriots are pretty far down in the draft order sitting at 23rd overall. That means it would take quite a bit to snag the third overall pick from Detroit. But what if they give the Lions something they really need?

What if the Lions were able to get the Patriots 23rd pick and cornerback Stephon Gilmore? Gilmore’s got a nice cap hit of about $19 million in 2020 and has two years left on his current contract. The trade wouldn’t have to come with a contract extension.

The Lions would move down the draft board a significant amount while locking up a proven cornerback to pair with Darius Slay. That’s right, in this scenario Slay stays to form one of the best cornerback duos in the league. One year of bliss in this scenario might even change Slay’s mind and have him looking harder for a Motor City contract extension.

Nothing today is pointing to this as a real scenario, but wouldn’t this have Lions fans licking their chops at the improvement on the defensive side of the ball? The team would potentially lose out on a blue-chip defensive lineman or versatile linebacker, but also lock up a major need before making a single draft selection.

We need to remember that these teams aren’t playing a game of Madden and trades like this are very rare. It might not even follow the Patriot way and how they usually operate. Still, the possibility is interesting, especially giving the current situation for both teams and the history they have of making trades.

What do you think Lions fans? Is this a pipe dream? Or is this detrimental to the talent they could select in the top 10 that could carry this team for years to come? Let us know in the comments below.