The six-time Super Bowl champions have many weaknesses on their roster. You could make a strong case they have more glaring needs than wide receiver. Left tackle immediately comes to mind. But it’s painfully obvious that this team lacks true difference-makers on offense — players who keep opposing defensive coordinators up at night.

The opportunities to acquire these kinds of stars are rare, so when you have a chance to get one, it’s often foolish not to at least try.

And in Aiyuk’s case, it sounds like the Patriots are giving this pursuit a strong effort. The Patriots, Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers are among the teams in the mix for Aiyuk, per multiple reports, although it’s unknown if any of those teams will be able to land the veteran wideout. Aiyuk wants a new contract, and if he’s unwilling to sign long term with a particular team, it’s going to be tough for that franchise to complete a trade.

The Patriots are one of the few teams able to offer Aiyuk the high salary he wants. They still have around $43 million in salary cap space, per OverTheCap, which is the second-most of any team.

In the latest episode of the Patriots Talk Podcast, our Patriots insider Phil Perry explained why New England should use its financial flexibility to surround rookie quarterback Drake Maye with expensive players at important positions, primarily wide receiver and left tackle.

🔊 Patriots Talk: What does Patriots’ hot pursuit of Aiyuk say about team’s direction? | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube

“You have these different tools with which to build your team,” Perry said. “One is that 2025 first-round pick. One is all of this money you’re still able to spend because you’re not paying big dollars to a quarterback, a wide receiver, a tackle. … You don’t really have much money devoted to the edge of your defense or cornerback, either.

“So the most expensive positions in the sport, for the most part, you are not paying an expensive player. You have, even after all of these re-signings, so much money to spend. You could (acquire Aiyuk) and still go after a left tackle in free agency next year. That is feasible.

“This is your time to get wild with the spending because you have a young quarterback — even if he’s not going to play — you have a young QB on a rookie contract. It’s one of the most valuable things in sports, and it’s why they have the flexibility to do something like Aiyuk and more at other positions around Maye. Give him that environment he needs to find out if he’s good or not, to find out how good he can be. And then when it’s time to pay him, then you can make decisions that correlate with how good he is as a player.”

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Not only do the Patriots have the financial flexibility to pursue Aiyuk, acquiring a player of his caliber also could accelerate Maye’s development. This is important because the Patriots did not surround their last first-round quarterback, Mac Jones, with enough high-end talent at the skill positions. New England cannot afford to make that same mistake with Maye, and there are many recent examples of teams giving a young QB a stud veteran wideout and making it work.

“We’ve seen the Bills take their highly-drafted young quarterback (Josh Allen) and see him go up a significant level,” Perry said. “He went up a bit with Cole Beasley, then they added Stefon Diggs to the mix and he became one of the best quarterbacks in the league.

“Tua Tagovailoa, it goes without saying, they surrounded him with great offensive talent and a great offensive coaching staff, and his stats have gone through the roof. A.J. Brown and Jalen Hurts in Philadelphia (is another example).”

There’s no guarantee that Maye and Aiyuk would enjoy the same success as the aforementioned QB/WR duos, but it’s probably worth taking the gamble to find out.

Also in this episode:

• What would Bill Belichick do in this situation?
• Should fans feel encouraged by Pats’ offseason moves?
• What should the QB plan be for the first preseason game?

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While Brissett has stood out as the clear-cut starting QB, Maye has experienced growing pains early in camp. On Day 7, however, the rookie made noteworthy progress.

Our Phil Perry and Tom E. Curran attended the practice on the fields behind Gillette Stadium and shared their observations of the QBs on the latest episode of the Patriots Talk Podcast.

🔊 Patriots Talk: In a long, hot practice, Patriots QBs show flashes | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube

“I would say the highlight of the day from any of the quarterbacks was not one specific competition,” Perry said. “But I have a stretch here of six Drake Maye throws where five of those six, including four consecutively, would be considered among his best maybe eight or nine throws of camp. …

“The stretch didn’t bowl people over because it was spread out over three different periods of practice, so this occurred over a long period of time. … I’m gonna give him credit for a pretty good practice here. Better than what we’ve seen. An improvement for Drake Maye.”

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Curran agreed with Perry’s assessment of Maye and highlighted a memorable moment of practice for Brissett.

“What stood out to me was three different things,” Curran said. “One, we saw Drake Maye, despite some ups and downs in the last week, still has the confidence to make that no-look throw in the red zone, so that doesn’t mean he’s running around scared of his own shadow, which is something we saw with the previous quarterback. …

“What I liked about Jacoby Brissett was, we had a play in the red zone coming right at us, I was basically in the back right corner, and Brissett had to move a little bit and he saw Tyquan Thornton uncovered, and he threw an absolute friggin laser. … That thing had to be going 65 (miles per hour). It was just an absolute dart. I looked at (ESPN’s) Mike Reiss and said, ‘He’s got more than enough arm to be a successful quarterback for the Patriots this year.'”

Also in the episode:

• How has Jerod Mayo handled the Matthew Judon situation?
• Will Bill Belichick stick with a career in media instead of a coaching return?

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Judon was not present at Tuesday’s practice amid his contract dispute with the organization. His absence came one day after he had animated discussions on the practice field with head coach Jerod Mayo, vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf, and director of player personnel Matt Groh.

Like last year, New England’s defense is expected to be a bright spot during an otherwise underwhelming season. The unit has tremendous upside with Judon and second-year cornerback Christian Gonzalez at full health.

How much of a difference would losing Judon make? Kay Adams of FanDuel TV’s Up & Adams joined Tom E. Curran’s Patriots Talk Podcast after Tuesday’s practice to discuss.

🔊 Patriots Talk: Jacoby Brissett stacks another productive day for the Patriots | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube

Adams believes that without Judon, the Patriots cannot be considered a top-five unit.

“You’re probably right, because you can’t unlock Christian Gonzalez in the back end if you don’t have enough pressure on the quarterback,” Curran replied. “So yeah, you are going to give something up…

“There’s also a leadership element too when the younger players are gonna look at a veteran player who has some contract dissatisfaction. And as we said, Judon’s got a case, but if they look at and say, ‘OK, so this is the way to deal with it. Say a bunch of stuff, say you’re gonna partake and not be a pain in the ass, and then the next week you have a situation on the practice field.’ So, at some point you have to say those are the lines that I don’t want you to cross, and it’s playing out in public.”

Judon’s contract situation will continue to be a top Patriots camp storyline until it is resolved one way or another. New England will have Wednesday off and return to the practice field Thursday at 11 a.m. ET.

Also in the episode:

• Curran and Phil Perry break down the latest with Matthew Judon
• The guys share a QB update as Jacoby Brissett continues to look like the team’s best option to start, and Drake Maye struggles
• More training camp observations
• Full conversation with Kay Adams from Gillette Stadium

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Rookie QB Joe Milton took reps ahead of Bailey Zappe, making him the apparent No. 3 QB behind Jacoby Brissett and Drake Maye. The switch prompted an interesting question on the latest episode of Tom E. Curran’s Patriots Talk Podcast with Phil Perry.

Perry wondered about the Pats’ QB plan if Brissett goes down with an injury and they aren’t ready to play their rookie first-rounder. Would Zappe regain his role as the backup, or would New England address the position via free agency?

🔊 Patriots Talk: Too-early impression of Patriots offense from camp? Sluggish | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube

“Say you didn’t necessarily want to play Drake Maye. Say the offensive line is bad enough where even if you think he’s kind of ready, you don’t want to throw him out there, and Jacoby Brissett does get banged up early in the season,” Perry said. “If it’s not Bailey Zappe, would you be interested in any of these names that I’m about to throw at you who are still free agents, and who all have some level of experience in an offense like this one?

“Ryan Tannehill, who had the best year of his career with Arthur Smith in Tennessee in this type of offense. Name number two, Blaine Gabbert, who most recently was with Andy Reid (in Kansas City), so different kind of scheme, but has also been in that Tennessee system. … The third name is Trevor Siemian, who played for … the Vikings under Gary Kubiak, who’s sort of one of the godfathers of this (offense). Any of those three names interest you over Bailey Zappe?”

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If Curran were in charge, he’d go the free agency route.

“Over Bailey Zappe, all do,” Curran answered. “Because they’re bigger, stronger-armed players. And I don’t even know if Trevor Siemian’s got a weapon. I’m presuming it’s better (than Zappe’s) though.

“But to me, Tannehill would be the best. I mean, Tannehill you could actually entertain the idea that he would be equal to or comparable to Brissett in terms of putting him out there. He’s got starting experience, very good athlete, good arm, strong, tough, can run.”

Also in the episode:

• Breaking down a tough day of training camp for the offense.
• First impressions of Ja’Lynn Polk and the WR group.

This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.

The six-time Super Bowl champions have many weaknesses on their roster. You could make a strong case they have more glaring needs than wide receiver. Left tackle immediately comes to mind. But it’s painfully obvious that this team lacks true difference-makers on offense — players who keep opposing defensive coordinators up at night.

The opportunities to acquire these kinds of stars are rare, so when you have a chance to get one, it’s often foolish not to at least try.

And in Aiyuk’s case, it sounds like the Patriots are giving this pursuit a strong effort. The Patriots, Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers are among the teams in the mix for Aiyuk, per multiple reports, although it’s unknown if any of those teams will be able to land the veteran wideout. Aiyuk wants a new contract, and if he’s unwilling to sign long term with a particular team, it’s going to be tough for that franchise to complete a trade.

The Patriots are one of the few teams able to offer Aiyuk the high salary he wants. They still have around $43 million in salary cap space, per OverTheCap, which is the second-most of any team.

In the latest episode of the Patriots Talk Podcast, our Patriots insider Phil Perry explained why New England should use its financial flexibility to surround rookie quarterback Drake Maye with expensive players at important positions, primarily wide receiver and left tackle.

🔊 Patriots Talk: What does Patriots’ hot pursuit of Aiyuk say about team’s direction? | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube

“You have these different tools with which to build your team,” Perry said. “One is that 2025 first-round pick. One is all of this money you’re still able to spend because you’re not paying big dollars to a quarterback, a wide receiver, a tackle. … You don’t really have much money devoted to the edge of your defense or cornerback, either.

“So the most expensive positions in the sport, for the most part, you are not paying an expensive player. You have, even after all of these re-signings, so much money to spend. You could (acquire Aiyuk) and still go after a left tackle in free agency next year. That is feasible.

“This is your time to get wild with the spending because you have a young quarterback — even if he’s not going to play — you have a young QB on a rookie contract. It’s one of the most valuable things in sports, and it’s why they have the flexibility to do something like Aiyuk and more at other positions around Maye. Give him that environment he needs to find out if he’s good or not, to find out how good he can be. And then when it’s time to pay him, then you can make decisions that correlate with how good he is as a player.”

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Not only do the Patriots have the financial flexibility to pursue Aiyuk, acquiring a player of his caliber also could accelerate Maye’s development. This is important because the Patriots did not surround their last first-round quarterback, Mac Jones, with enough high-end talent at the skill positions. New England cannot afford to make that same mistake with Maye, and there are many recent examples of teams giving a young QB a stud veteran wideout and making it work.

“We’ve seen the Bills take their highly-drafted young quarterback (Josh Allen) and see him go up a significant level,” Perry said. “He went up a bit with Cole Beasley, then they added Stefon Diggs to the mix and he became one of the best quarterbacks in the league.

“Tua Tagovailoa, it goes without saying, they surrounded him with great offensive talent and a great offensive coaching staff, and his stats have gone through the roof. A.J. Brown and Jalen Hurts in Philadelphia (is another example).”

There’s no guarantee that Maye and Aiyuk would enjoy the same success as the aforementioned QB/WR duos, but it’s probably worth taking the gamble to find out.

Also in this episode:

• What would Bill Belichick do in this situation?
• Should fans feel encouraged by Pats’ offseason moves?
• What should the QB plan be for the first preseason game?

This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.

Zappe is competing with veteran quarterback Jacoby Brissett and rookies Drake Maye and Joe Milton. Surprisingly, the 2022 fourth-rounder has received more reps so far this spring than the No. 3 overall pick.

That trend continued during Wednesday’s OTA session. Maye did more with his reps than Zappe, who committed the lone turnover among Pats QBs, but he still was the clear No. 2 signal-caller on the depth chart behind Brissett.

Tom E. Curran and Phil Perry tried to make sense of the team’s handling of Zappe and Maye’s reps during the latest episode of the Patriots Talk Podcast. Although some veterans tend to favor experienced players getting the bulk of the reps, Curran believes they’d make an exception in New England’s case.

🔊 Patriots Talk: Drake Maye, Jacoby Brissett sparkle at Patriots OTA | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube

“Jacoby’s here. He’s really pretty good actually. Every time we go out there at practice he knows what he’s doing and the ball shows up where it’s supposed to and accurate. That kid’s supposed to be really good, they took him third overall. Love Bailey, the bus is leaving,” Curran said, viewing the situation from a Pats player’s perspective.

Perry asked Curran whether the QB reps indicate the Patriots not wanting Maye to have to play early in the season if Brissett goes down.

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“Yeah. Keep him until you can’t keep him,” Curran said of Zappe. “Let him go in early August before the round of cuts so people understand he’s out there and say, ‘We love you, we don’t know what’s going to happen. We never do when games start. If you’re not with somebody, if you’re with somebody’s practice squad, whatever, don’t be surprised if you see a 508 number pop up on your phone.’

“But I mean, at some point it has to happen. Maybe that’s the logic to it is he’s with us through June and maybe the first few weeks of training camp. If, the first week of training camp, they’re still in this mode where Bailey Zappe’s getting the second reps to the detriment — if the overall total of reps for good players is demonstrably low compared to Bailey Zappe for Drake Maye — what are you doing? Get him out of there.”

Also in the episode:

• Jacoby Brissett looking good, feeling good at OTAs.
• Best plays of the day.
• Evaluating the snaps.
• Tyquan Thornton once again shows up in May.

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The 38-year-old has played for eight different teams over a 15-year NFL career. He’s been a fly-on-the-wall rookie learning from a legend (Tom Brady) in New England. He’s been the starter for a team that drafted a highly-touted rookie (Johnny Manziel) to take his place in Cleveland. He’s been the veteran backup serving as a resource for an eager young QB (Mac Jones) in New England. He’s even played with the Patriots’ current starter, Jacoby Brissett, with the Indianapolis Colts in 2019.

So, Hoyer is pretty well-qualified to assess the dynamics of the current QB group in Foxboro, which includes the veteran Brissett, incumbent backup Bailey Zappe, No. 3 overall pick Drake Maye and sixth-round flier Joe Milton.

Hoyer joined Patriots Insiders Tom E. Curran and Phil Perry on a Patriots Talk Podcast to break down all angles of New England’s QB situation, from the importance of Jacoby Brissett’s role to the lessons Maye can learn from Brady to how the young QB should approach his first preseason in the NFL.

🔊 Patriots Talk: Brian Hoyer reveals the Tom Brady lessons Drake Maye should learn | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube

The podcast is worth a full listen, but here’s one great anecdote Hoyer shared from playing with Brady early in his NFL career about the importance of Maye asking the right questions as a rookie.

“We had another quarterback in the room, and he’d come in every day and he’d be asking questions to Tom,” Hoyer said. “They were questions that were pretty simple, that you kind of already knew the answer to. And at a certain point, Tom goes, ‘You’ve got three questions a day. Use them wisely.’

“So the next day (the quarterback) comes in and goes, ‘What’s up, Tom?’ And (Brady) goes, ‘That’s number one.'”

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Hoyer believes Brissett will happily aid Maye in his development — Brissett admitted the rookie is already texting him about plays — so long as Maye is intentional about what he wants to learn.

“If you’re actually asking questions to learn, ask away all the time,” Hoyer added. “But if you’re asking a question that you already know the answer to but you’re kind of trying to just confirm it, like, that’s college and high school stuff.”

Subscribe to the Patriots Talk Podcast to check out the full episode, or watch on YouTube below.

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