Cowboys taking calls on No. 10 pick in 2021 NFL Draft

Another team is starting to listen to calls about their first-round pick, and this time it could be more in the Patriots’ range.

The Dallas Cowboys have started to hold conversations with other teams about the No. 10 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones went on the record in a radio interview admitting that his team is taking calls about the 10th pick, which according to arithmetic is only five away from the Patriots at 15.

“Where we sit, we’re starting to get a few calls, and I think it will only pick up as we get closer to next Thursday,” Jones said, as transcribed by Pro Football Talk.

The idea of trading up to land a top quarterback prospect has been one of the more popular topics surrounding the Pats, who may be just out of the feasible range for one of the first-round-graded QBs to fall to them. At the same time, they may also be out of a reasonable range for Bill Belichick to pay the steep price it would take to get up as high as the fourth pick, currently held by the Atlanta Falcons.

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  But the Patriots could conceivably trade from 15th to 10th without having to give up a future first-round pick. They'd have to give up the 15th and 46th picks in this year's draft, though. But this trade would make mathematical sense according to the draft trade value chart, with the Patriots sending a few more "points" Dallas' way:
  
  Patriots get:
  
  10th pick
  75th pick
  
  Cowboys get:
  
  15th pick
  46th pick
  177th pick
  197th pick
  
  So, assuming the Patriots don't have to outbid several teams with a gross overpay, there's a path for them to jump from 15 to 10 without mortgaging any future draft capital. It would push them out of the second round and into the third, but it would also land them a player they obviously covet who unexpectedly dropped to 10.

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  Belichick himself name-dropped picks 12 and 13 when outlining his potential draft strategy in last Thursday's video conference. Moving up 2-3 picks is certainly something he's been unafraid to do over the years.
  
  "Then the question comes, do you move up and try to get that player that’s fallen a little bit?" Belichick said. "Those are kind of the scenarios you got through. Which players would you move up for to get? Which players would you not move up for that you would wait and decide whether you want to pick them at the spot you’re at and what players, if certain players weren’t there and you felt the value of that pick might be the same whether you’re at 15 or a lower position..."
  
  The Patriots are doing their due diligence scouting all the potential quarterback prospects to be available to them in the first and second round, most recently by sending two top talent evaluators to Trey Lance's second Pro Day. They clearly know that their long-term answer at the position will almost certainly have to come with an early pick. So it's good for them to make sure they know as much as they can about every first and second-tier QB prospect, in the event that one of them makes sense to select based on their draft board.
  
  If they trade up for one, expect it to be something like this with the Cowboys, and not much higher.

MORE: Trading Way Up For QBs Doesn’t Work

Matt Dolloff is a writer and podcaster for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Have a news tip, question, or comment for Matt? Yell at him on Twitter @mattdolloff and follow him on Instagram @mattydsays. You can also email him at mdolloff@985thesportshub.com.