Patriots reportedly now ‘moving forward’ with GM search

When the New England Patriots parted ways with Bill Belichick back in January they were left needing to fill not one job, but two. In addition to head coach, Belichick served as the de facto general manager of the team for the better part of his tenure, especially after then-VP of Player Personnel Scott Pioli left to become the GM of the Kansas City Chiefs following the 2008 season.

The head coaching part of Belichick's role, of course, was filled quickly. Jerod Mayo had a clause in his contract that allowed the team to promote him without first going through an external coaching search.

However, the team has yet to name a long-term replacement for Belichick as the head of the front office. Initial reporting back in January indicated the Patriots wouldn't conduct a search to fill that role until after the draft.

On Monday, that process got underway. As first reported by Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports, the Patriots "are moving forward with a search for their next top football executive." Jones added that the job the Patriots are looking to fill may not be titled as a general manager, but "the position would outrank all other football positions in the building."

The Patriots haven't had a titled general manager since Patrick Sullivan in 1990, meaning Kraft has never employed one under his ownership. Pioli was the closest to having that sort of role outside of Belichick.

Following Jones' report, Doug Kyed of The Boston Herald added that the team sent out requests to interview external candidates on Monday. Both Jones and Kyed added that current director of scouting Eliot Wolf is also a candidate for the job with Jones noting that Wolf's "work over the past four months will be key in his evaluation."

Wolf was given 'final say' for personnel decisions this offseason following Belichick's departure - but wasn't given a new title or role. Andrew Callahan of The Boston Herald reported in February that Wolf was "rebuilding the Patriots on an audition basis" and was "near the end of his contract." No update on Wolf's contract status has been reported since.

However it wasn't as simple as simply naming Wolf general manager, or another title with equivalent responsibilities. Any hiring for that job would have to be compliant with the Rooney Rule, which means the team would have to interview at least two external minority candidates before making a hire.

So, none of that means for sure that Wolf won't get the keys to the car moving forward. It would be surprising to say the least for the Patriots to part ways with him after allowing him to orchestrate an offseason that included completely rebuilding the offensive coaching staff, handing out major contracts to guard Mike Onwenu, safety Kyle Dugger, and defensive tackle Christian Barmore and then using the third overall pick in the NFL Draft on quarterback Drake Maye. Wolf was the unofficial face of the organization for all of those moves, holding press conferences at the NFL Combine and after the draft.

It's very possible this search will end with Wolf's lead front office role being cemented, once the necessary interviews have taken place. According to Mark Daniels of MassLive, "there are people inside Gillette Stadium and those on different NFL teams who expect Wolf will come away with the job."

Why would the Patriots wait until after the draft to make Wolf's new role official? It's tough to say, but one reason could be the team wanted to focus on the roster-building task at hand, rather than have to spend the early weeks of the offseason conducting interviews before truly getting started.

Wolf has spent the last four months building the new core of players and coaches for the Patriots moving forwards. Now it becomes a matter of whether or not he officially becomes the one that will continue working with that core, which we should learn over the next few weeks.

Read more below...

The New England Patriots 2024 draft class is complete. Read more about each pick below.

In total, the Pats made eight selections in the 2024 draft, and seven of them addressed the offense. It was the right thing to do, for a unit that had rotted from within at all the key spots on the roster.

That doesn't mean all these draft picks are guaranteed to hit, but it was imperative for Patriots de facto GM Eliot Wolf to take shots at critical positions like quarterback, wide receiver, and tackle. He did exactly that with the Pats' first three picks in a row.

Did Wolf land the Patriots' franchise quarterback of the future? That will be the No. 1 question coming out of this draft. Meet him and the rest of the Patriots' 2024 draft picks...

The key to the whole thing. If Maye pans out and becomes the Patriots’ first true franchise quarterback since Tom Brady, their concerns at wide receiver and along the offensive line suddenly won’t matter so much.

Maye has prototypical quarterback size at 6-foot-4 and 223 pounds, and has the arm talent to elevate the weapons around him. But despite his off-the-charts raw ability, Maye needs to improve his footwork and has a steep learning curve ahead of him going from North Carolina to an NFL offense.

So, the best thing for both Maye and the organization is to sit him to begin his rookie year, and allow him to work out the kinks in his game and learn the playbook. Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo and director of scouting Eliot Wolf are confident that Maye has the work ethic and “football intelligence” to do so.

If all goes well in Maye’s development, the Pats will have their franchise quarterback of the future. And he would be the type of guy you need in the modern NFL: an elite athlete with the intangibles to match.

The Patriots wasted little time making their long-awaited high draft pick at wide receiver. They traded down from 34 to 37, turning their fifth-round pick into a fourth-rounder in the process, and went for Polk, a guy Eliot Wolf said the team “had [their] eye on for a while.”

Polk has good size at 6-foot-1 and 203 pounds, and has been universally praised for his hands and his toughness at the catch point. He has big-play potential with his body control and ball-tracking, and has shown the ability to play both inside and outside.

His route-running is solid but could use some improvement. Polk tends to make rounded cuts out of his breaks, and could stand to become more sudden with his change of direction. If he can do that, he could become a productive receiver at the NFL level.

Polk’s ceiling seems to be more of a No. 2 receiver or complementary piece than a true No. 1, but this is the reality in today’s NFL: the true studs all go in the top half of the first round now. Polk should be better than infamous recent picks like N’Keal Harry and Tyquan Thornton. He has a chance to start from day 1 as an “X” or “Z” target.

With their all-important third pick and final one of day 2, the Patriots addressed a huge need at tackle with Wallace out of Penn State. Wallace played right tackle for the Nittany Lions and comes into the NFL with tackle-caliber size and length at 6-foot-5, 314 pounds with 34-inch arms.

Wolf told reporters that he’s confident Wallace has the athletic ability to switch from right tackle to left tackle. The hope is that he does indeed pan out as a blindside protector for Maye. For now, left tackle should be considered a competition between Wallace and free-agent signing Chukwuma Okorafor.

Robinson played right guard at Texas A&M, and projects as a guard at the NFL level at 6-foot-3 and 302 pounds. But he does have great arm length at 34 ⅝ inches. He gets high marks for his power and play strength.

The reason Robinson was a day-3 pick was a relative lack of consistency in his performance, and unrefined techniques in certain areas, particularly in run blocking. He likely won’t play right away for the Patriots, but there are traits for them to work with here, and the potential to develop him into a starting guard down the road.

Another fit for the Eliot Wolf mold, Baker has good size at 6-foot-1 and 202 pounds, and has the skill set to make big plays down the field - jumping ability, ball-tracking, catch radius. He’s also a versatile route-runner, making him a good fit for a West Coast-style offense, which the Patriots are expected to run under offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt.

The knocks on Baker in his scouting reports note the occasional focus drop and struggles against press-man coverage. But Baker does have the size and strength to possibly be coached up to handle that better at the NFL level. On the Patriots, he’ll have an opportunity to play relatively soon as a big “X” outside receiver, a player type they desperately need.

The Patriots finally addressed the defense and a sneaky need in the secondary with the selection of Dial in the sixth round. Dial played as a cornerback at South Carolina and has the physical tools to play man at the NFL level. He has to develop those skills to stick on the Patriots’ roster, but he has a chance, considering their relative lack of certainty at corner.

You can bet your bottom dollar that this pick made our resident draft expert Alex Barth extremely excited. That said, Milton right now is basically a big arm - the biggest arm - and not much else. He has a lot to learn about playing the position at the NFL level. But he should project as a long-term backup for Drake Maye, perhaps with the potential to be something more, if he develops well.

Bell is undersized for a tight end at 6-foot-2 and 241 pounds, but he showed some pass-catching ability and all-over-the-field versatility for Florida State. He's an indication that new Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo values versatility as much as his predecessor, Bill Belichick. There will be no pressure on Bell to contribute any time soon, with Hunter Henry and Austin Hooper in the fold at tight end. But he has potential as a versatile H-back type if he develops well.

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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. Check out all of Matt's content.