Belichick's Best: Patriots Trade More, Better Than Any Team During NFL Draft

During his 22 years in New England, nobody has engineered more draft-day trades than New England's future Hall of Famer Bill Belichick

Richie Whitt | Apr 22, 2022

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones may have the reputation as an old oil wildcatter, ready to aggressively risk assets and engineer trades in order to make a splash during the NFL Draft.

But Jones - or no one else in the league - doesn't come close to the quantity or quality of draft-day deals made by New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick. (In 2020, he proved the shrewdest of moves can be made at a modest table with a dog as your assistant.) Under his direction, the Patriots have made 83 trades since 2000. Second-most? The Philadelphia Eagles with 75. And Jones? A mere 72.

Going strong at 70

Bill Belichick

Bill & Mac

Belichick's willingness to not fall in love with picks or players and to leverage what he has for what he wants is one of the reasons the Patriots have won six Super Bowls.

Only one year - 2004 - has Belichick pulled at least one draft-day trade. In 2019 he made three with the Los Angeles Rams alone. And he's split his movement evenly, 28 times trading up, 28 trading down and 27 simply involving players and/or future considerations.

Will Belichick make another, or several, in next week's draft when the Patriots will be seeking help at linebacker and in the secondary?

If so, history says it's safe to trust in Bill. Five of his best draft-day deals:

2001: Picks 39 and 173 for Matt Light and 112 - One of Belichick’s first draft-day trades was one of his best. Belichick traded No. 39 to Pittsburgh for No. 50 and No. 112. Then, while Light was on the phone with the New York Jets, who were drafting at No. 49, Belichick packaged No. 50 and No. 173 to move up to draft Light 48th. Light became a stalwart left tackle and eventual Patriots Hall of Famer.

2003: Drew Bledsoe, Tebucky Jones and 19, 75 and 193 for Ty Warren, Eugene Wilson, Dan Klecko, Vince Wilfork, Tully Banta-Cain and Corey Dillon - Separate first-round trades, but they resulted in acquiring the middle of the Patriots' stingy defense (Klecko and Wilfork) for years and a runner who set the franchise single-season record (Dillon).

2007: Pick 28 for Randy Moss and Jerod Mayo - Belichick dealt 28 to San Francisco in exchange for a fourth-round pick (110) and a 2008 first rounder. He then moved 110 to Oakland for Moss. The first-round pick in 2008 became team captain Jerod Mayo. Belichick's best day and one of the best draft-day maneuverings in NFL history.

Jerod Mayo

Rob Gronkowski

Julian Edelman

2009: Picks 23 and 26 for Julian Edelman, Rob Gronkowski, Darius Butler and Brandon Tate - Belichick traded back in the first round, twice, and with the multiple picks wound up with a Super Bowl MVP (Edelman with 232) and - after another deal in 2010 using this ammunition - one of the greatest tight ends in NFL history (Gronkowski).

2012: Picks 31 and 126 for Dont'a Hightower - The linebacker has long been a captain who rewarded Belichick's wrangling to get him with the strip sack in Super Bowl LI the tackle in Super Bowl XLIX.

Published Apr 22, 2022

RICHIE WHITT