As the New England Patriots mull over their options at pick No. 4, head coach Mike Vrabel understands they won't know exactly who is available until they're officially on the clock.
"Nope. Do you have any idea?" he jokingly responded at the AFC coaches breakfast on Monday when asked if the team has clarity on how things may go at the top of the draft. "You tell me who goes 1, 2, and 3 and I'll tell you who goes 4."
If the board does fall the right way, New England—picking within the top five of the NFL draft for a second consecutive season—could have a chance at drafting a generational talent in hybrid player Travis Hunter. The 2024 Heisman Trophy winner played wide receiver and cornerback during his time at the University of Colorado, and shined on both sides of the ball.
Vrabel was asked about Hunter on Monday and refused to put him in a box, insinuating that the Patriots would be open to playing him on both offense and defense.
"I think there are some things he can improve on by probably concentrating on just one position," he explained. "But never going to put any restrictions on Travis, or any player. We try to—as much as they can handle—we’re going to continue to put more on their plate."
“If he were on our football team and he showed great skill at one position," Vrabel continued. "And started to really do well in his conditioning, and it didn’t fall and didn’t drop, we would be open to playing everybody that we had at more than one position. Anything that would help the football team, I would be all in favor of."
New England's new man in charge later added that Hunter would probably need to have a primary position, "to improve... just to be able to get some of the details that are going to be required in this league."
The Patriots, after spending the most money in free agency, currently hold nine picks in April's draft to help revive their depleted roster.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Mike Vrabel Explains How Patriots Would Use Travis Hunter If They Draft Him at Pick No. 4.
