As the Patriots navigate roster cuts and a messy contract standoff, Christian Gonzalez has become the name at the center of a trade idea that would send shockwaves through the league. The issue is simple: Gonzalez still doesn’t have the extension many expected by now, and with the team less than two weeks away from its Week 1 Super Bowl rematch, the possibility of a deal ending in a trade has started to creep into the conversation.
If the hold-up really is about money, and if the Krafts are the ones slowing things down, there’s at least a scenario where New England decides moving Gonzalez is more appealing than extending him beyond the 2027 season. In that case, a team like the Raiders could become part of a blockbuster conversation.
That’s the kind of idea WEEI’s The Greg Hill Show has put out there in recent days, and it comes with a name Patriots fans know well: Maxx Crosby.
The appeal is obvious on paper. New England’s defense does not have a truly dangerous pass rusher right now, and Crosby would fill that void immediately. With Harold Landry having missed all of training camp, the need up front only looks bigger.
But the price being floated is steep. The notion of sending Gonzalez to Las Vegas in a player-for-player swap is already hard enough to swallow, and it likely wouldn’t stop there. Any deal would probably require significant draft capital too, which only raises the cost.
There’s also the matter of what New England would be giving up in the secondary. Beyond Gonzalez, Carlton Davis, and Marcus Jones, the Patriots are thin at cornerback. Moving their best defensive back would leave a major hole, even if Crosby arrived to help the pass rush.
And while Crosby would be an obvious upgrade in one area, the Patriots would need to be absolutely certain about his health and long-term availability. The Raiders returned him earlier this offseason because of a worrisome injury, which makes the whole idea harder to justify if the cost is a 24-year-old superstar cornerback.
The result is a trade concept that can make sense in pieces, but feels far riskier when all the parts are put together.
In Other News...
Patriots Fans Are Fed Up With Gillette Stadium For One Ridiculous Reason
A post from Kevin Wiles Jr. after an event at Gillette Stadium tapped into one of the most familiar fan gripes around live sports: concession prices that feel a little steep for what actually lands in your hands. Wiles shared a photo on X of an $8 order of French fries, with the portion spread out in paper cups, and the reaction from other fans quickly followed.
Gillettes fries generally fall in the $6 to $9 range, which is in line with what many NFL venues charge, but that hasnt made the complaint any easier to ignore for people already bracing for stadium concessions. So far, neither the stadium nor its concessions operator has addressed the post publicly, leaving the small serving size to do the talking for now. [Read more 🡒]
Patriots Final Cuts Included A Few Surprises Fans Didn't See Coming
The Patriots roster trim turned into one of those late-summer exercises that can change the feel of a camp in a hurry. Over the weekend, New England made 42 transactions to get from 91 players down to the regular-season limit of 53, and the final list offered a few twists for anyone tracking the competition battle by battle through August.
Some of the headliners were the players who stayed put when many around the team expected otherwise, including quarterback Behren Morton and offensive tackle Dametrious Crownover. On the other side, defensive tackle Eric Gregory was among the names left off, a reminder that preseason momentum does not always carry the same weight when the team starts sorting depth, fit and future plans. [Read more 🡒]
Patriots Suddenly Have A Backup QB Story Fans Should Watch
Will Levis time in Tennessee ended suddenly when the Titans cut him after two seasons, a move that reopened the conversation around a quarterback whose career has already been shaped by injuries and uneven play. Once projected as a possible long-term answer, Levis now becomes one of the more interesting names available for teams that can afford to take a flier on upside while knowing the floor has been shaky.
For New England, the appeal is easy to understand because the Patriots are always worth watching when a quarterback with starting experience hits the market. Levis has been linked as a speculative fit there, along with the Jaguars, Chargers and Cowboys, and the case for any of those teams rests on need, familiarity with certain coaches or systems, and the hope that a change of scenery can steady his path. What happens next will come down to whether a team believes the talent is still worth the gamble. [Read more 🡒]