1. New England Patriots
The New England Patriots sit comfortably atop their division with a 9-2 record and an MVP candidate in second-year quarterback Drake Maye. This season has gone as well as anyone could have imagined, and the Patriots are in a position to make a deep playoff run. While they weren’t willing to mortgage the future at the trade deadline, they should be open to a Brandin Cooks reunion.
Maye is fantastic and has made do with an unremarkable wide receiver room, but it wouldn’t hurt to add another body to the mix. Stefon Diggs still has some juice in his tank and Kayshon Boutte has emerged as a reliable intermediate threat, but New England doesn’t have a true burner. Brandin Cooks won’t put up another 1,000-yard season, but pairing him with the game’s most accurate deep passer could be a lethal combination.
