NFL Draft Trade Rumors: Patriots Have Contacted Seahawks About Potential Trade

News is going to be hitting pretty hard and fast today so I'm not going to be doing separate posts for every little thing that flies around, but Albert Breer (who is, incidentally, one of the most respected reporters in the business, on par with Jay Glazer in my mind) is now reporting that the Patriots have inquired to the Seahawks on what it would cost to get to #12. Now, as Breer notes, it could just be information gathering by the Pats prior to tonight's events, but it could also be a genuine interest on making a move up the board.

Though the Jimmy Johnson chart may now be waning towards extinction, it is worth bringing up now to attempt to extrapolate what the Seahawks might be asking in return for the 12th overall pick. Pick 12 is worth 1200 according to the Jimmy Johnson chart. Picks 27 and 31, which the Patriots now hold, are worth 680 and 600 points each, respectively. This leaves an 80 point differential in favor of the Patriots.

Now, here's where it gets funny. The Seahawks' hold pick 107 (4th round) currently worth 80 points (not including comp picks). So, in theory, the Seahawks could yield #12 and #107 to pick up the 27th and 31th overall picks in the first round this year.

That's just one scenario, and following last year's trade that saw the Atlanta Falcons give up five picks - their 2011 and 2012 first round picks, a 2011 second round pick and both 2011 and 2012 fourth round picks - to move up from 27 to 6, the price could be a little bit more than what JJ stipulates. Also, taking into account the new rookie wage system, higher picks are arguably worth even more now because of the reduced risk involved for teams.

It's not Bill Belichick's M.O. to trade up in the first, but I guess you could also argue he's due for that after trading back so often in prior years. Alabama's Mark Barron might be a player they're targeting, or perhaps a guy like South Carolina's Stephon Gilmore or Melvin Ingram. Something to keep an eye on.

UPDATE: According to a SportsCenter segment today, John Clayton reports that the Lions are also one team to watch in all this, and are "looking to move up 10 to 12 spots, with Barron as their primary target." The Lions sit at 23 right now, so the Seahawks certainly fall into that 10-12 spot category.