There’s a notable connection between the Texans and the Patriots. Houston has been run by former Patriots executive Nick Caserio since 2021, overseeing a rebuild that led to the Texans winning the AFC South in 2023.

But the process for the Texans to get there was relatively slow. They didn’t have a first-round pick in the 2021 draft and they opted to bypass selecting a quarterback with the third overall pick in the 2022 draft after going 4-13 the year prior.

The Texans stockpiled draft picks as well in the first two offseasons of Caserio’s tenure, notably obtaining three first-round picks from the Browns for Deshaun Watson. They finally made their move to get their quarterback of the future in the 2023 draft, selecting C.J. Stroud with the second overall pick before trading up to the third overall pick to select Will Anderson.

Of course, Caserio is not in New England anymore, but it isn’t unreasonable to think the Patriots might want to follow a similar rebuild model. Patriots owner Robert Kraft reportedly viewed Caserio as a dream candidate to replace Bill Belichick in football operations, potentially a sign that he was a fan of how he rebuilt the Texans.

Eliot Wolf will ultimately get to make that call for the Patriots though as the director of scouting is the team’s chief roster decision-maker this offseason. Despite holding over $100 million in cap space at the start of free agency, the Patriots failed to make a major outside signing as they were only heavily linked to one of the top free agents.

But that approach could also suggest that the Patriots are slow-playing their rebuild, similar to the Texans, as they wait to make aggressive moves.

“They’re just not ready now,” Russini said of the Patriots’ offensive personnel. “That’s why they had a hard time really pulling in top receivers during free agency.”

Trading down could help the Patriots get extra draft capital to address their other big needs on offense, especially if they acquire two first-round picks in this year’s draft from the quarterback-needy Vikings. Minnesota holds the 11th and 23rd overall picks in this year’s draft, which is considered to be a good draft class for offensive tackle and wide receiver prospects.

But this year’s draft is also considered to be a strong quarterback class as well, with four quarterbacks being speculated as possible top-five picks. The opportunity to nab one might be too strong for the Patriots to pass up on as Jacoby Brissett and Bailey Zappe are their top two quarterbacks.

“The idea of them wanting to go get a quarterback and believing that that’s going to turn them around is certainly there,” Russini said.