“Might the Patriots’ potential decision between McCarthy – who is being hosted by New England on Monday, according to multiple reports – and Drake Maye be the inflection point of the entire first round,” USA Today’s Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz said. “New coach Jerod Mayo has raved about the latter signal-caller, but McCarthy’s continued ascent – both as a player and prospect – could take him all the way to the top three. No matter the pick, however, New England might not want to throw its rookie quarterback into the fray right away unless it can significantly upgrade its skill-position talent later in the draft.”

“Unless Kwesi Adofo-Mensah can somehow pry the No. 3 pick from the Patriots, the Vikings might be limited in their likely options at quarterback – and getting into position for whichever top passer is left could still prove mighty costly,” Middlehurst-Schwartz said. “Quarterbacks coach Josh McCown coached Maye at Myers Park High School in Charlotte, and it’s easy to see why Minnesota would be excited about adding a rocket-armed signal-caller comfortable operating on the move, especially as the franchise turns the page from the Kirk Cousins era. For Maye, there might be no better situation for his development than learning under McCown and Kevin O’Connell while having Justin Jefferson on the receiving end of his deep bombs and Christian Darrisaw keeping him clean.”