There continues to be a lot of smoke when it comes to the Patriots trading into the top 10 in Thursday's NFL Draft.
It continued on Tuesday, this time with a note from Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer.
In his mock draft, Breer says some groundwork has been done on what a deal might look like between the Patriots and Panthers for Carolina's No. 8 overall pick.
Breer adds the target would be Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields.
The Patriots would need to give up the No. 15 overall pick and then a few other selections, including likely a 2022 first-rounder.
This report isn't saying a trade will happen, it just goes along with the Patriots exploring all options, which include potentially trading up.
Breer did not trade any picks in his mock draft and has the Patriots selecting Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons with the No. 15 overall pick.
This report comes following NFL Media's Tom Pelissero saying the Patriots have called teams about a potential trade up into the top 10 and those teams believe the target would be Fields.