It’s finally here.

NFL Draft Week.

Lying Season comes to an end very soon.

Maybe the rumors will intensify, such as Travis Hunter grew a third hand, or Cam Ward has a bionic arm as a scientist comes forward.

But really, the fibs will take place when the Patriots pick fourth on Thursday night in the NFL Draft at Green Bay. That’s when we’ll be told it was Eliot Wolfe’s choice all along when we know Mike Vrabel is calling the shots, for the most part.

Patriot fans probably aren’t going to be happy when the card is handed in, and it could quite possibly have LSU offensive lineman Will Campbell’s name on it. Nope, not one bit.But that’s where everything is pointing.

Maybe that won’t happen. Maybe the Patriots trade down if someone wants Campbell and enhance their draft capital, as they say. It’s not a great draft to be picking in the top five this year, that’s for sure.

But heed the words of Vrabel, who said there are certainly starting tackles in this draft.

“I think there’s some starting tackles that certainly will come in and start in the NFL,” he said this past week at his pre-draft presser. “I think that that’s really what you start to look for, impact players. When you start picking that high, what they’re going to do for you, what’s the impact, what’s the position, you talk about premium positions. That’s where you weigh all the circumstances and end up making that pick. Do I think that there are starters in this draft that left tackle? Yes, I do.

If it’s not Aligator Arms Campbell, perhaps it’s Michigan defensive lineman Mason Graham. That’s what we would do, given Christian Barmore’s blod clot issues that cost him most of the 2024 season. Graham could be a force, making a Patriots strength even stronger.

You see, it’s all about value, which is why the New York Giants likely won’t take Shadore Sanders at No.3, even though they are desperate for that young franchise quarterback that will turn out way better than the one they had before, Daniel Jones. The Giants and the rest of the NFL know that after Ward is likely taken No. 1 by the Tennessee Titans, there are two seemingly can’t miss prospects left – Dual threat Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter and edge rusher Abdul Carter. The Giants have been all over Hunter and Sanders, but Hunter will likely become a Cleveland Brown at No. 2 which leads Carter for the Giants. They resist the tempation to draft for need and go with what every NFL team should do: take the best player available, meaning the highest ranked player available on their draft board. If the two intersect, fine. If not, it’s BPA.

So the question really is, who is the player ranked fourth on New England’s draft board? Or is their one higher than that who hasn’t been taken? That’s really what it comes down to.

But this week will continue with a few smokescreens, sharades, etc., and after the No. 1 pick Thursday night, then the fun begins.

It’s been quite a few months, hasn’t it? Sports talk radio and TV have been non stop since the Super Bowl ended. There is no event that creates more conversation, conjecture, and false narratives than the NFL Draft. The event has become a full time business for many, as we’ve told you for many years, instead of just a three-day event that scribes like myself cover and then move on.

It’s also a complete crapshoot in a lot of ways. For example, Carter is considered can’t miss. But he’s had shoulder issues and a stress issue in one of his feet. Imagine if he is damaged goods? Disaster.

But yes, the Giants hold the key to what your Patriots will do. The Patriots need to make this a productive draft after last year’s apparent – we say ‘apparent’ because you don’t know for sure until a couple of years later – disaster after they got the sure thing in Drake Maye at No. 3.

The problem is, it’s not a deep draft. There are depth pieces the rest of the way, basically players after the top five could easily wait until the second or even the third round.

But it’s Draft Week, and the stories and rumors will be flying all over the place. General managers/coaches in charge are hoping to become geniuses, the media will be in a frenzy, ‘X’ will make us all nervous wrecks, etc., etc., etc.

But for the second straight year we won’t miss Bill Belichick’s trading down, in, out, around, etc. after we’ve waited three hours for a pick in the high 20s or at 30 to be made. We’ll know in the first half hour what the story is, right?

Patriots owner Robert Kraft said he doesn’t want the Patriots picking this high again in his lifetime. They probably won’t over the next few years, as the arrow seems to be pointing up which means the draft arrow points down the list.

Draft Week. It’s arrived, and after next weekend, Patriot and NFL fans, we can all get on with the rest of our lives.

Just don’t believe anything anyone tells you about anything. Why? Because it’s, yes, Draft Week.

Tom King may be reached at X @Telegraph_TomK, or via email at tking@nashuatelegraph.com