Through the first four weeks of the 2024 regular season, the New England Patriots offense didn’t look good.

The unit led by first-year coordinator-quarterback combination Alex Van Pelt and Jacoby Brissett, which ranks 31st in the league with just 13.0 points per game, has left a lot to be desired. This is especially true in the passing game, where any threat of an attack downfield was only theoretical in nature.

The numbers speak for themselves: Brissett ranks 30th in the league in yards per attempt (5.3), while New England as a whole ranks last with just four explosive passing plays of 20-plus yards. Clearly, something needs to change if the team wants to turn its fortunes around and get back on track after starting the year 1-3.

Could that be a major trade move and bring Davante Adams aboard the Las Vegas Raiders?

A six-time Pro Bowler and one of the most productive wide receivers of his generation, Adams and the Raiders are headed for a divorce. Speculation about his future has been a constant for more than a year, but the team maintains its stance that it will not part ways with a player it acquired from Green Bay in March 2022.

However, the Raiders have seemingly changed their minds. They are now reportedly willing to listen to incoming offers and move on from a player who has four consecutive 1,000-yard seasons.

The asking price, according to a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, is in the ballpark of “a second-round pick and additional compensation.” Whether a club will be able to meet these requirements remains to be seen.

What can be said with some certainty, however, is that the Patriots should not be that club.

Of course, there are arguments for playing the Adams lottery. Look no further than the state of New England’s passing game, as described above; Adding a top player to the equation could be exactly the infusion of talent the unit is looking for. And make no mistake, the veteran wideout is exactly that: He would single-handedly make the Patriots a better team and give Brissett a clear No. 1 to work with.

Additionally, the Patriots have the resources to pull off a trade. They have the resources to send to Las Vegas, and the financial potential to both take over Adams’ current contract and rework the deal to lower his salary cap space in 2025 and 2026.

That’s all true, and yet New England would probably be wise to steer clear of an Adams trade. There is one simple reason for this: the Patriots want to be a “draft and develop” team.

Acquiring a soon-to-be 32-year-old wide receiver — especially given the Raiders’ reported demands — would run counter to this roster-building strategy that has been publicized by the team virtually since the inception of the Jerod Mayo/Eliot Wolf . era this offseason. Adams may be what the doctor ordered for the 2024 Patriots, but giving up a major asset like a high draft pick to get him would be too rich, despite his qualities as a player.

Adding a player like Adams via trade would be a luxury for the Patriots at this stage of their rebuilding process – one that, quite frankly, this team cannot and should not afford right now.