Would Patriots make this draft decision instead of trading for Eagles' A.J. Brown?

Since this past winter, multiple reporters and analysts have made it seem as if the New England Patriots are waiting until after June 1 to acquire wide receiver A.J. Brown from the Philadelphia Eagles for reasons related to the salary cap. 

While speaking with reporters on Monday, Patriots executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf indicated that he could find a weapon for quarterback Drake Maye via a different transaction. 

Would the Patriots move up in the draft order to land a pass-catcher?

Per Karen Guregian of MassLive, Wolf was asked if he could package some draft picks to move up from overall choice No. 31.

"Yeah, I mean, we’re open to anything," Wolf responded. "Whatever way we can possibly improve the team, we’re open to. We have 11 picks. Most of those are kind of later in the draft, but we do have some flexibility with those 11 picks, and I think it’ll depend a little bit on how the board falls. If we view that there’s a player that, whether he’s falling or there’s somebody that we think we need to go get, we’ll be open to those opportunities." 

As shared by ESPN's Mike Reiss, Wolf acknowledged that "receiver and tight end are pretty good in comparison to some of the recent years" as it pertains to how certain positions rate in this year's draft class. Nick Baumgardner of The Athletic is among those who think star Oregon tight end Kenyon Sadiq and multiple noteworthy receivers could be available to the Patriots in the second half of the draft's first round. It's unknown how far Wolf may be willing to move up for a specific target. 

Are the Patriots still open to trading for A.J. Brown?

Recent whispers have suggested the Eagles are planning to draft a Brown replacement on the night of April 23. On Monday, Wolf was asked if he's keeping the door open to acquiring Brown at some point before training-camp practices get underway in July. 

"As far as players on other teams, gonna keep the door open to anything that we think may improve our roster, whether that’s with the player you mentioned or other players," Wolf answered, according to Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk. 

What Wolf does on the opening night of the draft could say plenty about his true intentions regarding a potential trade for Brown.