BOSTON — On Sunday, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler floated the idea that the Patriots were a “wild card” as a landing spot for Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson.

He’s not alone. Other NFL insiders have done the same, putting the Patriots in the mix as a dark horse to acquire the NFL’s 2019 MVP.

Whether the chatter is to be believed or not, it’s become a bit of an elephant in the room for the Patriots.

Don’t they already have a starting quarterback? Isn’t Mac Jones, their 2021 first-round pick, the guy moving forward for at least this season and next?

The answer is yes.

Jones is the quarterback they’re building around. He’s the quarterback who’s tailor-made for Bill O’Brien and the Patriots offense. That hasn’t changed. Now for the so-called “but” in this equation, and the reason the Jackson possibility has any legs at all.

While the Pats have made some nice moves during free agency, they still aren’t an upper echelon team. In the AFC alone, they aren’t on the same competitive rung as Kansas City, Buffalo, Cincinnati, the Chargers, Jacksonville or the Jets if the Aaron Rodgers trade finally comes to pass.

Obviously, landing Jackson, who torched the Patriots in a Week 4 loss (4 TD passes, 107 rushing yards) and has pretty much had his way against Belichick’s defense, would change that narrative and do so instantly. It would create so much more buzz in New England where the Patriots are concerned.

While adding JuJu Smith-Schuster and Mike Gesicki should help the offense, they really don’t move the needle in terms of being able to knock off Buffalo in the division, or slide in front of Miami, as well as the Jets, if they get Rodgers.

Having Jackson under center would completely change the view of the Patriots this season and beyond. He would make their offense so much harder to defend, being a legitimate threat to run. In turn, he would get the Patriots back into the business of being contenders.

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