The New England Patriots are busy rebuilding their offensive line.
Smack dab in the middle of the NFL draft, the team has finalized a trade for 49ers tackle Trent Brown, the team announced Friday.
In exchange for the 6-foot-8, 355-pound blocker, the Patriots will ship the No. 95 pick in this year's draft to the Niners while netting a fifth-rounder (No. 143) in return from San Francisco.
The move comes one day after New England used the No. 23 overall pick on Georgia's Isaiah Wynn, a versatile lineman able to double as a guard or tackle for the Patriots.
In Brown, New England nets a 25-year-old right-sider who performed admirably as a pass-blocker last season in 10 starts. A 2015 seventh-rounder, Brown became expendable when the Niners drafted Mike McGlinchey with the ninth-overall pick to pair with bookend Joe Staley.
The Patriots came into the draft determined to upgrade a front five that suffered the loss of Nate Solder to the Giants and Cameron Fleming to the Cowboys in free agency.
That need was addressed first through the draft -- and now through a trade -- to ensure that quarterback Tom Brady remains upright in 2018.
