Niners trade OT Trent Brown to New England Patriots

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, a source told NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport.

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 on Thursday 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.

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