A-
New England Patriots
A masterclass at the trade table lands the Patriots a A-.
by BBB ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 24 picks
· 8 steals
· 4 reaches
Whoever sat across the table from the Patriots should ask for a receipt. They cleaned the room out, prying loose far more value than they gave up, and it was the quiet MVP of their weekend.
It is not that Smith is a bad player; it is that the Patriots had louder needs to answer first. If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through interior defensive lineman. Pearl has a lot of ground to make up just to look fairly priced.
The McCaffrey value carries more weight than any single miss elsewhere.
Bottom line, they did the job about as well as it can be done.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick 11 they get a security blanket over the middle. A real need, handled.
In the 27th overall pick they get a difference-maker at receiver at fair value. Exactly the need they had to hit.
They read the board right and Chop Robinson was the payoff at the Round 2 slot. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
No edge and no loss on Keon Coleman in pick No. 35; it is a wash and a sensible one. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Kingsley Suamataia in the 68th pick. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Patrick Paul in slot 70. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Nothing to complain about; Khyree Jackson went a shade earlier than his grade, which is fine. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
A straight-up fair deal on Zak Zinter at No. 103, value and slot in agreement. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Braelon Allen in the 105th pick is exactly on the number, no argument either way. It fills a real need, too.
They bypassed pressing needs at interior defensive lineman to take Maason Smith, a DT-EDGE that was not the priority.
They paid sticker price for Johnny Wilson in the Round 4 slot, and that is fine. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
A quiet steal in pick 129: Javon Foster for less than the market said. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
James Williams is a better player than the 137th overall pick suggests; smart patience, rewarded. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
The board had cheaper options than Marist Liufau at No. 157, and it noticed. Depth more than a fix, but depth they can use.
No drama and no debate, Jordan Travis went about where he belonged in pick No. 167. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Taking Luke McCaffrey in slot 169 is close to grand larceny; a wide receiver that good had no business lasting this long. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Julian Pearl at the Round 6 slot is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. This was not a hole anyone had circled.
A market-rate tight end, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Tip Reiman. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
They took Myles Cole at par in pick 193, which is nothing to complain about. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
JD Bertrand at Round 6, Pick 27 is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. A want dressed up as a pick, at a spot they had covered.
A tidy bit of business in the 226th pick, where Caedan Wallace graded well above the range. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Value with a capital V on Trey Knox in slot 231, a genuine coup. The roster fit checks out.
A reach for Sam Hartman in No. 243; a little patience would have been rewarded. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Josh Proctor slid further than he should have, and pick No. 255 is lovely value for the safety. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.