B
New England Patriots
Best value of the weekend goes to the Patriots for Branch: B.
by pj_doucette ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 11 picks
· 7 steals
· 1 reaches
The Patriots did not reach, did not trade up, did not blink. They just waited, and Zachariah Branch fell into pick No. 125. A dependable weekend that grades out a B.
For all the activity, safety went untouched, which is hard to explain. They left with edge rusher solved and the rest of the wish list mostly ticked off.
Not a headline-grabber, but a perfectly good weekend's work.
Pick-by-Pick
In slot 31 they get a problem off the edge at fair value. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
Caleb Banks at the 63rd pick is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Germie Bernard at pick No. 95 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Zachariah Branch in Round 4, Pick 25 is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
A reach for J.C. Davis in No. 131; a little patience would have been rewarded. It fills a real need, too.
The board fumbled Oscar Delp all the way to the 171st overall pick, and they scooped it up. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
A offensive lineman of that caliber at the Round 6 slot is the definition of value, full stop. The roster fit checks out.
Cole Payton in pick 198 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
They will replay Ar'maj Reed-Adams at pick No. 202 for years; that is how good the value is. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Dallen Bentley in the Round 6 slot is a bargain the rest of the room will envy. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Nothing to complain about; Eli Heidenreich went a shade earlier than his grade, which is fine. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.