B-
New England Patriots
Daniels is the plan now, and the Patriots grade out a B-.
by BBB ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 20 picks
· 3 steals
· 6 reaches
The search is over. The Patriots handed the keys to Jayden Daniels, and the whole operation now runs on his development. Nothing here to lose sleep over; call it a B-.
On value alone, Johnson makes the weekend a net positive. The dealing is the wound this class cannot quite close. They will need Pearl to outplay his draft slot in a hurry to justify it.
On the needs board they went 8 of 8, with edge rusher the one that mattered most.
Not a headline-grabber, but a perfectly good weekend's work.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 7 they get a passer to set the clock by. A clean fit for the roster.
Xavier Legette at Round 2, Pick 2 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Darius Robinson in the Round 2 slot is fair value, right on his grade. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
No edge and no loss on Devontez Walker in pick No. 68; it is a wash and a sensible one. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They jumped the gun on Brenden Rice, taking him earlier than his grade liked. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Braelon Allen in pick 100 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Blake Fisher in slot 105 is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
A market-rate interior defensive lineman, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Maason Smith. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They paid sticker price for Javon Solomon in the 110th overall pick, and that is fine. Where it fits the depth chart is the real question.
They took Christian Jones at par in slot 129, which is nothing to complain about. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Roger Rosengarten at No. 137 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
They paid up for Jalyx Hunt at Round 5, Pick 2 when waiting would have done the job. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
A slide stopped in pick 169, with Dwight McGlothern worth more than the price. A minor need, but a need all the same.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Julian Pearl well ahead of where he belonged. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Javontae Jean-Baptiste at pick No. 193 is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Cornelius Johnson in the Round 7 slot is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A straight-up fair deal on Trey Knox at No. 225, value and slot in agreement. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
They let JD Bertrand come to them and pounced at the Round 7 slot. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
By-the-book stuff, Tylan Grable at slot 231 squarely in line with his ranking. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
A reach for Josh Proctor in the 232nd pick; a little patience would have been rewarded. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.