C+
New England Patriots
The Patriots let Neal fall into their laps, and walked away with a C+.
by robbiemaynard1 ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 11 picks
· 7 steals
· 4 reaches
The value of the weekend has a name and a slot: Devin Neal, the 176th overall pick, roughly 92 picks past where he belonged. It nets out a thoroughly average C+.
If Caldwell pans out, nobody remembers the price. If not, this is the pick they hear about. They handed away value on the phones that the picks cannot earn back. They will regret leaving quarterback for another day if the season turns on it.
Spending an early pick on linebacker with quarterback open is the decision the grade keeps circling back to.
Call it incomplete, and check back in a couple of seasons.
Pick-by-Pick
In slot 14 they get a true top target, and a steal at that. The biggest hole, addressed.
They reached a country mile for Donovan Ezeiruaku at Round 2, Pick 6, and the board is aghast. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
A tight end of that caliber at the 45th overall pick is the definition of value, full stop. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
You do not let a linebacker like Jalon Walker reach the Round 3 slot and blink. They did not. Depth more than a fix, but depth they can use.
Emery Jones Jr. in pick 77 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. A need, and now a little less of one.
Andrew Mukuba at pick No. 105 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
A surprising call. With quarterback still to address, they spent the 128th pick on Demetrius Knight Jr., a linebacker they were not short of.
Value said wait; Cobee Bryant in No. 136 says they were not listening. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
The board fumbled Carson Schwesinger all the way to pick 145, and they scooped it up. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
Devin Neal in Round 5, Pick 37 should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A real head-scratcher, Jamaree Caldwell in the 240th overall pick is miles ahead of his ranking. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.