B-
New England Patriots
Grand theft in pick No. 250: the Patriots steal Sanders and grade out a B-.
by Melvin ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 19 picks
· 17 steals
· 0 reaches
You build a draft on nights like this. T.J. Sanders had no business being available in the 250th pick, and the Patriots did the only sane thing and turned in the card.
For all the activity, quarterback went untouched, which is hard to explain. They went 7 of 8 on their needs, which is most of what a draft is for. They are betting the present roster is worth a lighter draft next spring.
Building through the lines is a philosophy, and they stuck to it.
All told, a solid class that does its job everywhere but quarterback.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 4th overall pick they get a premier pass rusher at fair value. Exactly the need they had to hit.
Steal is underselling it; Josh Simmons at the Round 2 slot is a heist with the alarm still ringing. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Circle this one: Xavier Restrepo at slot 70 is a fall that decides a draft. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
They barely believed it either: Wyatt Milum still on the board at No. 88. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
The board fumbled Walter Nolen all the way to Round 3, Pick 26, and they scooped it up. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Tre Harris at pick No. 107 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Jihaad Campbell at pick 158 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
Taking Cam Skattebo in the 196th pick is close to grand larceny; a running back that good had no business lasting this long. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Jahdae Barron at Round 6, Pick 27 is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. A minor itch, scratched.
A top-tier edge rusher at a bargain, Josaiah Stewart in the Round 7 slot, plain and simple. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
You do not let a linebacker like Demetrius Knight Jr. reach pick No. 221 and blink. They did not. Pure best-available; the position was not exactly begging.
They took Nick Nash at par in the 238th pick, which is nothing to complain about. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A interior defensive lineman of that caliber at pick 250 is the definition of value, full stop. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Somehow Dylan Fairchild was still sitting there in No. 251, and they pounced on premier offensive lineman value. A need, and now a little less of one.
Malachi Moore in slot 252 should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Trey Amos in the 253rd overall pick is a gift, value that borders on unfair. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
They will replay Jake Briningstool at No. 254 for years; that is how good the value is. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
They robbed the room for Kyren Lacy here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Cody Simon in pick No. 256 is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. A want dressed up as a pick, at a spot they had covered.