B+
New England Patriots
The Patriots left with their quarterback, and a B+ to match.
by Bigbook ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 11 picks
· 6 steals
· 0 reaches
The Patriots spent the pick that matters most on Drake Maye, and a roster that has been waiting on a passer can start to take shape. A sturdy weekend that grades out a B+.
They robbed the room blind at the table, and it lifts the grade on its own. On value alone, Ford makes the weekend a net positive. If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through interior defensive lineman.
Solid rather than spectacular, and there is nothing wrong with that.
Pick-by-Pick
In slot 5 they get their guy under center for the next decade. A clean fit for the roster.
In the 27th overall pick they get a double-digit-sack hope, and a steal at that. Exactly the need they had to hit.
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Graham Barton at the Round 2 slot is the proof. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Xavier Legette at Round 3, Pick 4 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Jaden Hicks in the 90th pick. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
A quiet steal in No. 103: Bucky Irving for less than the market said. It fills a real need, too.
They let Johnny Wilson come to them and pounced at pick 137. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Cody Schrader at pick No. 180 nudges the ledger their way without any fuss. The roster fit checks out.
A straight-up fair deal on Cornelius Johnson at slot 186, value and slot in agreement. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
They took Joe Milton III at par in the 193rd pick, which is nothing to complain about. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
The board fumbled Jaylan Ford all the way to pick No. 231, and they scooped it up. A minor need, but a need all the same.