B+
New England Patriots
Shough should have been long gone. The Patriots pounced, and earned a B+.
by dan ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 10 steals
· 0 reaches
Somewhere a general manager is explaining how Tyler Shough got past him. The Patriots do not have to explain a thing at slot 222. Nothing here to lose sleep over; call it a B+.
They punted on edge rusher, and it is the miss that keeps the grade honest. The Caelen Carson deal gives the class an established piece to lean on.
Good work on the whole, with edge rusher the one box left unchecked.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 12th pick they get a featured back at a price that makes it sweeter.
They barely believed it either: Tyler Warren still on the board at the 38th overall pick. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Somehow Marcus Mbow was still sitting there in No. 69, and they pounced on premier offensive lineman value. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Azareye'h Thomas is a better player than Round 3, Pick 13 suggests; smart patience, rewarded. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
Sebastian Castro at pick 105 is the sort of value that quietly wins a weekend. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
The board fumbled Ajani Cornelius all the way to pick No. 149, and they scooped it up. A need, and now a little less of one.
A top-tier running back at a bargain, Raheim Sanders in slot 219, plain and simple. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
You do not let a quarterback like Tyler Shough reach the Round 7 slot and blink. They did not. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Steal is underselling it; Jamon Dumas-Johnson at the Round 7 slot is a heist with the alarm still ringing. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
Antwane Wells Jr. at the 249th overall pick is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.