A-
New England Patriots
Grand theft in Round 4, Pick 7: the Patriots steal Smith and grade out a A-.
by braeden ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 6 steals
· 3 reaches
The best pick of the weekend was also the simplest. The Patriots watched Brashard Smith slide 71 picks past his grade and did not hesitate. Little to argue with here, and the A- says so.
If Crenshaw-Dickson pans out, nobody remembers the price. If not, this is the pick they hear about. The edge rusher spot stays a question, and it was the one they most needed an answer at.
Trust the process, because this time the process plainly worked.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 11th overall pick they get a difference-maker at receiver. Exactly the need they had to hit.
They read the board right and Tate Ratledge was the payoff at the 41st pick. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Value with a capital V on Jason Marshall Jr. in slot 72, a genuine coup. A minor itch, scratched.
Malachi Moore at pick No. 86 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Brashard Smith at the Round 4 slot is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
You do not let a linebacker like Deontae Lawson reach No. 144 and blink. They did not. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
They reached into another round for Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They reached a country mile for Joey Slackman at pick 218, and the board is aghast. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Taking Jared Wilson in the 223rd pick is close to grand larceny; an offensive lineman that good had no business lasting this long. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
They liked Elijhah Badger enough to skip the value, taking him in No. 239. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.