B+
New England Patriots
Maye is the Patriots' new face under center. Grade: B+.
by Jasonmroll14 ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 1 steals
· 1 reaches
The search is over. The Patriots handed the keys to Drake Maye, and the whole operation now runs on his development. It nets out to a B+, which feels about right.
They won the margins on every swap, and it adds up fast. The Stover pick reads as want over need, and the roster will feel it at edge rusher, interior defensive lineman and other spots. The cost of the Jones reach is exactly the players who went right after him.
For all the activity, edge rusher went untouched, which is hard to explain.
Good work on the whole, with edge rusher the one box left unchecked.
Pick-by-Pick
In Round 1, Pick 3 they get their guy under center for the next decade at fair value.
They paid sticker price for Patrick Paul in slot 41, and that is fine. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
A tidy little value on Josh Newton in the Round 3 slot, a step better than break-even. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
A want over a need in the 91st overall pick: Cade Stover adds a TE-EDGE while edge rusher, interior defensive lineman and other spots keeps waiting.
Tykee Smith is a better player than No. 104 suggests; smart patience, rewarded. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Luke McCaffrey at the 136th pick is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Dylan Laube in pick 147 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
A wild overpay on Christian Jones in pick No. 190, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Kimani Vidal at the 198th pick is right where the board had him, plain and simple. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.