B
New England Patriots
The Patriots let Berger fall into their laps, and walked away with a B.
by jkingsbury ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 6 steals
· 0 reaches
Thirty-one other rooms let Jalen Berger slide, and the Patriots were the ones holding the card at slot 229. Highway robbery. Good, not great, and the B says as much.
They covered a lot of ground and still skipped interior defensive lineman, which is a strange place to end up. The trades cost them a sliver of value they did not need to spend. On the needs board they went 5 of 8, with edge rusher the one that mattered most.
Not a headline-grabber, but a perfectly good weekend's work.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 5th pick they get a blindside protector. A real need, handled.
Bo Nix at pick 34 is the sort of value that quietly wins a weekend. It fills a real need, too.
Brenden Rice at the Round 3 slot is right where the board had him, plain and simple. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
They read the board right and Jeremiah Trotter Jr. was the payoff at No. 69. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
Somehow Josh Newton was still sitting there in Round 4, Pick 4, and they pounced on premier cornerback value. A minor need, but a need all the same.
Marshawn Kneeland in pick No. 106 is fair value, right on his grade. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
A quiet steal in the 136th overall pick: Malik Washington for less than the market said. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
A offensive lineman of that caliber at slot 182 is the definition of value, full stop. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Jalen Berger in slot 229 is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.