B
New England Patriots
A franchise passer in Daniels headlines a B weekend for the Patriots.
by mikev ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 11 picks
· 1 steals
· 4 reaches
Somewhere a scout is still blinking. The Patriots spent No. 193 on Joshua Cephus, a name the board had a full 70 spots lower. A dependable weekend that grades out a B.
Jayden Daniels gives the offense a face and a plan, and the grade leans heavily on whether he hits. They covered a lot of ground and still skipped interior defensive lineman, which is a strange place to end up. McClellan at that cost is the sort of edge that compounds over a roster.
Job largely done: edge rusher settled and 6 of 8 of the wish list covered.
In sum, a sensible class that nudges the roster the right way.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick No. 4 they get the arm they will build around at fair value. A real need, handled.
In the 27th overall pick they get a plug-and-play piece up front. A clean fit for the roster.
A straight-up fair deal on Adonai Mitchell at No. 34, value and slot in agreement. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
No edge and no loss on Max Melton in Round 3, Pick 4; it is a wash and a sensible one. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
A conviction pick on Christian Mahogany at the Round 3 slot that the board grades a round light. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They went early on Cedric Gray in slot 103, and the value did not follow. A minor need, but a need all the same.
Jared Wiley in slot 137 is fair value, right on his grade. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Khristian Boyd at No. 180 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
A wild overpay on Jalen Coker in the 186th pick, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Joshua Cephus at pick No. 193 is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Jase McClellan slid further than he should have, and Round 7, Pick 11 is lovely value for the running back. A need, and now a little less of one.