B-
New England Patriots
Grand theft in slot 63: the Patriots steal Hill Jr. and grade out a B-.
by EMANPATSFAN ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 11 picks
· 6 steals
· 2 reaches
You could see the war room lean forward. Anthony Hill Jr. at No. 63 is the sort of fall that does not happen, except it just did.
They are betting Fisher proves the room right and everyone else wrong. They punted on edge rusher, and it is the miss that keeps the grade honest.
All told, a solid class that does its job everywhere but edge rusher.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 31st overall pick they get a go-to option on the outside. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
Anthony Hill Jr. at the Round 2 slot is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. A minor itch, scratched.
A quiet steal in pick No. 95: Max Klare for less than the market said. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Keylan Rutledge slipping to slot 125 is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
They read the board right and Bishop Fitzgerald was the payoff at pick 131. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
No drama and no debate, Aamil Wagner went about where he belonged in the 171st pick. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Le'Veon Moss at Round 6, Pick 10 jumps the queue by a touch more than is comfortable. A need, and now a little less of one.
Value with a capital V on Matt Gulbin in No. 198, a genuine coup. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Aiden Fisher at the 202nd pick is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. Stacking talent where they were already deep.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Dallen Bentley in slot 212. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A market-rate offensive lineman, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Nolan Rucci. The roster fit checks out.