B-
New England Patriots
The Patriots let Legette fall and pounced. Final grade: B-.
by JScrillz ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 6 steals
· 2 reaches
The Patriots did not reach, did not trade up, did not blink. They just waited, and Xavier Legette fell into pick No. 68. It nets out to a B-, which feels about right.
They handed away value on the phones that the picks cannot earn back. For all the activity, edge rusher went untouched, which is hard to explain.
Add it up and it is a good, unfussy class.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 17th overall pick they get a weapon on the perimeter. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
Value with a capital V on Bo Nix in pick No. 34, a genuine coup. A need, and now a little less of one.
The board fumbled Troy Fautanu all the way to the 56th pick, and they scooped it up. It fills a real need, too.
You do not let a wide receiver like Xavier Legette reach slot 68 and blink. They did not. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Braden Fiske at pick 87 nudges the ledger their way without any fuss. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
They paid up for Max Melton at the Round 4 slot when waiting would have done the job. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
The board had Isaiah Adams higher than Round 5, Pick 3, and the offensive lineman fell to them anyway. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Frank Gore Jr. slid further than he should have, and No. 182 is lovely value for the running back. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
They let Myles Jones come to them and pounced at pick No. 224. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
They paid a round early for Maurice Smith in the 232nd overall pick, more than the board wanted. The roster fit checks out.