B-
New England Patriots
Nothing loud, just a tidy B- for the Patriots.
by Kenton ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 7 picks
· 4 steals
· 2 reaches
The Patriots put a flag in the ground for Jaden Walley, 135 picks before anyone else would have, and the value took the hit. No fireworks, but a solid B-.
On value alone, McGlothern makes the weekend a net positive. Leaving interior defensive lineman unaddressed is the roster risk they will have to answer for in the fall. 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.
All told, a solid class that does its job everywhere but interior defensive lineman.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 9th overall pick they get a red-zone target to build around. A real need, handled.
In No. 17 they get a blindside protector, outstanding value to boot. A clean fit for the roster.
The board fumbled Jared Verse all the way to slot 34, and they scooped it up. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Luke McCaffrey in Round 5, Pick 1 is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Steal is underselling it; Dylan Laube at the Round 6 slot is a heist with the alarm still ringing. A need, and now a little less of one.
Dwight McGlothern in pick 193 is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
Jaden Walley at Round 7, Pick 11 is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.