B
New England Patriots
Larceny in pick 217 lands the Patriots a B, Simon and all.
by Ianmon ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 4 steals
· 1 reaches
The value of the weekend has a name and a slot: Cody Simon, the 217th overall pick, roughly 95 picks past where he belonged. They moved the roster forward and banked a B for it.
Reaching for Membou left real value on the table behind him. The quarterback spot stays a question, and it was the one they most needed an answer at. They left with edge rusher solved and the rest of the wish list mostly ticked off.
Building through the lines is a philosophy, and they stuck to it.
Add it up and it is a good, unfussy class.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick 4 they get a double-digit-sack hope at fair value. Exactly the need they had to hit.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Armand Membou in Round 2, Pick 6, miles early. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Jalen Royals at No. 69 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Alfred Collins at the 81st pick is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
A linebacker of that caliber at the Round 4 slot is the definition of value, full stop. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Cam Skattebo in the 117th overall pick. It fills a real need, too.
Jabbar Muhammad at slot 143 is a sound buy, the sort that quietly helps a class. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
Cody Simon in pick No. 217 should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. Pure best-available; the position was not exactly begging.
No drama and no debate, Clay Webb went about where he belonged in the 220th pick. The roster fit checks out.
They will replay Jonas Sanker at Round 7, Pick 22 for years; that is how good the value is. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.