B-
New England Patriots
The Patriots drew a line under the quarterback search with Maye: B-.
by jgeorge21 ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 8 picks
· 3 steals
· 1 reaches
The Dylan McMahon pick is the one that will follow the Patriots into the fall. They took him 62 spots ahead of his grade, and the board is not shy about saying so. Call it a sensible B-, earned the boring way.
Drake Maye is the bet, and the class will be judged on how it pays off. They banked enough surplus on Smith to cover a lot of smaller sins. The edge rusher hole is the one line item this class does not answer.
All told, a draft that does its job without fuss, and there is real value in that.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick 3 they get a franchise quarterback at fair value.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Amarius Mims in the 34th pick. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Devontez Walker at the 68th overall pick is right where the board had him, plain and simple. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Cam Hart at Round 4, Pick 3 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
The board had Johnny Wilson higher than slot 137, and the wide receiver fell to them anyway. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Jordan Jefferson in pick No. 180 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Steal is underselling it; Tykee Smith at the 193rd overall pick is a heist with the alarm still ringing. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
They reached into another round for Dylan McMahon, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. The roster fit checks out.