C
New England Patriots
The Patriots robbed the room for Harden. Final grade: C.
by PoppaShart ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 15 picks
· 3 steals
· 2 reaches
The Patriots did not reach, did not trade up, did not blink. They just waited, and Myles Harden fell into pick 238. The good and the questionable cancel out to a C.
They handed away value on the phones that the picks cannot earn back. Reaching for McCaffrey left real value on the table behind him.
The interior defensive lineman spot stays a question, and it was the one they most needed an answer at.
If Olumuyiwa Fashanu and a couple of the gambles land, hindsight will be kinder than this grade.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 7 they get a plug-and-play piece up front. A clean fit for the roster.
They did well to land Bo Nix in Round 2, Pick 2, just ahead of his grade. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Darius Robinson in the Round 2 slot is exactly on the number, no argument either way. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Blake Fisher at the 68th overall pick is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
No edge and no loss on Malik Washington in pick 94; it is a wash and a sensible one. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Calen Bullock in slot 101 is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Audric Estime at the 105th pick is a sensible buy, a touch better than market for the running back. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
No drama and no debate, Ben Sinnott went about where he belonged in pick No. 125. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
A wild overpay on Luke McCaffrey in Round 4, Pick 36, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Good price on Dwight McGlothern in pick No. 181, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
A top-tier running back at a bargain, Cody Schrader in the 182nd pick, plain and simple. A need, and now a little less of one.
Nothing to complain about; Ty'Ron Hopper went a shade earlier than his grade, which is fine. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
M.J. Devonshire in No. 188 is fine work, a shade of surplus and no downside. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
They went early on Brevyn Spann-Ford in the Round 7 slot, and the value did not follow. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Somehow Myles Harden was still sitting there in the 238th overall pick, and they pounced on premier cornerback value. A want more than a need, though you can never have too many.