B
New England Patriots
Best value of the weekend goes to the Patriots for Higgins: B.
by EMANPATSFAN ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 8 steals
· 0 reaches
When a board-topper like Jay Higgins slides to No. 144, you do not overthink it, and the Patriots did not.
If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through edge rusher. On the needs board they went 5 of 8, with wide receiver the one that mattered most.
Nothing here to lose sleep over, and plenty to feel decent about.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 6th pick they get a go-to option on the outside at fair value. The biggest hole, addressed.
You do not let a safety like Malachi Moore reach pick 41 and blink. They did not. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Tyler Warren is a better player than No. 72 suggests; smart patience, rewarded. It fills a real need, too.
Omarion Hampton in Round 3, Pick 22 is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
The board fumbled Smael Mondon Jr. all the way to the Round 4 slot, and they scooped it up. Depth more than a fix, but depth they can use.
Somehow Jay Higgins was still sitting there in slot 144, and they pounced on premier linebacker value. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.
Circle this one: Bryce Foster at the 218th overall pick is a fall that decides a draft. A need, and now a little less of one.
Barrett Carter in pick No. 223 should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
Xavier Nwankpa at Round 7, Pick 25 is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.