A-
New England Patriots
Mondon Jr. should have been long gone. The Patriots pounced, and earned a A-.
by dredd ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 18 picks
· 11 steals
· 3 reaches
The best pick of the weekend was also the simplest. The Patriots watched Smael Mondon Jr. slide 97 picks past his grade and did not hesitate. Just about everything broke right, and the A- follows.
If Trapilo pans out, nobody remembers the price. If not, this is the pick they hear about. The trade ledger is the best part of the whole weekend.
A whole weekend of picks and quarterback is somehow still a want.
Add it up and few war rooms did better this weekend, Kenneth Grant and all.
Pick-by-Pick
They took Kenneth Grant at par in the 20th overall pick, which is nothing to complain about. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Benjamin Morrison at pick 37 is a clear overpay, with better names still on the board. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
No edge and no loss on Nic Scourton in slot 38; it is a wash and a sensible one. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Jayden Higgins in the 67th pick is exactly on the number, no argument either way. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They talked themselves into Ozzy Trapilo at No. 69, and the board did not agree. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
They robbed the room for Jihaad Campbell here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. It adds depth where they could use a little.
Tyler Warren in Round 3, Pick 17 is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Somehow Malachi Moore was still sitting there in the Round 4 slot, and they pounced on premier safety value. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Sonny Styles at the 143rd pick is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
DeMonte Capehart at pick No. 163 is the sort of value that quietly wins a weekend. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Steal is underselling it; Cody Simon at the Round 6 slot is a heist with the alarm still ringing. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
They reached a country mile for Clay Webb at slot 189, and the board is aghast. It fills a real need, too.
They barely believed it either: Smael Mondon Jr. still on the board at pick 195. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
You do not let a safety like Jordan Hancock reach Round 6, Pick 34 and blink. They did not. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Jonah Monheim in the 220th overall pick. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
The board fumbled Jaishawn Barham all the way to No. 225, and they scooped it up. A luxury on a unit that was already in good shape.
The board had Donovan Edwards higher than the Round 7 slot, and the running back fell to them anyway. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
No drama and no debate, Garrett Dellinger went about where he belonged in Round 7, Pick 28. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.