B+
New England Patriots
Larceny in pick No. 76 lands the Patriots a B+, Walker and all.
by ZS ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 5 steals
· 1 reaches
You build a draft on nights like this. Jalon Walker had no business being available in No. 76, and the Patriots did the only sane thing and turned in the card. A dependable weekend that grades out a B+.
The phones were where this weekend was really won. For all the activity, edge rusher went untouched, which is hard to explain.
Reaching for Jackson left real value on the table behind him.
Good work on the whole, with edge rusher the one box left unchecked.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 12 they get a wrecking ball inside at fair value. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Emeka Egbuka in slot 37. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A tidy little value on Tate Ratledge in pick 38, a step better than break-even. It fills a real need, too.
Tyler Warren at Round 2, Pick 12 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. A need, and now a little less of one.
Donovan Jackson at the 69th pick jumps the queue by a touch more than is comfortable. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They barely believed it either: Jalon Walker still on the board at pick No. 76. It adds depth where they could use a little.
They will replay Alfred Collins at the Round 3 slot for years; that is how good the value is. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
A clean, defensible pick in the 104th overall pick with a little surplus value in Azareye'h Thomas. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
Steal is underselling it; Quinshon Judkins at the 117th overall pick is a heist with the alarm still ringing. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
A top-tier safety at a bargain, Kevin Winston Jr. in slot 143, plain and simple. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.