B-
New England Patriots
The steal of the weekend belongs to the Patriots and Judkins: B-.
by k8min8 ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 5 steals
· 2 reaches
Somebody in Round 7, Pick 1 was going to get robbed, and it turned out to be the rest of the league. The Patriots sat still while Quinshon Judkins, the No. 73 name on the board, slid all the way to them, then sprinted to the podium.
The Dellinger reach is the anchor dragging on the value grade. They punted on edge rusher, and it is the miss that keeps the grade honest.
Wide receiver was the priority and it is no longer a question, which is most of the job. The back end got a real overhaul.
A competent weekend that does not make headlines and does not need to.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick 4 they get a ballhawk on the outside. Need was not the driver here.
A market-rate offensive lineman, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Tyler Booker. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Dylan Fairchild slid further than he should have, and Round 3, Pick 5 is lovely value for the offensive lineman. The roster fit checks out.
Xavier Watts at slot 77 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Tez Johnson slipping to No. 105 is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Joshua Gray at the 143rd pick is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Taking Quinshon Judkins in the Round 7 slot is close to grand larceny; a running back that good had no business lasting this long. It fills a real need, too.
Garrett Dellinger at pick No. 220 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
The board fumbled Lander Barton all the way to the Round 7 slot, and they scooped it up. It adds depth where they could use a little.