The one hole that towered over the rest is filled. The Patriots spent their marquee pick on J.J. McCarthy, and for the first time in a while there is a real answer at quarterback. Just about everything broke right, and the A- follows.
The phones were where this weekend was really won. Every board in the league had McCaffrey lower, and that gap is the story.
On value alone, Watson makes the weekend a net positive. Spending an early pick on TE-EDGE with interior defensive lineman, safety and other spots open is the decision the grade keeps circling back to.
For all the activity, interior defensive lineman went untouched, which is hard to explain.
Add it up and this is about as clean as a draft weekend gets.
Pick-by-Pick
R1.16
· Pick 16
· J.J. McCarthy
· QB
· rank 32
In slot 16 they get the arm they will build around, though they paid up to get him. A real need, handled.
R1.27
· Pick 27
· Amarius Mims
· OT
· rank 23
In pick No. 27 they get a long-term starter on the line at fair value.
R2.2
· Pick 34
· Keon Coleman
· WR
· rank 38
They took Keon Coleman at par in pick 34, which is nothing to complain about. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
R3.4
· Pick 68
· Mike Sainristil
· CB
· rank 66
Mike Sainristil at the 68th pick is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. A minor itch, scratched.
R3.14
· Pick 78
· Bralen Trice
· DE-EDGE
· rank 68
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Bralen Trice at Round 3, Pick 14 is the proof. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
R4.4
· Pick 104
· Cade Stover
· TE-EDGE
· rank 82
They bypassed pressing needs at interior defensive lineman, safety and other spots to take Cade Stover, a TE-EDGE that was not the priority.
R4.19
· Pick 119
· Maason Smith
· DT-EDGE
· rank 105
A curious use of the Round 4 slot. Interior defensive lineman, safety and other spots needed the pick; a DT-EDGE in Maason Smith did not.
R4.36
· Pick 136
· Luke McCaffrey
· WR
· rank 164
Luke McCaffrey at No. 136 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
R6.7
· Pick 182
· Jase McClellan
· RB
· rank 189
No drama and no debate, Jase McClellan went about where he belonged in the 182nd overall pick. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
R7.9
· Pick 229
· Nathaniel Watson
· LB
· rank 206
Nathaniel Watson at No. 229 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
