C+
New England Patriots
The Patriots drew a line under the quarterback search with McCarthy: C+.
by RichERich ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 2 steals
· 1 reaches
They finally answered the question that shadows every other one. J.J. McCarthy is the Patriots' quarterback, full stop. The good and the questionable cancel out to a C+.
The trades bled value they could not afford to lose. The McCarthy pick is the one the value grade keeps tripping over. If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through interior defensive lineman.
Landing Smith that late papers over a lot of smaller sins.
If J.J. McCarthy and a couple of the gambles land, hindsight will be kinder than this grade.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick 11 they get a franchise quarterback, a steep price for the projection.
A straight-up fair deal on Jordan Morgan at the 37th overall pick, value and slot in agreement. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Nice patience on Bralen Trice, who had no business lasting to the 70th pick. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They did well to land Brenden Rice in slot 103, just ahead of his grade. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A clean, defensible pick in No. 105 with a little surplus value in Christian Mahogany. The roster fit checks out.
Ben Sinnott at Round 5, Pick 1 is a sensible buy, a touch better than market for the tight end. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Tykee Smith in pick No. 180 should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Jase McClellan at the Round 6 slot is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. A need, and now a little less of one.
Michael Barrett at pick 231 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.