B-
New England Patriots
The Patriots answered their biggest question with Williams. Grade: B-.
by Rob ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 8 picks
· 1 steals
· 4 reaches
Nobody had Christian Jones this high, and it is not close. The Patriots reached 72 spots to get him at No. 136. A sturdy weekend that grades out a B-.
Everything downstream of Caleb Williams depends on Caleb Williams, and the building knows it. The Oladapo steal is the beam this whole class leans on. They covered a lot of ground and still skipped edge rusher, which is a strange place to end up.
On the needs board they went 4 of 8, with wide receiver the one that mattered most.
All told, a draft that does its job without fuss, and there is real value in that.
Pick-by-Pick
In Round 1, Pick 3 they get their guy under center for the next decade at fair value. A clean fit for the roster.
Ladd McConkey in pick 34 is fair value, right on his grade. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A premium they did not need to pay, Christian Mahogany a notch or two before his time. The roster fit checks out.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Luke McCaffrey well ahead of where he belonged. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Christian Jones at slot 136 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. It fills a real need, too.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Tyrone Tracy Jr. this early at the 182nd pick. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Kitan Oladapo at slot 188 is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Good price on Josh Wallace in No. 229, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.