A-
New England Patriots
The Patriots answered their biggest question with Williams. Grade: A-.
by Brop9404 ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 13 picks
· 7 steals
· 4 reaches
The Bryce Foster selection is the head-turner. The Patriots reached 63 spots for him, and it will define how this weekend is remembered.
Caleb Williams gives the offense a face and a plan, and the grade leans heavily on whether he hits. They banked enough surplus on McConkey to cover a lot of smaller sins.
Every deal seemed to tilt their way, which is not luck. If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through edge rusher.
It is not that James is a bad player; it is that the Patriots had louder needs to answer first.
Bottom line, they did the job about as well as it can be done.
Pick-by-Pick
In slot 3 they get the face of the franchise. A real need, handled.
In the 31st overall pick they get a difference-maker at receiver at a price that makes it sweeter. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
A quiet steal in the Round 2 slot: Amarius Mims for less than the market said. It fills a real need, too.
They paid up for Ja'Lynn Polk at pick No. 59 when waiting would have done the job. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Somehow Jordan Morgan was still sitting there in Round 3, Pick 19, and they pounced on premier offensive lineman value. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
They robbed the room for Cooper DeJean here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. A minor need, but a need all the same.
They zigged when the board said zag, taking D.J. James at cornerback with edge rusher, interior defensive lineman and other spots open.
Ladd McConkey in Round 4, Pick 15 is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
No drama and no debate, Dylan Laube went about where he belonged in the Round 5 slot. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
They liked Ben Sinnott enough to skip the value, taking him in the 152nd overall pick. A need, and now a little less of one.
They talked themselves into Bryce Foster at slot 164, and the board did not agree. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Taking Isaiah Adams in pick 181 is close to grand larceny; an offensive lineman that good had no business lasting this long. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
They reached a country mile for Frank Gore Jr. at the 224th pick, and the board is aghast. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.