B
New England Patriots
A sensible, unshowy class lands the Patriots a B.
by Arcadiuz ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 11 picks
· 5 steals
· 3 reaches
Call it a hunch or call it a gamble, but the Patriots spent pick 198 on Patrick Payton, a name most had 59 spots down the list.
Klare falling to them is the kind of break a good board is built to catch. For all the activity, quarterback went untouched, which is hard to explain.
All told, a solid class that does its job everywhere but quarterback.
Pick-by-Pick
In slot 31 they get a difference-maker at receiver. The biggest hole, addressed.
Gennings Dunker in pick 63 is a bargain the rest of the room will envy. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
A top-tier safety at a bargain, Michael Taaffe in pick No. 95, plain and simple. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Max Klare in the 125th overall pick should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Mikail Kamara in Round 4, Pick 31 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
The board had Kage Casey higher than No. 171, and the offensive lineman fell to them anyway. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Zane Durant at the 191st pick is a sensible buy, a touch better than market for the interior defensive lineman. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A real head-scratcher, Patrick Payton in No. 198 is miles ahead of his ranking. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They read the board right and Jeff Caldwell was the payoff at the 202nd overall pick. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Value said wait; Jimmy Rolder in pick No. 212 says they were not listening. A minor need, but a need all the same.
They did well to land Andre Fuller in pick 247, just ahead of his grade. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.