B
New England Patriots
The Patriots let Smith-Wade fall into their laps, and walked away with a B.
by NE4EVER ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 8 picks
· 4 steals
· 1 reaches
You build a draft on nights like this. Chau Smith-Wade had no business being available in the 182nd pick, and the Patriots did the only sane thing and turned in the card.
If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through edge rusher. Corley has a lot of ground to make up just to look fairly priced.
The roster is better shaped than it was, with wide receiver chief among the fixes. The skill positions did well by the weekend.
All told, a solid class that does its job everywhere but edge rusher.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 3rd overall pick they get a matchup problem out wide. Exactly the need they had to hit.
Quinyon Mitchell at No. 34 nudges the ledger their way without any fuss. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
Malachi Corley in Round 3, Pick 4 is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
No drama and no debate, Michael Pratt went about where he belonged in slot 103. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Isaiah Adams slipping to pick No. 139 is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Taking Chau Smith-Wade in the Round 6 slot is close to grand larceny; a cornerback that good had no business lasting this long. A want more than a need, though you can never have too many.
Jalen Berger at the 224th pick is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
A top-tier wide receiver at a bargain, Jha'Quan Jackson in pick 232, plain and simple. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.