The real work happened on the phones. The Patriots fleeced their trade partners, turning their picks into a noticeably bigger pile than they started with. They executed a plan and it shows in the A.

The edge rusher spot stays a question, and it was the one they most needed an answer at. That is an offensive lineman worth more than the slot they spent on him, plainly.

The Ryan Kelly pickup adds a known quantity to a class of unknowns.

Bottom line, they did the job about as well as it can be done.