The New England Patriots have three positional groups with a dire need for talent — cornerback, wide receiver and linebacker.
Bill Belichick has the No. 21 overall pick and there will be excellent options for all three positions in the draft. It wouldn’t be surprising if the Patriots filled a hole on the offensive line with their first-round pick, but it’s possible they fill a position of need.
J.C. Jackson’s departure left the cornerback group as likely the most depleted on the team. Stephon Gilmore was traded shortly before Jackson’s departure and it left the Patriots with Jalen Mills and Jonathan Jones as the next-best options.
Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer joined NBC Sports Boston’s Phil Perry on the Next Pats Podcast and discussed a potential replacement at corner in the draft — Trent McDuffie from Washington.
“Is he a big, long, athletic prototype like Sauce Gardner or Derek Stingley? He’s not that,” Breer said. “He’s a little shorter. He played more zone than man in college.
“But you hear the way this kid just knocked his meetings out of the park, and I’m not talking about one or two teams. It’s every single team I’ve talked to has said the guy’s Mensa level when it comes to explaining football, explaining what he was doing out there, you see the versatility. Again, didn’t play heavy man for a first-round corner in college, but has experience having played both, so you have that versatility.”
The Patriots love versatility, along with players who understand football on a deeper level.
“It sort of reminds me a little bit of the way people talked about Devin McCourty coming out of Rutgers,” Breer said. “And so, I don’t know that it’s a perfect comparison player-wise; I don’t think McDuffie’s as big as McCourty was coming out in 2010, but just as far as the mental makeup, the traits, the versatility.
“Trent McDuffie sounds to me like a perfect Patriot, and it happens to dovetail with a very real need. You need a guy who can develop into a No. 1 corner, and if you believe McDuffie can become that, I think if he slips to the Patriots he’d be a slam-dunk at 21.”
The Patriots would be astronomically better in the secondary if they could land a cornerback like McDuffie.
