The New England Patriots will have to use the 2022 NFL Draft with precision and efficiency.
Bill Belichick doesn’t have the money to toss around like he did last offseason and the Patriots have some dire needs. Fortunately for the Patriots, Belichick had a great draft after selecting Mac Jones, Christian Barmore and Rhamondre Stevenson. He has the opportunity to build on that momentum with a draft that carries many players who would fit perfectly with the Patriots.
NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah discusses the draft and details the depth of really good players this year.
“I think this is a really good depth draft, especially when you get into the second, third, fourth round,” Jeremiah said. “There’s a lot of quality there, a lot of starters. I mean, I’ve said similar things in years past, but this year especially, the difference between the 15th player and the 60th player in this draft is very small, and teams are going to have these guys in all different orders.”
Jeremiah dives specifically into players that would fit with the Patriots.
“You can kind of identify — the teams I worked with, you kind of look at, okay, this is a Patriots’ type player,” he said. “What does that look like? Usually, it’s somebody that’s got some versatility, they’ve got outstanding football intelligence so they can be able to do different things, and they can handle volume because it’s an offense and a defense that morphs and changes all the time. Those types of players I think you can try and identify them in that way.”
Jeremiah’s first option to consider is Devin Lloyd, a versatile linebacker out of Utah. He has athleticism, quickness and agility that the Patriots desperately need.
“In terms of like the do-everything guys off the ball, on the edge, Devin Lloyd is my first choice there,” Jeremiah said. “He’s explosive. He’s not going to run as fast as Micah [Parsons] did, but he’s got length, he’s got instincts, he’s outstanding in pass coverage. Like if you watch the Stanford game, he’s got a pick six in that game that’s pretty cool.”
When it comes to receivers, Jeremiah pointed out two players who had excellent seasons in 2021.
“The two guys I would keep an eye on with that first-round pick who I think are going to probably come off the board right around there — now, I say that going into the combine know that — I’m talking about Chris Olave from Ohio State and Jahan Dotson from Penn State,” Jeremiah said. “Both these guys are going to run in the 4.3s, so they’re going to fly around in Indy, and maybe that helps elevate them up the board a little bit. But both those guys are pristine route runners with big time speed, and I think that would give them some play-making ability.
“Talk about Mac and the deep ball he was able to throw in college. He throws a beautiful touch deep ball. When you got guys that can get over the top, takeoffs, posts, double moves, things like that, that what’s Olave and Jahan Dotson can do.”
Jameson Willams is potentially the best receiver in the draft, but he tore his ACL in the National Championship Game. He still needs some time to recover, but he could be a steal in the draft position due to the injury.
“The other one in the first round, we’ll see what happens with Jameson Williams from Alabama, because in a world where he doesn’t get hurt, he’s a top-10 pick,” Jeremiah said. “But coming off of an ACL you would think there would be a full recovery there, and that could end up being — man, it could end up being a tremendous value for towards the bottom of the first round if he ends up sliding down there.”
A player who truly resembles a Patriots slot receiver is Skyy Moore out of Western Michigan.
“A couple other guys that I think are kind of like Patriot-type players, Skyy Moore from Western Michigan,” Jeremiah said. “Probably going to go in the second or third round, but he’s got some– maybe it’s just the Mac thing, but I saw some Antonio Brown traits from him when you studied him, minus some of the newer Antonio Brown info. But that dude with just eat cushion, he’s really dynamic and crisp. The Patriots love guys like that.”
Jeremiah went deep in the receiver class — which is necessary for a team with out a clearcut star at the position.
