Instant Reaction: Your Patriots 2023 Draft Grade

[duc359]

With worse than no coaching at OC, OL, QB and play-calling, the OFFENSE has these "terrible" results.
17th points scored
17th passer rating
15th yards per pass
21st yards per rushing play

I'm very optimistic that there will be major improvements with the changes in coaching and the improvements in the OL. We also successfully replaced RB Harris, WR Meyers and TE Smith.

The open question for me is Jones. Will he improve to be an average QB? Will he read defenses well? Will he release fast enough? The answers to these questions will determine the sophistication of the Offense, and likely its success.

They are building the O to cater to Mac. If the running game really cranks he could be TD: 25 Int: 8 Yds: 3800 QBR: 95.5 %: 68%. In the NFC that might be good for 5-6th best. AFC? 11th? But if the running game does crank total O yds could be 13-16 range with the big step up in TOP.

 

[TomPatriot]

The open question for me is Jones. Will he improve to be an average QB? Will he read defenses well? Will he release fast enough? The answers to these questions will determine the sophistication of the Offense, and likely its success.

We’ll soon find out. I expect 2021 Mac Jones or better. I think he’ll at least be put in a position to succeed.

 

[rochrist]

I dont know if this was more Groh or BB, but this was the worst draft in a while - from the perspective that even in past poor drafts, you have a few picks that at least provide hope and fit the team dynamic. But, basically they picked all IOL and CB's. And of course PK and P in the middle rounds. In the deepest WR draft, they don't try for any legit help (knowing all of our WR's are older FAs). Same for TE.
It was so odd, and really seems like BB is on self-destruct mode related to his ego in team-building. I don't know...

I like the Gonzales and Mapu pick. And HOPE maybe Boutte can turn into Meyers-like. But after Folk's standout season, we're going to turn to a rookie 4th rounder! And after Marcus Jones, we draft a carbon copy Douglas? And after Strange, Hines, Russey - we draft THREE more IOL? While no DT's or FS's. Just weird.

In a draft widely regarded as weak for WRs they didn't pick any. Yep, Bill has lost it!

 

[Real fan 02]

1) the patriots had an average Offense in 2022. Please show stats that show how we were anywhere near the worst.

2) Reiff is an upgrade over those who started opposite Brown.

3) Even Anderson (or other addition) is an upgrade over whoever started opposite Brown.

@archstanton543 I don't know what the average was for 2022, however those stats compared to 2021 where we were top 10 in points scored and top 5 in the red zone.. it's a safe bet to say BOB alone should have us more on par with 2021 I'd imagine

 

[SlowGettingUp]

A. Mapu. I love this pick because I’ve wanted a true coverage LB for 10 years now. Yes he’s small but I think BB is cooking up another defense that includes him. Seems he’s going with an uber athletic backfield that cannot only cover but tackle well. Against strong passing teams that go into quick huddle this is key. They get the matchup they want and they no huddle and kill you with either quick check downs to rbs, receivers or just use their mobility to beat you. Add in Gonzales with Jack Jones who is a perfect #2 and the other Jones’s it seems like a pretty good recipe for success. Will be interested to see what happens here, how they use him with Duggar in the same lineup.

That's what Lazar says too. Everyone here has been whining for years about Belichick's slow LB corps - well you have to give up something in size if you want speed and agility. Tavai is 25lb bigger and a hell of a lot slower:



Here's Lazar:

 

[italian pat patriot]

No doubt
B

 

[Sam Bam Cunningham]

The Sow pick was very strange. Mediocre scouting report and sub 6 grade.
Are you telling me there were no better players on the board at that point in the draft? And then doubling down and taking the guy from UCLA in the next round who has even worse scouting reports on him. I feel like they missed out on a lot of talent thst coukd step right in.

 

[holyredeemer]

Overall: B+ or maybe A-

Gonzalez (CB): A+++ Consensus has already said it all.
White (DE): A improves an already strong front four.
Mapu (LB): B Good athlete at a position needing improvement (safety)
Andrews (C): B David Andrews is no longer dependable so a good pick to develop into his replacement
Ryland (K): A BPA @ position of need. Folk is 38 and started to decline last year.
Sow (G): B Former OT. 4 year starter.
Mafi (G): C Former DT. Developmental prospect.
Bouette (WR): C- Unlikely to stick. Ankle and head problems. High upside.
Baringer (P): A BPA @ position of need.
Douglas (WR): C Developmental prospect.
Speed (CB): C ST & fast DB developmental prospect.
Bolden (CB): C+ ST & fast DB developmental prospect.

I won’t sleep on Bolden as an under the radar CB prospect. If Gonzalez doesn’t have the hunger to be best ever he might find Bolden surprising him with a challenge for the same role. Speed could have an outside chance to challenge as well but Bolden seems the better athlete.

Saw a report that Sow moved from OT to G in 2019. Wonder if there’s any chance he’d be moved back?

I‘m not as alarmed as most about OT. First, I think the OC cluster affected the OL more than is commonly recognized. So I expect hiring Klemm to be an immediate improvement across the entire line. In particular I think Trent Brown could have a bounce back season, and do as good a job at LT as he did during his first stint with the Pats. The FA signings definitely improve the OT talent on the roster. Adding three IOL players to the roster makes me expect at least one and likely two may be moved from G to OT. And there were several OL players on the PS that may have benefitted from a year of seasoning even in the 2022 mess. All of that gives Klemm a lot of material to work with. From what I understand OL is a position where unit cohesion is as important to success as individual talent, so I’m looking for Klemm to make great improvements using the talent we have on the roster. Time will tell if I’m right, or unrealistically optimistic.

At TE I guess Bill thinks he’s got his roster set and will worry about successors for next season when next year comes.

I wouldn’t be surprised if they somewhat flirted with both the Guards at RT just to see what they’ve got.

 

[Toofy]

There's no question they might have to cover a weakness at tackle. But they still have five reasonable options, Reiff, Anderson, Cajuste, McDermott, and Steuber. While obviously not elite talent, and maybe even band aids, another over weight or stiff third round OT I wouldn't have preferred.

They have rebuilt the interior of the OL. I'm happy with the direction.

BTW I voted "Great", but "solid but unspectacular" is the same if that's what was available to you.

The only thing I can think of is they believe that Steuber has phenomenal upside and plan to use him more this year . Nothing else makes any sense. So it's more of reif holding on for few games before Steuber picks it up.

 

[Real fan 02]

They are building the O to cater to Mac. If the running game really cranks he could be TD: 25 Int: 8 Yds: 3800 QBR: 95.5 %: 68%. In the NFC that might be good for 5-6th best. AFC? 11th? But if the running game does crank total O yds could be 13-16 range with the big step up in TOP.

With rham, Robinson strong and Harris. We should have a stout running game.. the running game helped Mac tremendously his rookie season. Rham is the power back and does it all. I totally expect our running game to be more efficient this season.

 

[ralmat55]

He blew out his ankle and had two surgeries to try to fix it. Everyone shows highlights from before the ankle surgeries. He fell to the 6th because noone knows if the ankle will ever be OK. Think Malcolm Mitchell and his knees.

SEC championship game against Georgia and after ankle surgeries.

 

[n6249c]

SEC championship game against Georgia and after ankle surgeries.

That was a sweet RAC. Thanks! Very encouraging.

 

[One-If-By-Sea]

SEC championship game against Georgia and after ankle surgeries.

Yes he had a great game against Georgia post-ankle surgery. Let's hope it holds up.

 

[upstater1]

Cutting down on the INTs alone will massively improve the offense.

 

[They_Hate_We]

Gonzo or Paris were the two picks I hope fell to us. We got gonzo and irked the Jete in the meantime.

My hopes are Gonzo, White, Ryland, and Baringer end up staples of the team for the future. Mapu may have been a pick to replace Slater (even though Schooler may already fit that mold). That would give us 4 or 5 difference makers from 1 draft which is a win.

Of course this is all speculation and hoping, so I voted RLKAG.

 

[Marko]

Probably a B. Mostly good picks with smart upside. I think the biggest downside is I can see a lot of these guys needing some development. This could be a draft that next year looks meh but longterm looks great.

Getting Gonzalez where we did while netting a 4th might have been the best move a team made in the entire first round. The receivers were solid value for where they were at but they can go either way.

I do agree with you that rounds 3 and 4 will be the most questionable of the draft. Like a few years ago, the kicker pick is weird and he probably could have been gotten later (and if we missed out on him, it's not the worst thing as it's not an immediate need). That's the big one. But yeah I agree that there were spots more at need and those guys were drafted early.

But honestly if one of those lineman can pan out, it will probably have been worth it overall.

The only real downsides to this draft is that I can highly envision a lot of these guys taking a year or two to really come into their own and we still have a big questionmark at WR

I think the more appealing thing to Bill about the trade in the first round with Pittsburgh is keeping the Jets from getting the tackle they wanted.

 

[Sect140]

I grade drafts after the season.

They may have drafted the kicker too early but there were only two decent kickers in this years group of incoming players, one was already drafted, if they decide to wait a couple rounds and some other team drafts him then we still need a kicker. Same with the punter, we needed a kicker and a punter coming in so Bill made sure he got them, I’m OK with it.

 

[OldEngland]

I liked it. You are never going to get everything you want. Cb1, DE, slot WR, cover LB, K, P, low round punt at a WR1 were all on my list. As was x3 OL, but like most people I thought the line needed OT not IOL, it seems Bill and Klemm disagree. Plus can't believe they actually drafted 12 players, definitely went volume this year.

We got the second ranked CB, who compliments the D perfectly as can cover WR1s. A mean DE who they were trying to get back into R1 for, and dropped because other teams felt was too intense/serious. The D should potentially be pretty fearsome given it is a stable unit.
We needed a punter and kicker that makes sense (love Folk but the kick offs were a killer for STs last year). I've no problem with the draft resources used.

Several guys who they saw up close at he east/west, Mapu, Mafi and Douglas were rated highly. And we needed a coverage LB and slot receiver.
Love the Boutte pick, low cost, potentially very high reward.
The IOLs seem overkill, but I'm presume they are a good fit culturally and for what they want to do. Mafi they saw up and close at the shrine, Popovich recommended Andrews and Sow is an experienced all over the line and is seriously athletic, sounds like good cover.

As for OTs none fell to the Pats picks, Wright and Skoronski went just before 10/11 and Steen and Freeland the same in R3/4. The mistake may have been not trading up in R4 for Freeland. But they have experienced vets at OT this year.
TE is the mystery as that cupboard is bare depth wise this year and everything next year. Seems the UDFA streak might be at TE this year.

Don't get me wrong, in my predict who the Pats will pick game I scored 0/11 on the exact players. but got 8/11 on positions, Bill preferred others, and several of mine ended up undrafted so what do I know ;-)

 

[duc359]

I liked it. You are never going to get everything you want. Cb1, DE, slot WR, cover LB, K, P, low round punt at a WR1 were all on my list. As was x3 OL, but like most people I thought the line needed OT not IOL, it seems Bill and Klemm disagree. Plus can't believe they actually drafted 12 players, definitely went volume this year.

We got the second ranked CB, who compliments the D perfectly as can cover WR1s. A mean DE who they were trying to get back into R1 for. The D should potentially be pretty fearsome given it is a stable unit.
We needed a punter and kicker that makes sense (love Folk but the kick offs were a killer for STs last year). I've no problem with the draft resources used.

Several guys who they saw up close at he east/west, Mapu, Mafi and Douglas were rated highly. And we needed a coverage LB and slot receiver.
Love the Boutte pick, low cost, potentially very high reward.
The IOLs seem overkill, but I'm presume they are a.good fit for what they want to do. Mafi they saw up and close at the shrine, Popovich recommended Andrews and Sow is an experienced all over the line and is seriously athletic, sounds like good cover.

As for OTs none fell to the Pats picks, Wright and Skoronski went just before 10/11 and Steen and Freeland the same in R3/4. The mistake may have been not trading up in R4 for Freeland. But they have experienced vets at OT this year.
TE is the mystery as that cupboard is bare depth wise this year and everything next year. Seems the UDFA streak might be at TE this year.

Don't get me wrong, in my predict who the Pats will pick game I scored 0/11 on the exact players. but got 8/11 on positions, Bill preferred others, and several of mine ended up undrafted so what do I know ;-)

I didn't do it on here but I did a 25 player #1-UDFA board and hit Gonzalez, EDGE for pick #2, Boutte, and Baringer. I should have looked at the visit list, I would have picked Sow just for the name.

 

[Joey007]

A very solid B to B+.

I can’t help but love the value of both White and Gonzalez. Both seem like guys I have a hard time not envisioning panning out.

I’m also a big fan of the Mapu pick. I get good vibes from this guy like the ones I felt from Dugger and Jamie Collins when they were drafted.

I really did like how we completely went all in on improving the interior OL depth in the 4th/5th round. I think it was one of the biggest needs on the roster. I more just wish we went after at least one tackle, and also wish some of the guys were better value at where they were selected. But at least appreciate they went after the need here.

Definitely wished we went after WR a little earlier than we did, but have to love the potential value in Boutte.

Definitely also was irritating that we traded up for a kicker in the 4th, but oh well. It was a need with Folk’s age. Probably the only pick all weekend I was not happy with. Was happy with snagging a punter in the 6th.

Liked some of the CB’s we took late in the draft as well. I could see one or both sticking.

Not addressing OT, trading up for a kicker, and not addressing WR a little earlier keeps this from being an A. But I’m pretty happy with this class.