New England Patriots 2018 Draft Class Review

With the 2018 NFL Draft behind us, it’s time to begin the review process on how each team stacks up with the selections they’ve made. The Patriots and Bill Belichick always just seem to know how to work the draft expelling the most with good thought and working the board with utter brilliance, this year was no different. Trading Brandin Cooks early in the offseason allowed New England to garner an extra first round selection, while during the draft we again witnessed them obtaining more draft capital this year and next. When all was said and done nine picks were selected in what looks to be an interesting class, let’s review… 

New England Patriots 2018 Draft Class Review:

Round 1 – Pick 23 (23)

Isaiah Wynn (OL)

Losing Nate Solder to free agency left a gaping hole on the Patriots offensive line which is imperative to their success as keeping Tom Brady off the turf is priority number one. New England chose to fill that need with their first pick in the draft with former Georgia Bulldog Isaiah Winn. While some may feel Winn would be better suited to play the Guard position, ADF feels he is more than capable to man the left tackle spot with a great level of success. His stature may be the largest downside as most NFL clubs would like to see two or three more inches in height even though his playing weight looks to be a good start.

Winn is extremely athletic which allows him to take full advantage while placing himself in the right position more often than not. Scouts have praised his pass-pro claiming he could be the very best at that trait in this entire draft in terms of the position. Winn possesses great awareness and light feet which too puts him in the right place to stifle opposing end rushers. It will be very interesting to see how the Patriots use Winn, but we are quite certain he will get the first crack at covering Tom Brady’s blindside. This was a solid pick even though it could be viewed as drafting strictly for need.       

ADF Prediction: High potential, good upside.

Round 1 – Pick 31 (31)

Sony Michel (RB)

This evaluation came quite easy for us at ADF as we have been enamoured with the talents of Sony Michel for quite some time. Sony is one of the most exciting backs in this draft based on his very gifted level and skill-set. Being drafted by the Patriots could become one of the better situations for Sony as he shouldn’t be relied upon to take the lead role from day one. New England in the last several years has always employed at least a trio of running backs to keep teams guessing. Sony has traits that remind us a lot of former Buffalo Bills product CJ Spiller. While Sony is put together with more thickness then Spiller ever was, they both have similar traits of quickness, elusiveness, and good hands. Sony also possesses better vision and isn’t afraid to run in between the tackles taking on punishment for extra yardage. While Sony doesn’t have true breakaway speed, he should be able to find ways to gain big chunks of yardage when given the opportunity.

The Patriots and Bill Belichick surround their team with players that have the ability to also do the dirty work when needed. The appeal for Sony in New England is that he too can pass block extremely well finding defenders on scheme rush packages and blitz systems. Michel is also known for his ball security which will go a long way in him avoiding the bench. Losing Dion Lewis to free agency allowed the Patriots to be more opportunistic in selecting Sony to potentially replace his carries with either matching or surpassing the production he left. This should be yet another slam dunk in the history of great players to play for the Patriots and Bill Belichick.  

ADF Prediction: Great potential, versatile running back.

Round 2 – Pick 24 (56)

Duke Dawson (DB)

The talented defensive backs in this draft class continues as the Patriots chose Duke Dawson from Florida with their second round selection. Dawson does possess good size and height to play in the NFL while his speed is something that would’ve caught the eyes of the New England scouting department. Duke is a player that just understands how to play the position even if he doesn’t possess all the top-end traits you would like to see from cornerbacks these days. Normally seen from players with lower athletic ability, they tend to use their brain to compensate providing them the edge of knowing how to take angles, stunt opposing movements, and placing themselves in the best possible position to make a play. Dawson is this type of player which should allow him to fit in well with New England.

Having his best season in his senior campaign saw Dawson more adept in taking chances intercepting 4 balls and having 9 pass breakups while returning 1 for a touchdown. His final season also saw him more actively taking the opportunity in making tackles seeing his best total of his career. Dawson should be given every chance to win a starting role with the potential to start in the nickel spot from day one. Duke has been prone to getting beat on occasion, but this issue should be able to be coached out of his game with better placement.         

ADF Prediction: Moderate potential.

Round 5 – Pick 6 (143)

Ja’Whaun Bentley (LB)

As the Patriots moved up and down the board in trying to gain more draft capital while not having a third and fourth round pick, the fifth round may have been a little bit of a reach in our opinion. Ja’Whaun Bentley is a pure hitter on the field as he possesses great weight and strong physical traits. While some believe he isn’t fast enough to make a difference as a middle line backer, ADF might argue that point. Bentley comes in at 260 pounds while topping out at 4.76 unofficial in his 40 time which isn’t terrible for a man his size. Bentley may just look slower as his acceleration will definitely leave something to be desired. However, ADF is looking for all the positives that may be seen from Belichick and company as Bentley wasn’t a large producer on the field to take notice either. Never finding his way to collecting over 100 tackles in a season in his career at Purdue is a little concerning for a line backer brought in to help stop the run. ADF does recognize Ja’Whaun’s ability to find holes in the gap stuffing runners behind the line, as he posted almost 30 takedowns behind the line of scrimmage in his four years. We shall be interested to see if he can carve out a role in New England.         

Round 6 – Pick 4 (178)

Christian Sam (LB)

Staying the course knowing they require more depth on the defensive side being gashed all over the field last season, the Patriots bring in another line backer that could easily help the cause. Having nearly the same size as Ja’Whaun Bentley (though 15 pounds lighter) Christian Sam is the definition of a tackling presence that could fill up the middle of the field. Breaking out in his senior season collecting a whopping 127 tackles, 9.5 of them for loss is definitely something that lacked from the New England line backers last season. ADF once again will question the speed aspect as Sam won’t blow you away running around the field. Sam does possess good cover ability which is an added benefit closing down the middle of the field while the secondary can mop up the mess if a coverage was blown. Sam should start off his career as a special teamer with upside in rotational packages.    

Round 6 – Pick 36 (210)

Braxton Berrios (WR)

It’s no secret that Belichick loves to employ shifty, quick, smaller receives that can run the full route tree and catch anything thrown their way over the middle. The Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola, Wes Welker comparisons are very warranted when discussing Braxton Berrios. Even though Berrios stands at 5’9” tall, he is a player that should be able to turn heads in camp as his hands can be like glue. Berrios does also possess good return ability which is something Belichick looks for when bringing in receivers of this specific skill-set. Just to be clear, ADF isn’t anointing Berrios as the next coming of Welker, Edelman, or Amendola, but the similarities do exist if he takes advantage of his opportunity.     

Round 7 – Pick 1 (219)

Danny Etling (QB)

It was clear that at some point in this draft the Patriots would address the quarterback position, to which they did with former LSU product Danny Etling. In two seasons as the LSU pivot, Etling didn’t dazzle as much as we would’ve liked. Danny does possess the physical traits that NFL teams long for, and his arm is definitely above average, however, his production and inconsistencies are far to glaring for us to ignore. Never cracking the 2500 passing yard mark and never hitting over 20 touchdown passes in his career, all backed behind a completion percentage under 60% doesn’t scream great talent in our eyes. This pick definitely looks the part of a camp arm that will struggle to remain on the roster.      

Round 7 – Pick 25 (243)

Keion Crossen (DB)

Yet another player late in this draft that doesn’t really fit with what the Patriots have done in the past. While Bill Belichick seems to only draft senior’s for maturity reasons, Western Carolina senior Keion Crossen is a long shot from day one. What surprised ADF was his ability to make plays in the tackling game showing his size at barely 5’10” tall. Crossen dished out 157 takedowns in his four year career which was impressive. Also to be expected for a man of his size, was his great speed being clocked at a career best of 4.28 seconds with a consistent 4.34 seconds at his pro day. Keion is a jet on the field and could be used in creative ways we haven’t seen from Bill in the past.   

Round 7 – Pick 32 (250)

Ryan Izzo (TE)

Always having a soft spot for tight ends that can help in the run game with the potential to catch passes; the Patriots added another to the mix. Izzo has great size, decent speed, and great awareness to be a constant in supporting the offensive line in the run game. Some scouts have zero faith in his catching ability, but ADF could envision opportunities for Izzo to be used as a mismatch type of player in the play action pass on the goal line and redzone situations. This pick definitely screams depth blocking for a line that may be in tough this season.      

2018 Undrafted Free Agent Signings

Shane Wimann, TE, Northern Illinois

Chris Lacy, WR, Oklahoma State

Trent Harris, DE, Miami (Fla.)

John Atkins, DT, Georgia

Ralph Webb, RB, Vanderbilt

Frank Herron, DT, LSU

JC Jackson, CB, Maryland