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(PHOTO: Mar 5, 2023; Indianapolis, IN, USA; The NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports) The Pro Days are now complete and the teams are now bringing prospects into their facilities for further evaluation both physically and mentally. Some are coming because of medical issues the teams want to check. They are limited to 30 players.
One such player for the Patriots is CB Emmanuel Forbes from Mississippi State as he is scheduled to be one of the 30. Cody Mauch OT North Dakota St, Jordan Addison WR USC, Broderick Jones OT Georgia, Jamie Robinson S Florida State, and Zay Flowers WR BC are others that the Patriots are bringing in.
In this mock draft, I use the PFF Mock Draft Simulator with the Horizontal Draft Board of NE Prototypical Players. This listing is put together by poster Bacon Grundle Candy and it is available in the Draft Forum, a sub-forum of the Patriots Forum (link below). This is a fun exercise where I match up my ideas with those of another. These players are ranked by what round BGC thinks they should be drafted in.
Here is the link https://www.patsfans.com/new-england-patriots/messageboard/threads/bgc-2023-ot-ptp-thread.1159295/page-6#post-6567554
BGC limits his draft list to approximately 75 players. That is what the Patriots’ draft board is actually like.
Pick 14 Peter Skoronski T Northwestern, 6’4” 315, Not Listed by BGC
Skoronski is not supposed to be available for the Patriots to select. Every draft I have done has had Skoronski as the 1st OL off the board. His drawbacks are his height (6’ 4”) and his slightly shorter arms than the preferred at 32 ¾ “. He tossed up 30 reps of 225# in the Bench Press. Skoronski did not play in the Senior Bowl (his choice). The two-time 1st team All Big-Ten Tackle had PFF’s best pass protection grade in college football at 93.7. His run blocking wasn’t too shabby either at 79.1, good for #5 last year. A Captain, he had 31 career starts for Northwestern. On 480 snaps last year Skoronski only gave up 6 QB hurries. Skoronski is a true third-year Junior and turns 22 in July. He meets the Patriots’ requisite of 25 or more starts, despite coming out early. He was a Walter Camp 1st team All-American.
Pick 46 Emmanuel Forbes CB Mississippi State 6’1” 166, 14-46 player by BGC
Forbes despite his slender frame plays the run very well. He is a man corner that very well could end up in the slot. Forbes ran 4.34 forty and had a 37 1/2” Vertical. He played mostly in a zone defense but showed how well he can play press man at the Senior Bowl practices. First team Walter Camp All-American, First team All-SEC in 2022, 2nd team All-SEC in 21 and 20. First Team PWAA, All-SEC, and 237 Sports Freshman All-American teams in 2020. Career 14 INTs, 20 PD, and 6 return TDs.
Pick 76 Andre Cater EDGE ARMY 6’ 7” 256, 4.94 Forty, 6.98 3-cone drill, Not Listed by BGC
Carter was just too good of a player to pass up at this spot. It is very unusual for a position player from a military academy tp get selected, especially this high in the draft. As a freshman, he didn’t play any Varsity snaps. The soon to be 23 year old played three seasons for the Golden Knights. Carter had 15.5 sacks and 20 for his career. A tremendous amount of potential here that some teams may have been scared off by the military commitment and the mood within the Department of Defense to have their athletes serve their commitment 1st before their athletic careers.
Pick 107 Luke Schoonmaker Michigan 6’5” 251, 4.63 forty, 6.81 3-cone, 37: Vertical, 10’ Broad Jump. 3rd Round rating by BGC
Schoonmaker has the size and athleticism to fit into Bill O’Brien’s offense. Both Gesicki and Henry will be Free Agents next year, so getting a replacement on the team is paramount. He was 2nd on Michigan with 35 catches for 418 yards and 3 TDs. His blocking is excellent as well. With his outstanding 3-cone numbers I think he is more of a move TE like Gesicki.
Pick 117 Charlie Jones WR Purdue 5’ 11” 176, 39 (HH) Forty, 6.84 3-cone, 36 1/2 Vertical 4th Round by BGC
PFF doesn’t like this pick because I take him too early. I am taking him exactly where he should be taken if they want him. Jones had a tremendous game against 1st round Cornerback Joey Porter. He had 5 catches for 150 yards. In 2022 he had 97 catches for 1119 yards12 TDs. He was 1st team all-conference WR and 3rd team KR. He would be the KO specialist. Former player and now analyst Stephen Smith says that Jones is Mr. Consistent, “He knows how to play ball”!
Pick 135 Davis Allen TE Clemson 6’6” 246, 4.77 (HH) 7.31 3-cone, 38 ½ Vertical. Not Listed by BGC
Reliable receiver and physical blocker. Allen had 41 career starts for 88 catches, 951 yards, and a 10.8 average. He also had 12 TDs. Doubling down on TE because both veteran TEs are in their contract year and will be free agents next year. Developmental player.
Pick 184 Starling Thomas CB University of Alabama Birmingham 5’10” 190, 4.38 Forty3-cone 7.29 37 ½ Vertical. Not Listed by BGC
Too good to pass up. First team all-conference. Led UAB secondary with 15 Pass Breakups (PBUs) in 2022. He had 28 PBUs for his career. Thomas can also Punt Return. May be better as a Safety because he does not have the quick change of direction the Patriots like. Thomas has played 49 games in 4 years at UAB. Speed, quick twitch ability, tackling, physicality, and consistency in applying the proper techniques are the hallmarks of a good cornerback. He played for the Patriots coaches at the East / West Shrine game. Thomas put on a show at the E/W Shrine practices.
Pick 187 Evan Hull RB Northwestern 5’ 10” 209, 4.43 (HH) Forty, 37” Vertical and 6.90 3-cone 4th Round by BGC.
Hull is a do-it-all running back that was selected as an Honorary mention All Big-10 Conference the last two years. Hull averaged 75 yards rushing and 45 yards receiving per game for the entire season. His 54 receptions in 2022 were the #1 for any FBS running back. For his 4 year career at Northwestern, Hull had 2,417 yards rushing, 851 yards receiving, and 22 TDs. He reminds me of Rex Burkhead. Pass Blocking is another good skill he has mastered and he would probably slip into that third-down pass-catching role.
Pick 192 TJ Bass OT Oregon 6’ 4.3” 321, 5,44 Forty, 4th Round BGC
Bass is a project. Some project him as a guard because of his lack of height and not quite 33” arm length. The Patriots will take a shot at Tackles with less than-ideal height and short arms. Bass played for new Patriots Offensive Line coach Adrian Klemm at Oregon. In the Pac-10, Bass was 1st team All-Conference in 2022, 2nd team All-Conference in 2021, and Honorable Mention in 2020. As a freshman in 2020, he played Left Guard in 7 games and a total of 386 snaps and gave up no sacks. In 2021 in 14 games started, he gave up 2 sacks in 931. Most of his starts were at Left Tackle with some playing time at Left Guard. For his Junior season in 2022, he started as Left Tackle and gave up no sacks in 12 games and 827 snaps. He won’t win many races but only giving up 2 sacks in three years says something.
Pick 210 Stetson Bennett QB Georgia 5’11, 193 lbs 4.67 Forty, Not Listed by BGC
Stetson Bennett is a winner plain and simple! Back-to-back National Championships and Offensive MVPs. Manning Award, Heisman Finalist, and Burlsworth Award winner. The Burlsworth Award is given to the collegiate player that first started as a walk-on.
Look at these stats:
Passing
| Year | Att | Comp | Yards | TDs | INT | Comp % |
| 22 | 310 | 454 | 4,127 | 27 | 7 | 68.3 |
| 21 | 185 | 287 | 2862 | 29 | 7 | 64.4 |
| 20 | 86 | 155 | 1179 | 8 | 6 | 55.4 |
| 19 | 20 | 27 | 260 | 2 | 1 | 74 |
| 18 | 145 | 259 | 1840 | 15 | 14 | 56 |
| Career | 746 | 1182 | 10268 | 81 | 35 | 63.1 |
Rushing
| Year | Att | Yards | Avg | TDs |
| 22 | 57 | 205 | 3.6 | 10 |
| 21 | 56 | 250 | 4.6 | 1 |
| 20 | 24 | 54 | 2.3 | 2 |
| 19 | 4 | 12 | 3 | 1 |
| 18 | – | – | – | – |
| Career | 141 | 521 | 3.7 | 14 |
Yes, he is not 6’2” and over 200 Lbs. The Patriots need a third QB and unless he has a tremendous camp, no team will claim him and he should be able to go to the Practice Squad. His intelligence, guile, and work ethic are tremendous. He is worth a shot late in the draft. We lucked out with another QB late in the draft that just won. You can’t measure heart, but you can see the results on the big stage and Bennett passes with flying colors.
Pick 245 Michael Turk P Oklahoma 6’ 225 4.79 Forty 25 reps at 225# Not Listed by BGC
Turk had a Relative Athletic Score (RAS) of 9.13 out of 10. That is outstanding athleticism. He has linebacker size and strength. His hang times (5+ sec) on his punts are outstanding. Belichick chose him for his team at the East/West game and I can confirm from a source that Belichick gave him some individual coaching, asking him to do something and Turk executed it perfectly and then Belichick confirmed. Turk also has the ability to place the ball inside the 20 with regularity. Turk declared for 2020 and went undrafted. However, the NCAA restored his eligibility for two more years. He transferred from Arizona St to Oklahoma in 2022. Turk is a right-footed, 2 step kicker that gets the ball off quickly. Turk does not kick-off. He also had three ACL surgeries in High School which prevented him from playing safety at the next level. His weightlifting number was higher than all but one Tight End at either the combine or their Pro Days. Henry Pearson TE Appalachian St lifted the bar 30 times.
Comings and Goings
Brian Hoyer signed with the Las Vegas Patriots, I mean the Raiders. This is a strange case of a player that was nearly a member of the coaching staff and wanted to stay in the Boston area. Hoyer signed a two-year contract and was thought of highly within the organization. Rumor has it that he was very vocal in the QB room and took exception to the coaching (or lack thereof). His vociferous manner may have cost him his job with the Patriots and any possibility of employment after his playing days are finished.
Keith Jones welcome to the Patriots. Jones was with the team last pre-season as part of the Bill Walsh Diversity Fellowship. Jones was also with the team when they coached the East / West Shrine game. He was a Defensive Line assistant. For the past two years, he was a Graduate Assistant at Arkansas St and Arkansas. Getting an assistant line coach is a hedge should the Patriots lose present D line coach Demarcus Covington, who has been very popular in the coaching circles and possibly D Coordinator.
Trey Dean is an S prospect from Florida who was the Defensive MVP of the East/West Shrine game playing for the Patriots coaches. Dean is 6’3″ 220 lb in-the-box safety. The knock on Dean is that he is slow. He ran a 4.69 40 at the combine and I took him off the list for consideration. He doesn’t run the 3-cone drill at the combine and waits till his Pro Day. He runs an amazing 6.58 at the Pro Day. With that change of direction ability, he might be back into consideration late in the draft.
NFL Scouts were pissed off that many prospects didn’t do all the drills at the combine and appeared to do a split of these events, doing some at the combine and others at their Pro Day. Almost all of the Combine attendees rested on their laurels and didn’t repeat the running events unless they had bad numbers at the combine. I wonder if the scouts will hold this against them. Hardly any prospects ran the 3-cone drill at the combine. We will find out on draft day.
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