Patriots News 04-30, Analysis Of the Patriots Draft Picks
(PHOTO: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports) 🕑 Read Time: 9 minutes
Posted Under: 2023 Patriots Draft
(PHOTO: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports) 🕑 Read Time: 9 minutes
New England Patriots > Patriots Blog
(PHOTO: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports) Good morning, and here are our Sunday Patriots news and notes for this week.
Well, the 2023 NFL Draft is in the books…. And now, the team has moved on to selecting their first group of UDFAs.
We’ll discuss the individual selections below, but first, here are some other notes.
Quick Hitters For the Patriots and NFL News:
New York Giants: The Giants unveiled a state-of-the-art Draft Room that is 1200 square feet and has 42 flat-screen televisions. Check out the photos from the tweet by @joepmpliano. Very well done.
Downs or White? When video surfaced of the Patriots Draft Room from Friday night, it appeared that Bill Belichick was watching tape of UNC. And many, including me, believed (perhaps wishful thinking) that it was Bill looking at Josh Downs. But Zack Cox of NESN uncovered what he was really looking at, Keion White from GT, who the Pats drafted.
Patriots 4th & 2 Podcast: If you haven’t checked out our PatsFans.com podcast, “Patriots 4th & 2”, in a bit, please check it out. Derek and I conducted our 1st Round Mock Draft on Tuesday, and then on Friday afternoon, we did a recap of Day 1. Please check it out.
Russ Francis/Chuck Fairbanks: The former Patriot tight end and head coach both should be in the Patriots team Hall of Fame, and the fact that especially Francis isn’t is an absolute travesty. Francis and the Raiders’ Dave Casper changed the game with how teams used the tight end position…this will be on our Sunday posts until it happens.
Analysis of Patriots Draft Selections —
Patriots Director of Player Personnel Matt Groh said after Round 1 that the team looked at moving up in Round 1. PatsFans.com Derek Havens called me that afternoon and said that he’d heard from a credible national source that if Devon Witherspoon were still on the board at the 10th pick, the Patriots would attempt to work a deal with Philly. But then Witherspoon was gone, and the Eagles traded up.
The Patriots DID trade back in the first round, as we wrote here last Sunday, but that was hardly a shock. They traded #14 to the Pittsburgh Steelers for the #17 pick and a fourth-rounder (#120), giving them four 4th-Round picks.
Pittsburgh used the pick to leapfrog the Jets and take T Broderick Jones, a player that NY was reportedly eying. It was a gamble, as the player the Patriots were looking at could have been selected. However, it worked out when as soon as they were on the clock, they wasted no time making their 1st Round pick in just 30 seconds.
Overall, the Patriots did a pretty solid job of getting the building blocks to start getting the 2023 team built. But there were some curious decisions for sure. With one of the deepest classes of tight ends in years, it was curious that they didn’t target one.
And with a need for a tackle, the team didn’t select any of them either. But the focus seemed to be drafting fast, athletic players for their individual positions, and that seemed to be a recurring theme.
Drafting the kicker and punter was a needed and solid move, and they got two good ones to bring some needed upgrades at punter and prepare for the eventual departure of Nick Folk.
While I like the addition of Jake Andrews, I wasn’t thrilled with the other two interior OL picks, as it seems from here that more depth was needed on the outside.
Some of the players, Mapu, Boutte, Douglas, Speed, and Bolden, have intriguing upsides and could end up playing key roles with the team either this season or down the road with their speed and athleticism.
#17 Christian Gonzalez, CB, Oregon:
Gonzalez was a steal at #17, as he was expected to go in the Top 10 and was considered by many draft analysts as the top CB in the class. Not only did he provide a blue-chip 1st Round talent, but he also filled a hole at the boundary corner position.
Gonzalez checks the blocks in everything you would want as an outside corner; size (6’1, 200), speed (4.28 time in the 40), fluidity in his hips to change direction, ball skills, and production. He broke up six passes and had four picks for the Ducks last season.
He should be a plug-and-play starter in Week 1. He is the type of corner the Patriots covet to play their style of defense, being able to lock down one side of the field, which will allow them to throw some different schemes at the opposing offense. Great pick.
#46 Keion White, ED, Georgia Tech:
The selection of White was a surprise, as many (here as well) believed that the team would opt to get some offensive playmakers or a tackle. White is a versatile edge player who can play OLB or DE in the Patriots system. The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, a very well-respected draft analyst, called White “a scheme-proof prospect.”
He is big and crazy athletic for a man of his size, 6’4, 285. His RAS (Relative Athletic Score) was 9.92. His composite explosion and speed grades were marked as elite. In the Patriots’ system, he could play DE in the same role as Deatrich Wise or even as an edge player. A 285-lb OLB? Watch the tape of him covering a running back on a wheel route down the field.
With Josh Uche in the final year of his contract and Matthew Judon turning 31 this season, White’s selection gives them a player who can contribute right away, giving Judon and Uche a breather and not having them tire in the 4th quarters of games.
#76 Marte Mapu, S/LB, Sacramento State:
If White at #46 was a bit of a surprise, then Mapu’s selection was even more so. With several good offensive playmakers still on the board, the Patriots again opted for defense. Even more surprising was that they didn’t move up in either Round 2 or 3. Perhaps they attempted to and couldn’t find a deal; maybe we’ll learn later.
Mapu, however, is an intriguing prospect. He is an LB/S player who is versatile, physical, and explosive. He can play nickel, safety, and dime linebacker. He played for Patriots coach DeMarcus Covington at the Senior Bowl and turned heads during the week with his play. NBC Sports Boston’s Phil Perry spoke with an NFC defensive coach who had this to say about Mapu.
“New England took my guy,” one NFC linebackers coach said. “Big upside. Played nickel and safety. Really smart. Has a lot of position [flexibility]. Big hitter. Really tough.”
Daniel Jeremiah from the NFL Network said on Friday night that Mapu was his favorite player of the draft.
I really like the player; I question only the need. The Patriots already have four box safeties in Kyle Dugger, Adrian Phillips, Jabrill Peppers, and Joshuah Bledsoe. With TEs Tyler Kraft, Darnell Washington, WRs Josh Downs, Tyler Scott, and Bryce Ford-Wheaton still available, it was a surprise. But as a player, he looks like an intriguing moveable piece.
#107 Jake Andrews, IOL, Troy:
Andrews felt like a bit of a reach at this point, but the Patriots liked him enough to use their first 4th Rounder on him. A three-year starter at all three interior offensive line positions, Andrews moved permanently to center in 2022 and started all 12 games.
While not athletic, he plays with a wide frame and can hold up against true nose tackles in pass protection, and he provides a good pop with very good strength in the running game.
#112 Chad Ryland, K, Maryland:
Ryland is widely considered the 2nd best kicker in the draft, behind Michigan’s Jake Moody. The Patriots packaged picks #120 and #184 to the Jets for #112 to select him. He played for four years at Eastern Michigan before transferring to Maryland in 2022.
In the past three years, he’s hit on more than 80 percent of his field goals. He will compete against incumbent Nick Folk this summer. Ryland has a much longer range than Folk but isn’t as consistent in his accuracy.
#117 Sidy Sow, G, Eastern Michigan:
Sow is another versatile OL who plays guard but can fill in at tackle. Sow is a native of Bromont, Quebec, and played for five years (56 games, with 54 starts) at Eastern Michigan.
Sow tips the scales at 6’5, 323, and played nearly exclusively at left guard but has also started 11 games at left tackle. He has a solid frame and uses his hands well, but often takes bad angles, according to NFL Draft Insider Lance Zierlein.
#144 Atonio Mafi, G, UCLA:
The Patriots took their third interior OL in the 4th Round with Mafi, who played two years as a starting nose tackle before switching to the offense. He played right guard for three games (all starts) in 2021 before switching to left guard, making 13 starts there last year.
Mafi plays with an edge to his game, using a physical, nasty demeanor to punish defenders across from him or at the second level. He has decent mobility at 6’3, 329, but could benefit from losing more weight. He arrived at UCLA weighing 411 pounds but has lost weight, but losing additional weight could give him a bit more.
#187 Kayshon Boutte, WR, LSU:
Boutte’s college career was a mystery. At the start of it, he looked like another LSU WR destined for great things in the NFL, and then after an injury, he struggled with consistency.
A good-sized slot or Z wide receiver at 6’0, 205, Boutte has much better play speed than he tested at the NFL Combine, where he ran a 4.50. Boutte isn’t a burner but is a smooth receiver who can push the vertical routes while having the size and strength to work the middle of the field.
He mostly runs crisp routes, can be a playmaker out of the slot, and be explosive. But he can be very inconsistent at times, rounding off routes, and last year suffered seven concentration drops that went right off his hands. He has a high ceiling but possesses a high bust potential as well.
He’s only 20 years old, turning 21 on May 7. Boutte is one of the more intriguing guys in the Patriots’ draft, I can’t wait to see if he can recapture his high level of play.
#190 Bryce Baringer, P, Michigan State:
The Patriots went STs again in Round 6, opting for Baringer, the 6’2, 216 punter from MSU who was a Ray Guy Award finalist for the past two seasons.
In 2022, Baringer broke his own school record in yards per punt (49) and recorded the best career punting average in Big Ten history averaging 46 yards per punt. Baringer was the 2022 Big Ten punter of the year; after leading the conference in punting yards for the second consecutive season.
During Senior Bowl week, according to Zebra Technologies, Baringer led the way in average punt height (71.7 feet), longest hang time (5.92 seconds), and longest punt (78.3 yards).
#210 Demario Douglas, WR, Liberty:
The Patriots drafted another WR in the 6th Round, picking the diminutive (5’8, 179) but electric Douglas from small Liberty University school. In 2022, Douglas hauled in 79 receptions, 993 yards, and six touchdowns. He is also a very good returner, albeit one who has had issues with muffed punts But he also had TD returns of 75 yards in 2021 and 73 yards in 2020. As a kick returner, however, he averaged 20.8 yards per return. His small stature may end up being a detriment, but the Patriot coaches at the East-West Shrine Bowl obviously saw something intriguing.
He could turn into a dynamic player from the slot that is needed on the team.
#214 Ameer Speed, CB, Michigan State:
With the last pick in the 6th Round, the Patriots picked a defensive player from MSU. The aptly named Speed has great size at 6’3, 215, and ran a blistering 4.33 in the 40 at his pro day. He spent five years at Georgia, appearing in 48 games, mainly as an STs ace. He transferred to Michigan State last year and started 11 of 12 games at corner.
He looks to be the next in line of late-round/UDFA cornerbacks that develop in New England. We know he will immediately get to work on STs.
#245 Isaiah Bolden, CB, Jackson State:
With their final pick of the 2023 Draft, the Patriots selected another cornerback with excellent size and speed. Bolden is 6’2, 203, and ran a 4.31 in the 40 at his Pro Day. He led the nation in kickoff returns in 2021, averaging 36.9 yards while returning two for TDs. Last season, he was removed from returning by head coach Deion Sanders who wanted him to focus on becoming a better CB.
He played mostly in the slot, surprising for a player with his size and wingspan. NFL Draft analyst Lance Zierlein had some observations about him:
He is a project defensively, but with his speed, he could immediately make the team and play as a returner.
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Right. So we signed three guys in free agency at the position. You know, re-signed Connor. Re-signed — or signed Calvin Anderson, kind of re-signed him since we had him for a short spell here before but signed Calvin Anderson and then with Riley. So we got a lot of bodies there right now.
“Again, I wouldn’t really want to take any of the guys that we got. You know, do I want to take Christian Gonzales off this team and add a tackle? You know, those are the decisions you’ve got to make. So you know, we could have drafted a tackle in the first round, and I’m sure the question would be: Well, did you address corner?
So there are only so many picks and certainly only so many picks up front, so I think we definitely got a lot of good guys there to work with. Again, you mentioned Andrew Stueber; we drafted him last year. He’s kind of new to the mix, so again, I don’t want to say he’s an extra draft pick, but he’s kind of an unknown, just like some of these draft picks are coming in.
“So we do our research, we know who the player is in college, but it’s a whole new game here now. We’ll see what all our guys do to mix in with the free-agent crowd, and we do have some good slid depth there, and we’ll just see, let these guys go in and compete just like at any other position. These guys are going to have to come in and compete and earn that time.
Patriots Director of Player Personnel Matt Groh on why the Patriots didn’t add any tackles during the draft.
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“So, how was your week?”
Follow me on Twitter @SteveB7SFG or email me at [email protected]
Listen to our Patriots 4th and 2 podcasts on Stitcher and Streamyard as Russ Goldman, Derek Havens, and myself from PatsFans.com discuss the latest Patriots news and game analysis.
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