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The New England Patriots can approach the No. 21 overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft in a few different ways.
The Patriots could use a top-tier wide receiver to make plays around their veteran wideouts and tight ends. That strategy let the franchise down in 2019. N’Keal Harry did not pan out as a first-rounder.
Bill Belichick and his staff may avoid wide receiver until the second or third round in order to address a defensive need.
The Patriots need to replace J.C. Jackson in some capacity at cornerback, and it would help if they got younger at linebacker.
A handful of NFL draft experts are split on which player the Patriots will land at No. 21. The decision-making process might come down to which wide receivers are still on the board come April 28.
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Phelan M. Ebenhack/Associated Press
Three mock drafts differ on what New England’s strategy will be with the 21st overall pick.
Bleacher Report’s NFL scouting department projected Arkansas wide receiver Treylon Burks would be the pick in its latest mock draft on April 1.
ESPN.com’s Mel Kiper Jr. and Todd McShay alternated picks in their three-round mock draft on April 19. McShay projected Georgia linebacker Nakobe Dean as the 21st selection.
CBSSports.com’s Ryan Wilson went a different direction on Tuesday, as he paired up the Patriots with Clemson cornerback Andrew Booth Jr.
All three selections make sense from a positional need standpoint. The Patriots could use a young No. 1 wide receiver to partner with Mac Jones, a cornerback to replace J.C. Jackson and linebacker depth behind Matthew Judon and Ja’Whaun Bentley.
The run on wide receivers may happen before the 21st pick. Washington, Philadelphia and New Orleans are among the teams in the teens that should target the position.
If a wide receiver or two lands in the top 10, the Patriots may be left with talent that has second-round grades on their draft board.
Instead of reaching for a wide receiver if the likes of Burks are gone, the Patriots can be patient at that position and take the defensive approach.
New England could even take another defensive player at No. 54 if it feels comfortable with DeVante Parker, Jakobi Meyers, Nelson Agholor and Kendrick Bourne at wide receiver.
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Jeff Dean/Associated Press
New England might target another area of need with its second-round pick.
Kiper projected Memphis guard/center Dylan Parham would be the 54th overall pick, while Wilson projected it would be Kentucky guard Darrian Kinnard.
B/R’s scouting department went in a different direction, as it paired the Patriots with Cincinnati cornerback Coby Bryant.
New England should go after interior offensive linemen at some juncture of the selection process. It needs a starting-caliber player there following the offseason departures of Shaq Mason and Ted Karras.
The Patriots need to balance their needs and the best prospects available at those spots when drafting in the second round.
An offensive guard will most likely not be the team’s first-round pick. If it goes with a defensive player at No. 21, it may open up a path to an offensive lineman at No. 54.
B/R’s latest mock draft had one interior offensive lineman, Iowa’s Tyler Linderbaum, going in the first round. The next best prospects at that position should be around in the second round.
Bryant is an intriguing prospect for the Patriots, especially if they go with a wide receiver at No. 21. He was part of the Bearcats’ fantastic defense that helped them reach the College Football Playoff.
Bryant did not receive much of the spotlight because of the play of Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, who is a projected first-round pick. Bryant was equally as impressive in spots for a defense that did not allow much in the passing attack during the regular season.
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Noah K. Murray/Associated Press
New England selected seven defensive players with its first three picks over the last three NFL drafts.
Do not be surprised if Belichick and his staff take the same approach to fill some of the holes on their roster.
Kiper and McShay have the Patriots following that trend with the selection of LSU cornerback Cordale Flott with the 85th overall pick.
Wilson’s seven-round mock also follows the same trend, as he has Wisconsin linebacker Leo Chenal landing at No. 85.
B/R’s Scouting Department mocked Oklahoma interior offensive lineman Marquis Hayes to the Patriots, giving them two offensive players with the team’s first three picks.
Cornerback and linebacker need to be addressed in the first three rounds, no matter which order they come in.
The projections also follow Belichick’s recent strategy of picking players from college football’s top programs.
The ESPN mock draft has a LSU and Georgia player going to the Patriots in the first three rounds, Wilson has prospects from Clemson and Wisconsin as part of his mock, and B/R’s projection features players from Oklahoma, Arkansas and Cincinnati.
New England used its first four picks of the 2021 draft on prospects from Alabama and Oklahoma. We should expect to see most of the Patriots’ picks come from the name-brand schools and power-conference programs. Thirteen of the team’s last 18 picks were from power conferences.
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