4 Players The Patriots Could Target in the 1st Round of THE NFL Draft

By Rhys Knott

Everyone remembers the then-new Patriots coach Jarod Mayo’s remarks about burning some cash. Little did he know he was merely the Kraft’s sacrificial lamb while they waited 12 months for Mike Vrabel.  

Despite having gaping holes in their roster, the 2024 Patriots organisation were $36.4 million below the salary cap! Die-hard Pats fans will tell you that was always the plan, draft the superstar quarterback then construct an offensive line to protect him 12 months later (it’s a bit like building a house from the roof down). 

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The Patriots’ current roster has 54 players and $123.8 million in cap space. They can and probably should be aggressive in free agency. However, if this is a long-term rebuild, they need to draft the guys who can help Drake Maye become the next TB12. Luckily, after four wins, they have another pick in the top four this year too. They could have the first overall pick if they hadn’t let Bazooka Joe loose against the Bills. 

If the 2024 Eagles highlighted what happens when you win the battle at the line of scrimmage, the 2024 Patriots demonstrated what happens when you lose that battle. The New England offensive line allowed 52 sacks in the 2024 regular season, four more than in 2023! When it came to protecting their quarterback the Patriots weren’t the worst team in the league, they were the fifth worst! 

New England also struggled to create pressure on opposing quarterbacks. Their 28 sacks were the lowest number in the league. 2024 was a real misstep for a Patriots defence that traded away Matt Judon before the season began. They only pressured quarterbacks 104 times, compared to 132 times in 2023. You know Mike Vrabel is going to fix that. 

Fumbling the ball was a real issue too, only four teams lost the ball more than New England. Protecting the quarterback better should help Drake Maye lower his number from four, but their running backs combined for eight fumbles! With a new head coach who worked with Derrick Henry, the Patriots could be in the market for a new workhorse back. 

Will Campbell - Offensive Tackle, LSU

In 2024, the Patriots decided to sign a right tackle with character issues who had been booted out of Pittsburgh. Not content with that bit of business, they also drafted a right tackle instead of signing an experienced left tackle. Subsequently, the left tackle is one of the gaping holes on the roster. Theoretically, they are in prime position to take the best left tackle in the draft, but that doesn’t mean they won’t draft another right tackle. 

Two things stand out when you watch Campbell: his exceptional awareness and footwork. The 21-year-old isn’t distracted by defenders running twists or stunts in front of him. He always knows which defender he should be blocking. And his quick feet mean he can adjust to ends and defensive tackles shifting inside or trying to loop around to the edge with ease.  

The All-American can get a little grabby when blocking. NFL officials will spot that, but not many players arrive as the finished product. 

Campbell stands at 6-foot-6 tall and weighs 320 pounds, that’s just five pounds lighter than Lane Johnson. Johnson has won two Super Bowls and made six Pro Bowls.

It will be surprising if Campbell isn’t drafted with a top-five pick in April and the Patriots pick fourth.  

Who was Mike Vrabel’s first-round pick for the Titans in 2023? Peter Skoronski, Skoronski began his career as a left tackle but shifted inside to guard this year. Bleacher Report suggested Campbell could be a candidate to do the same. The Patriots are going to need to build much more line depth before that happens.  

According to PFF, Skoronski had the second highest run block rating in 2024. Vrabel would snap your hand off if you offered him an offensive lineman who rates that highly in the next two seasons.  

The smart money says Vrabel wants Campbell in the first round, but the Patriots front office is a bewildering place. There isn’t much chance Jerod Mayo wanted two quarterbacks last year, but they still drafted two.

Shemar Stewart - Edge Rusher, Texas A&M

Penn State’s Abdul Carter is the stand-out pass rusher in the 2025 class, but there’s no guarantee he will be available at the fourth spot. Luckily for New England, plenty of defensive ends in the 2025 class have first-round talent, as many as seven! 

Shemar Stewart looks the most like a Patriots defensive end though. He has a touch of the Deatrich Wise Jr.’s about him, but he’s even bigger than the eight-year veteran! 

You can only feel sorry for anyone who is tackled by Stewart. He’s not just big, 6-foot-6 and 290 pounds. He’s incredibly athletic with it. The Miami native not only has the power to move blockers out of his way he can straight up run past them into the backfield. 

Stewart played on a four-man defensive front at Texas A&M. Traditionally, the Patriots have favoured a 3-4 defence, but Vrabel has said he wants to use multiple fronts. That might lead to some roster reconstruction. Stewart has the size to play in a three and is dynamic enough to set the edge in a four.

Tyler Booker - Center/Guard, Alabama

Super Bowl-winning centre David Andrews has been diabolical for two seasons, culminating in him hitting IR in October. The 32-year-old is due to earn $4 million in 2025, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if the new regime cut him instead.

2025’s draft class doesn’t have much talent in the centre department, but there is one outstanding player who could move from guard to tackle. Alabama guard Tyler Booker is rated as the fourth-best centre in the class by ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr.  

Booker is smoother than a very smooth thing wrapped in silk. He looks unusually comfortable in space for a big man, and his ability to get to the second level will be invaluable in the NFL.  

The Connecticut native is somewhat of a child protege. He played in 12 games as a freshman in Tuscaloosa and will turn 21 in April 2025. 

He will only get bigger and stronger in the next five years, but he’s already 6-foot-5 and weighs 325 pounds! Booker projects as a first-round talent as a guard, but if teams that don’t need interior line help acquire high picks then less fashionable positions may fall. If the Patriots are fortunate, Booker may be available at 38.

Ashton Jeanty - Running Back, Boise State

Two words – Ashton Jeanty. And for the “don’t draft running backs in the first round” gang, here are two more words: “Saquon” and “Barkley”.  2024 significantly changed the running back conversation. Ja’Marr Chase was the only receiver to rack up more touchdowns than Derrick Henry, Jahmyr Gibbs and Bijan Robinson did in 2024! 

Having said that, Jeanty isn’t likely to lead the league in touchdowns as a rookie. Henry, Gibbs and Robinson are all playing on settled teams with solid offensive lines. 

Jeanty scored 56 touchdowns in three years at Boise State, though, 30 of them came in the 2024 season! He certainly knows his way to the endzone. 

Jeanty finished second in the 2024 Heisman voting, but the big question mark over him revolves around him playing his entire career in the Mountain West Conference. When his Boise State team played Penn State in the college playoffs, they struggled mightily. The 21-year-old only averaged 3.5 yards per carry, half his 7-yard season average. 

One thing is for sure: Jeanty is going to be a great addition to any NFL team. The Florida-born back spent three years growing up in Italy, as his father was posted to Naples as a member of the U.S. Navy. He doesn’t have the myopic worldview some NFL athletes suffer from, so he launched the “Ashton Jeanty Endowed Scholarship For Football” fund with part of his NIL money. The scholarship will help student-athletes who attend Boise State in the future. 

RHYS KNOTT

NFL/FANTASY FOOTBALL ANALYST

Rhys has been watching the NFL for 30 something years and still hasn’t managed to pick a team to support. When he’s not fixatED on pass rushers you can find him blithering on about most sports on Twitter @wrhys_writes

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