FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Even when the New England Patriots did what people expected them to do, they managed to subvert expectations in the 2018 NFL Draft.
Many anticipated the Patriots would add a quarterback and a tackle in this draft, but few saw them taking a seventh-round passer, or landing an established NFL starter for the offensive line via trade. They did both of those things, and where experts thought they would target defensive talent, the Pats instead loaded up on future draft choices.
While a few pre-draft analyses predicted the Pats would use their first- and second-round picks to trade up into the top 10 and take one of this draft’s highly touted quarterbacks, New England instead drafted Louisiana State’s Danny Etling at No. 219 (20 picks later than where Tom Brady came off the board in 2000). Analysts see Etling as a project, and his name did not draw much connection to New England prior to the draft.
As they promised, the Patriots emphasized talent over perceived need and found much more of that talent on offense than on defense.
“Our goal and our job is to pick good football players regardless of what side of the ball they’re on – offense, defense, special teams,” Patriots Director of Player Personnel Nick Caserio said on Friday. “So we’re trying to look at the whole composition of our football team and just try to pick good players and put them in position and put them in the program and see if they can take advantage of their opportunities. So that’s why we did what we did.”
The only defender New England took in the first three rounds was Florida cornerback Duke Dawson. Dawson is projected as a slot corner who may have the versatility to play safety down the road. Perhaps unimpressed with the talent on the board, the Patriots otherwise used Day 2 to amass draft capital, acquiring Detroit’s second-round pick and Chicago’s third-round pick in next year’s draft. On Saturday, they added Philadelphia’s 2019 seventh-round pick as part of a draft that included a team-record eight trades.
The Patriots used their first two picks on Georgia Bulldogs who have been roommates in the past, tackle Isaiah Wynn and running back Sony Michel. Though Wynn played tackle in college, New England later dealt its third-round pick to the 49ers for 6-foot-8, 355-pound lineman Trent Brown, a veteran starter who Pro Football Focus ranked as a better player last year than departed left tackle Nate Solder.
The trade suggests that at least for now, the Patriots may be planning to use Wynn – who at just shy of 6-foot-3 is a bit undersized for the tackle position – as a guard. Wynn is physically quite similar to former Patriot guard Logan Mankins, himself a college tackle who moved to left guard. Mankins was an inch taller, but had about the same weight and arm length. Wynn is considered an exceptionally skilled player who may very well have the talent to play tackle at some point.
Wynn’s college teammate, Michel, is a player unlike anyone the Patriots have drafted in the first round. Only the second first-round running back taken by Belichick (relative bust Laurence Maroney being the other), Michel has dynamic skills. Experts see him as a three-down back who is already a viable blocker on passing downs. He fumbled 12 times in college (losing five), but only twice in his final season.
If you were looking for help on defense, you had to wait until Day 3 when the Patriots added inside linebackers Ja’Whaun Bentley from Purdue in the fifth round and Christian Sam from Arizona State in the sixth. Bentley is a self-described “thumper” who’s spent time studying former Patriots players Rob Ninkovich, Tedy Bruschi, Adalius Thomas and Roosevelt Colvin on tape. He’s expected to be a two-down contributor as a run stopper. Sam projects as a backup with special teams upside.
Dave Brown is a freelance correspondent who covers the Patriots for the Monitor. You can follow him at Twitter @ThatDaveBrown.