New England Patriots 1st Round Preview
written by: #thepatriotway
Tomorrow is the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft. Currently, as I am writing this article, the New England Patriots hold the 3rd Overall Pick, after finishing one of the worst seasons I have ever seen as a Patriots fan. The Patriots have never held the 3rd overall pick, however, the last time they held a Top Five draft pick was in 1994. With the 4th overall pick the Patriots selected linebacker, Willie McGinest out of USC. McGinest pops up in just about every Patriots fan’s Top 10 list. The year prior was the last time they had a top 3 pick, the Patriots had the 1st overall pick where they selected Drew Bledsoe, and the whole world knows how that one turned out for them.
Many argue that Bledsoe was one of the major catalysts that jump started the Dynasty, he and Bill Parcells walked so Tom and Belichick could run. It’s been 30 years since the 1994 draft, and it’s been an amazing 30 years for Patriots fans. Since then, the Patriots have selected lower than 15th overall just 3 times (Terry Glen, Ty Warren, and Current Head Coach Jerod Mayo). Technically Jerrod Mayo, in 2008 wasn’t even New England’s pick because of poor performance, they received the pick from San Francisco in a trade.
According to both Robert Kraft and Head Coach Jerod Mayo, unless an extremely lucrative deal comes along for the Patriots, they will be using their pick rather than trading it. So here are my Top 5 “Scenarios” for the 2024 3rd overall pick, in no particular order.
Marvin Harrison Jr., Wide Receiver, Ohio State
As most everyone knows, Harrison Jr. is the son of former Indianapolis Colts receiver and Hall of Famer, Marvin Harrison. Junior is both taller and heavier, (4 inches and 25lbs) than Senior, with the same speed and route running ability. MHJ’s minuses on his scouting report are that he is a little thin for his height, and his YAC tends to be on the lower side because he gets knocked down easily. Also due to his size he occasionally has issues working through the press. A few positive keys about him are he will almost surely win a jump ball battle with his vertical. His vision is comparable to none, excels catching on the sideline and in traffic. He can either line up on the outside, but he could also line up in the slot giving him positional flexibility that could make him a nightmare for opposing secondary units.
PRO COMPARISON: AJ Green
My Analysis: Personally, I’m a Michigan fan, I’m pretty familiar with MHJ, and if I’m being honest, I wouldn’t hate this pick at number 3. If Harrison Jr is still on the board at 3, I wouldn’t have an issue with Jerrod and company picking up arguably the best receiver in the draft. Some would even argue MHJ is the best receiver in the last decade.
Drake Maye, Quarterback, North Carolina
Drake Maye is your prototypical quarterback, with a strong arm, great foot speed and size. He has all the right tools to become a franchise quarterback. His ability to throw a 100mph fastball into tight spaces, back off a bit and toss light lobs with accuracy and finesse is his biggest ‘pro’. A great athlete, and above average runner mean designed runs, and scrambling out of the pocket are also an option for him. Some downfalls of him are his “gunslinger attitude” means he often will throw an easy interception trying to make a play rather than just getting rid of the ball or taking the sack. He also can struggle at time with pre-snap adjustments based on defensive looks, but that’s something that can be taught and will come with time.
PRO COMPARISON: Justin Herbert or Josh Allen
My Analysis: Much like Josh Allen, Maye is a big athletic QB who can use his legs to get out of trouble, however, he doesn’t always, and he ends up throwing a lot of interceptions while attempting to make a play, or no take negative yardage. In my opinion, there isn’t a whole lot to not like about this kid. He’s big, strong, accurate. He has the potential to be a Day 1 starter in New England. He would be a solid pick-up.
Jayden Daniels, Quarterback, Louisiana State
2023 Heisman Trophy winning quarterback. Jayden Daniels plays with an athleticism not seen at the Quarterback position in College since Lamar Jackson’s days at Louisville. Daniels has shown stellar accuracy on deep range passing consistently dropping passes in the bucket. He has shown great ability to read a closing pocket and use his legs to either buy more time and complete a pass or just running for positive yardage. A five-year starter, Daniels has a calmness in the pocket that only comes with experience as a starter. His arm strength, however, can be something of a mixed bag. While great throwing deep and hits his receivers in stride, the other parts of the field are often met with timing miscues, over or under thrown receivers, or just completely missed receivers. A huge red flag with Daniels is his reckless abandon on the field, he’s willing to sacrifice his body to make a play, and as we all know, in the NFL, this kind of play will lead to a tragically short career.
PRO COMPARISON: Robert Griffin III
My Analysis: Of all the QBs on the board, Daniels is my least favorite for this Patriots team. I feel like the receiving corps that the Patriots have isn’t talented enough to make up for Daniels inconsistent accuracy on short passes, and the offensive line isn’t going to give him enough time to make the deep play, there for he’s going to be running a lot. Daniels running a lot is going to put himself in danger of a short career and I don’t want to see that happen.
J.J. McCarthy, Quarterback, Michigan
2024 National Champion winning Quarterback, J.J. McCarthy is the “dark horse candidate”. JJ is a quick and agile quarterback, though small, who can really move around in the pocket and buy time. Despite his smaller size he isn’t afraid to stand up and take the hit if it means getting the ball off to the open receiver or just throwing it away so as not to take the sack. McCarthy excels at option passes, draw passes, and play-action passes. His accuracy over the middle is unmatched. McCarthy struggles with his progressions downfield and often if he can’t hit his first or second option his accuracy nose-dives.
PRO COMPARISON: Baker Mayfield
My Analysis: Being a Michigan fan, this one is tough for me. I loved JJ in college. I still believe he is the reason they won the National Championship this past season, McNamara wasn’t going to be able to get it done. With that said, I don’t know if picking JJ at 3 is the right move. Prior to the end of the NCAA season, I often said pick MHJ at 3, and pick JJ at 34, however with Michigan winning the National Championship and JJ being a huge part of that success. You can’t teach Championship winning experience, and a lot of teams are craving that in a quarterback right now, so I don’t think he falls to the second round any longer. I do think that New England could be a good landing spot for McCarthy. The Patriots running back room is strong enough to hold the pressure off McCarthy and allow for the dip and dunk, and play action passes that McCarthy excels at. Something that another Michigan QB enjoyed in his first couple seasons as a starting QB for New England, while he perfected his mechanics and vison.
Trade the Pick to Giants or Vikings.
Both the New York Giants, 6th overall and the Minnesota Vikings, 11th overall have expressing interest in trading up in this year’s draft to select the Quarterback that they feel would be their future. So far, they haven’t seen Kraft and his team any trades that would be worth it. But like Adam Schefter wondered on the Rich Eisen Show, what is going to happen when the clock is ticking and the Patriots are on the clock? Just how sweet will these two teams make the trade?
I know I don’t speak for all Patriots fans, but I know I am especially excited for tomorrow night, and where the future of this team is going to head. Draft day means one step closer to Training Camp in August!
Sources:
https://scarletandgame.com/2023/11/19/ohio-state-football-marvin-harrison-jr-compared-father/
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/10089376-drake-maye-nfl-draft-2024-scouting-report-for-unc-qb
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