The New England Patriots have the 31st overall pick and are widely expected to look to draft defensive line help.
New England has some needs, including on the defensive line, and there will be options for the Patriots at 31st overall. Patriots analyst Chad Graff of The Athletic shared his latest seven-round mock draft on Thursday and mocked the team to select Clemson Tigers defensive linemen TJ Parker.
“With the expectation that the Patriots will find a way to trade for Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown this summer, edge rusher is the team’s top need. In a lot of ways, Parker is just what the Patriots need,” Graff wrote.
“He has good length off the edge and is a major disruptor in the backfield (32.4 percent of his tackles were behind the line of scrimmage). He would likely begin as the Patriots’ No. 3 edge rusher but could immediately provide depth in case Harold Landry doesn’t recover well from his lingering knee injury.”
Parker played three years at Clemson and was a star pass rusher. Last season, he had his lowest production year, recording just five sacks. In 2024, he had 11 sacks and six forced fumbles, showing how dominant he can be.
Meanwhile, The Athletic NFL Draft analyst Dane Brugler believes there is still some more development to go with Parker, but he believes the edge rusher can be a solid NFL starter.
The 2026 NFL Draft is set for April 23-25 in Pittsburgh.
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