The New England Patriots’ rookie class could feature some of this year’s biggest draft-day steals, one analyst believes.
But whether that comes to pass will ultimately come down to whether Mike Vrabel and the Patriots coaching staff can get the most out of some talented players with some question marks.
On Thursday, The Athletic’s Nick Baumgardner highlighted some Day 3 draft picks who make big contributions as rookies. That list included two Patriots picks: fourth-round defensive lineman Joshua Farmer and fifth-round edge rusher Bradyn Swinson.
Baumgardner had high praise for Farmer as a prospect. However, he noted that he was an inconsistent player at Florida State.
“Farmer was an inconsistent performer throughout his Florida State career, though he did finish his time in Tallahassee as a captain and was well respected throughout the program,” Baumgardner wrote. “Traits-wise, he has everything a defensive tackle needs to shine in the NFL.”
Meanwhile, Baumgardner was especially high on Swinson, an LSU product who was projected to go much earlier in the draft.
However, it will be up to this new coaching staff under Vrabel to try and get Swinson to live up to his potential.
“Swinson, meantime, could be a real steal if New England can bring out the best version of him,” Baumgardner wrote. “The former LSU edge was a Day 2-level talent who fell to the fifth round mainly because of concerns over his coachability. If he proves he can be a consistent professional, his talent could lead him to outperform his draft slot pretty quickly.”
It’ll take some time to see whether Farmer or Swinson will pan out. We’ll get some glimpses soon as the Patritos continue OTAs and head into training camp in a few weeks.