ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. has three positions in mind for the New England Patriots on the first day of the 2023 NFL draft.
Kiper spoke on a conference call Wednesday and discussed three positions and players he thinks would fit best in New England. His positional needs for the organization fall in line with what has been reported by other analysts as well. Receiver, offensive lineman, and cornerback seem to be the positions Kiper believes New England should be focused on.
This makes sense, given that Kiper had the organization selecting Oregon corner Anthony Gonzalez in a mock draft this week. There have also been sentiments that scouts across the league view the 2023 wide receiver class as one that is not particularly strong.
Kiper broke down his reasoning further.
“They certainly have a chance to [land an impact player] with Christian Gonzalez or Jaxon Smith-Njigba. If they go offensive line, there’s going to be somebody there who can be an attractive addition as a rookie coming in and starting,” said Kiper, per MassLive.com’s Mark Daniels. “Gonzalez is the bigger corner and in the AFC against all these elite quarterbacks, matching up in coverage is critical. Gonzalez would give them something in terms of length that they need. Jaxson Smith-Njigba I had going a little earlier, but they could certainly use him. He’s great in the slot. He can also play out wide.”
The Patriots do need help at those positions. Wide receiver is one that many fans believe New England needs to upgrade. Offensive line and corner depth are important as well, even with New England signing the likes of Riley Reiff and bringing back Jonathan Jones and Myles Bryant.
Whatever decision the organization makes will be pivotal to the future of the team.
