The New England Patriots met with several of the premier tackle prospects in the 2023 NFL draft, as tackle remains a pressing need.
The organization met with Ohio State’s Paris Johnson Jr., Georgia’s Broderick Jones, and Oklahoma’s Anton Harrison over the course of last week, per Patriots.com’s Evan Lazar.
Johnson and Jones are projected first-round selections and figure to be hot commodities at the position.
New England struggled at the left tackle position last season, and several are set to hit free agency. Isaiah Wynn, Yodny Cajuste, and Marcus Cannon are unrestricted free agents and will hit the market on March 15. That will leave an open spot for depth.
Trent Brown is the headliner at the position, as he started 16 games last season. Conor McDermott, who started six games last season, recently re-signed with the Patriots. There is also Andrew Stueber, the former Michigan product who missed last season with an injury.
New England has several needs heading into this year’s draft, with offensive line and wide receiver being two of the biggest on that list. It will be intriguing to see where players like Johnson and Jones go, and how that affects the draft strategy for the rest of the positions.
