The New England Patriots made defense the primary focus in the 2023 NFL draft, but ESPN’s Todd McShay has things flipping to the offensive side of the ball in his recent 2024 NFL mock draft.
No, the Patriots aren’t making some blockbuster trade up to land Marvin Harrison Jr. (sorry, Patriots fans), but McShay does have them addressing a need along the offensive front by taking Penn State offensive tackle Olumuyiwa Fashanu with the No. 9 overall pick.
The fact that McShay has the Patriots picking at No. 9 doesn’t bode well for their 2023 season. However, they do come away with some offensive line help to keep Mac Jones upright for his fourth season, assuming he’s still the quarterback under center in 2024.
Fashanu, the 2022 Second-team All-Big Ten lineman, was already making waves as a sophomore, and he’ll be looking to take off to the moon in his junior season.
Trent Brown is playing on the last year of his contract, and the Patriots signed 34-year-old veteran Riley Reiff to a one-year deal in free agency. Keep in mind, the team didn’t draft an offensive tackle in this year’s draft.
So filling that position could be a top priority by the next draft cycle.
