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The 2026 NFL Draft received a lot of criticism ahead of the NFL Draft Combine, with the NFL Draft considered to be a “weak class.”
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During workouts in Indianapolis, these rookies broke countless records and silenced the doubters.
While there are plenty of players to be excited about, one fact remains: This isn’t the deepest class ever.
There will be plenty of starters at each position the first two days. But when you get into the later rounds, the quality of prospects falls off a pretty steep cliff.
The New England Patriots have 11 picks in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Of these 11 companies, only 3 are in the top 100. Any other year, I would have been happy with New England’s four sixth-round picks. But expecting to find contributors in the second half of this draft class is unrealistic.
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The Patriots would benefit from using multiple late-round picks to double up in the second and third rounds.
Specifically, if the Patriots can find a way back to the second round, they have a real chance of landing two starters to fill the team’s two biggest needs: offensive line and rushing attack.
The record for rushers drafted in the first round could be broken this April, and New England’s No. 31 pick could add to that number. Trading a pick in his 40s could lead to a first-game starter like Iowa State offensive lineman Gennings Dunker or Texas A&M’s Chase Bisontis.
