NFL Draft: Who did the AFC East select this year?

The New England Patriots welcome four rookies in this year’s NFL Draft, making four trades in the process.

The New England Patriots are known for having strong drafts every year. As a Buffalo Bills‘ fan, I was glad to see that they only had four draft picks by the end of the event. Unfortunately, Mel Kiper had a lot of good things to say about their draft class.

Ultimately, the Patriots had two third-round draft picks, one fourth-round and one sixth-round pick. They added two defensive ends and two offensive tackles, all of them slotted to play backup/depth roles.

First, let’s get to the trades that went down:

• Patriots trade No. 72 (R3) and No. 200 (R6) to Titans for No. 83 (R3) and No. 124 (R4).
• Patriots trade No. 96 (R3) and No. 144 (R4) to Lions for No. 85 (R3).
• Patriots trade No. 183 (R5) to Chiefs for TE James O’Shaughnessy and No. 216 (R6).
• Patriots trade No. 216 (R6) and No. 239 (R7) to Cowboys for No. 211 (R6).

Here’s a list of their final selections:

• DE Derek Rivers (R3, No. 83)
• OT Antonio Garcia (R3, No. 85)
• DE Deatrich Wise Jr. (R4 , No. 131)
• OT Conor McDermott (R6, No. 211)

You read that correctly, the Patriots drafted a player with the same last name as the Buffalo Bills‘ head coach. He’s a 6’8”, 307-pound offensive lineman that used to play tight end.

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Here’s how Mel Kiper summed up the Patriots’ draft:

"The reason the Patriots’ grade is so high with no first- or second-round picks? You have to remember that Brandin Cooks and Kony Ealy are essentially those picks, and New England knows exactly what it’s getting in both. Now, on to what New England got this weekend, including two guys who were higher on my board than where the Patriots picked, and at need positions. Derek Rivers is a workout freak and ferocious pass-rusher who had 41 career sacks at Youngstown State. He would have been a contributor if he had played at Ohio State. Antonio Garcia required giving up their fourth-round pick in a trade up 11 spots, but he’s a natural left tackle who started 42 collegiate games. He was my fifth-ranked tackle. If he’s the Patriots’ swing tackle backing up both Nate Solder and Marcus Cannon, that’s an improvement. Deatrich Wise Jr., a versatile edge defender, continues the Patriots’ Arkansas pipeline."

Ultimately, not too much to worry about from a Bills’ perspective. The Patriots seem to have drafted some players that could see time if an injury were to happen, but not much other than that. Rivers is the only one I see having a productive year in 2017.

Let’s move on to the New York Jets.