2013 NFL Draft: New England Patriots select Josh Boyce, quick analysis

The New England Patriots were able to make a great selection in the fourth round of the 2013 NFL Draft, as the Pats snapped up TCU Horned Frogs star wide receiver Josh Boyce with the 102nd pick. Louisiana Tech wide receiver Quinton Patton is still surprisingly on the board, and it sounds like there is more than meets the eye with him. I thought he would be taken in the second round of the draft, as he is solid at just about everything at the position. But apparently teams have issues with him, and it is telling that the Patriots have continued to pass up on him and view Boyce as the superior prospect.

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I like the addition of Boyce, and it seems like the Patriots do indeed want to add a lot of size to the wide receiver position. They took Marshall’s Aaron Dobson off the board in the second round in what was a good pick, and this selection by the Pats in the fourth will also greatly benefit the wide receiver position.

Boyce is one of the most underrated wide receiver prospects in the draft, and he was always on the Pats draft radar. They worked Boyce out during the pre-draft process, and he weighs 206 pounds even though he is only 5’11”. Boyce’s stats were OK last season (66 reception, 891 yards and seven touchdowns), but he was supposed to have a big year in 2012. However, TCU’s play at quarterback was awful thanks to the Casey Pachall conundrum, and that had a huge negative effect on Boyce.

Like Dobson, Boyce has all the tools and those tools far outweigh his mediocre college production. Boyce has excellent speed with a 4.38 time, so that can’t be overlooked at all. He does a great job stretching the field with nearly 16 yards per reception in college, and he is also very athletic. Boyce was limited at the combine with a toe injury, and he might not be able to participate in minicamp. He could have showed even better at the Combine, and I think Boyce is an underrated player with plenty of potential. I really like this pick for the Patriots, and Boyce isn’t that far off from Dobson when you look at his physical tools. Both players can do so many different things, and I feel great going forward with these two selections at wide receiver in the 2013 NFL Draft.

You can follow Joe Soriano on Twitter @SorianoJoe.