New England Patriots: Seven-round 2019 NFL Mock Draft
Round 7, Pick 239: Zedrick Woods, S, Ole Miss
Safety might not seem like an important area of need in 2019 for the Patriots considering how stacked they are at the position – Devin McCourty, Duron Harmon, Patrick Chung – but all of those players are closer to the end of their careers than they are to the beginning.
McCourty in particular could call it quits as soon as next February (especially if the Pats win another Super Bowl), which would create a massive immediate void in the back of a talented New England secondary. Adderley arriving in the second round of this year’s draft certainly helps, but throwing in another promising player like Zedrick Woods from Mississippi couldn’t hurt either.
Round 7, Pick 243: Aaron Monteiro, OT, Boston College
The Patriots’ offensive line isn’t necessarily an area of need or point of focus in this year’s draft, but it still couldn’t hurt to find someone in the later rounds the team could try and develop into a future starter. For now, the starting linemen look pretty set in 2019: David Andrews at center, Shaq Mason and Joe Thuney at guard, and Marcus Cannon and Isaiah Wynn at tackle.
The wild card in that group is of course Wynn, who was a first-round draft pick last year but missed the entire season with a torn Achilles injury. Assuming he has made a complete recovery and is as talented as the Patriots consider him to be, then Tom Brady’s blindside should be protected and the departure of Trent Brown isn’t as devastating as it could be. Even still, taking a flier on a guy like Monteiro to groom for the future is not a horrible idea.
Round 7, Pick 246: Keaton Sutherland, G, Texas A&M
To echo the point just made, it’s never too early to bolster offensive line depth. Part of the reason the Patriots have been so successful for the past two decades lies in their ability to win the battles in the trenches. Brady is an incredible quarterback who will go down as the best ever to play his position, but he’ll also be the first to tell you that he’s been the beneficiary of playing behind some rock-solid offensive lines.
Just consider the 2015 season, in particular the AFC Championship Game loss to the Denver Broncos at Mile High. The Patriots might have made it to five straight Super Bowls if they could have better protected Brady with the O-line. In short, though adding Sutherland as a backup guard isn’t crucial to the team’s fortunes, it also couldn’t hurt.
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Round 7, Pick 252: Shareef Miller, DE, Penn State
The Patriots may likely try to bundle some of these seventh-round picks in a trade for a veteran player from another team’s roster, but if they don’t, they can take a flier on Shareef Miller. The defensive end from Penn State certainly comes from a good football program where he played against strong competition in 2018, so he could challenge for a roster spot in New England… especially considering the team’s need for situational pass-rushers and defensive line depth.