Three-time Super Bowl champ wants the Patriots to draft a running back early

With the 14th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots will have the opportunity to draft one of the top players in any position.

The player or position the Patriots are targeting remains unknown; however, three-time Super Bowl winner James White shares who he thinks will be an excellent fit for the Patriots.

Don’t be too surprised; the former Patriots running back suggests drafting a running back in the first or early second round, specifically Jahmyr Gibbs out of Alabama.

Gibbs spent two years at Georgia Tech before transferring to Alabama for his final collegiate year in 2022. In his three years combined, Gibbs tallied 3,344 scrimmage yards and scored 23 touchdowns total — 15 rushing and eight receiving. He also shocked the entire NFL world when he clocked 4.36 seconds in the 40-yard dash.

While on the Next Pats podcast with Phil Perry of NBC Sports Boston, White explains that Gibbs will be a good fit with Bill O’Brien, who was calling his plays at Alabama last year. He also details how having familiarity between an offensive coordinator and a skill-positioned player is extremely important. Which, it’s worth mentioning that Mac Jones fits into this, as he also ran the Alabama offense.

"“He’s a little bit more of a pass-catcher. He seems like he’s already got that one step into the league, being coached under Bill O’Brien and running an NFL-type offense.  He’s fast. Typically when you think about those fast guys, they’re not really elusive, but he is, and he’s light on his feet, he has good balance.”"

If there’s one thing White knows how to do well as a running back, it’s how to catch passes out of the backfield at an elite level. That said, White logged 381 receptions for 3,287 yards and scored 25 touchdowns through the air during his career, which is the most in franchise history.

Gibbs caught 103 passes, averaging 11.8 yards per reception in college. White feels confident trading back to acquire more draft capital or trading up in the second round to draft him.

"“But if they trade back and a guy like Bijan Robinson goes before him, and everybody’s kind of slotted [Gibbs] to be their second guy off the board, I could see that happening, just based on the connection. Familiarity is very key for sure when it comes to offensive coordinators.”"

Although the film looks great for Gibbs, New England drafted a running back in the fourth round of last year’s draft, Pierre Strong Jr, who saw ten total carries and totaled 100 yards as a rookie in 2022. Everyone is impressed with Gibbs’ 40 time, and it’s worth mentioning that Strong clocked in at 4.37 seconds in the 40-yard dash in 2022, which is just 1/100 of a second slower than Gibbs.

It’s fair to say the Patriots will use Rhamondre Stevenson as a workhorse and have built a foundation around him by drafting Strong last year and signing fourth-year man James Robinson this offseason. New England has drafted a running back every year since 2017, so I expect them to draft one this year, just not in the second round.

Using White’s logic, if the Patriots are interested in pairing Stevenson with another weapon in the backfield, it seems Strong will be that guy. Similar to Gibbs, Strong is also 5’11”, 205 lbs, and has 4.3 speed at his feet.

New England’s backfield is poised to do well this season.

The NFL Draft is this Thursday, as the Patriots will be on the clock with the 14th overall section.