When it comes to the NFL Draft, sometimes you'll hit a home run. Sometimes you'll swing and miss. And sometimes, you'll get really lucky and find a diamond in the rough in the later rounds that turns out to be the greatest quarterback of all time.
The New England Patriots have been a part of all three scenarios and now have their franchise quarterback in Drake Maye. An aggressive offseason from Eliot Wolf has given Maye some much-needed help on both sides of the ball, but New England can't afford to whiff in this upcoming draft, especially with the fourth pick in its arsenal.
Unfortunately, for every Drake Maye there is a N'Keal Harry, but that's the nature of the draft.
How the Patriots’ last five first-rounders have stacked up
2024: Drake Maye
Maye unquestionably would've been the No. 1 pick this year had he chosen to stay at North Carolina another year, so the Patriots should consider themselves fortunate that they got their guy last year. He certainly went through his growing pains as a rookie, making the mistakes you'd expect from a first-year quarterback, but also showed flashes.
Now that Maye has a top-flight wide receiver in Stefon Diggs and a top-notch offensive coordinator in Josh McDaniels, Year 2 leaps are certainly expected. Maye is hopefully the guy who sticks around and shines in New England for years to come.
2023: Christian Gonzalez
Gonzalez's rookie season was cut short in 2023 due to an injury, but the Patriots struck gold in securing a lockdown cornerback for the next decade. Opposing coaches respected Gonzalez's game so much, they constantly threw away from him last season.
The 2024 season was essentially an extension of his rookie season, so Gonzalez, the last first-round pick selected by Bill Belichick, should shine even brighter in 2025. Especially with free-agent acquisition Carlton Davis playing opposite him. He is a budding star in this league.
2022: Cole Strange
This one had many Patriots fans scratching their heads when Belichick went with a guard from a Division II school with New England's first-round selection (29th overall) in 2022.
The jury is still out on Strange. He suffered a serious knee injury in 2023 and worked hard to get back on the field, and the offensive guard spent some time playing center at the end of the 2024 season. Strange will need to have a great 2025 season if he wants to stick around.
2021: Mac Jones
Jones' rookie campaign in which the Patriots made the playoffs turned out to be nothing more than a mirage. The 2021 first-round pick continued to regress, especially once McDaniels left to become the Raiders' head coach in 2022, and now he's Brock Purdy's backup in San Francisco after a stint with the Jaguars.
You could argue that Jones was aided significantly by the outstanding talent he had around him at Alabama and New England's strong coaching as an NFL rookie. His lack of arm strength and pocket poise began to show in 2022 and 2023, and Jones was clearly a swing and miss by Belichick.
2020: N'Keal Harry
Need we say more here? Arguably New England's biggest draft bust since 2000 (maybe even further).
The Patriots passed on D.K. Metcalf and Deebo Samuel to draft N’Keal Harry at No. 32. That 2019 receiver room had the potential to be 2007-level electric—until everything unraveled with Antonio Brown and Josh Gordon. By January, Tom Brady had seen enough and packed his bags for Tampa.
Harry was just doomed right from the start, recording only 57 catches in three seasons with the Patriots. He had no catches in nine games with Minnesota last season and is now a free agent.