Re-grading the Patriots 2023 NFL Draft class after one season

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Round 3, Pick No. 76 - LB/S Marte Mapu, Sacramento State

Upon his initial selection, there was a lot of hype surrounding all that Marte Mapu could bring to the Patriots defense. He was known for being a a Swiss army knife with experience lining up in nearly every defensive position throughout his college career.

He fit the Belichick mold to a T and performed accordingly during OTAs and mini camp. He made such a strong impression among his teammates early on that they couldn't help but rave about his potential and his dedication to getting better in every practice.

It inevitably made him a roster lock mid-summer and expectations were high for him once the season started. But for some reason, he was used more on special teams than defense, spending just 18% of snaps with the unit through 17 games.

Because of that, we didn't get to see much of what Mapu can do when he's fully integrated into the team, making it a bit difficult to really grade him. Fortunately, we saw flashes of greatness on the practice field last year, enough to be optimistic about what he will do in his second season.

Grade: C

Round 4, Pick No. 107 - OL Jake Andrews, Troy

Presumably selected to be the heir to David Andrews' throne, Jake Andrews only took the field for one game during the 2023 season. Because of that, there's no reason to grade him.

Grade: N/A

Round 4, Pick No. 112 - K Chad Ryland, Maryland

Bill Belichick shocked the NFL world when he traded up in the fourth round to select a kicker, one of the highest spots a player at that position has ever been drafted. Since the Patriots needed a younger kicker to eventually take over for Nick Folk, the move was criticized but somewhat understandable at the time.

The main issue was that the trade-up was for Chad Ryland, a good kicker but not necessarily one you move up in the draft for. It was initially believed that Belichick saw something most others didn't, which he became known for throughout his career.

More often than not, the coach saw potential in a player and could cultivate that out of them, but that wasn't the case with Ryland during the 2023 season.

Unfortunately for the rookie kicker, he was thrust into the starter role after Folk was surprisingly released during roster cutdowns, which ultimately came back to bite them. The veteran went on to have one of the best seasons of his career with the Titans, while Ryland struggled and contributed to several losses on the Patriots' schedule.

At the end of the year, Ryland missed nine field goals and one extra point, all of which prompted fans to demand his benching. It certainly shook his confidence and the hope is he will be much improved this year, but we'll have to wait and see.

Grade: D

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