Patriots draft profile: Keldric Faulk has a sky-high ceiling on the edge

Hard facts

**Name:** Keldric Faulk **Position:** Defensive edge/Defensive end **School:** Auburn (Jr.) **Opening day age:** 21 (9/7/2005) **Measurements****:** 6’5 7/8”, 276 lbs, 34 3/8” arm length, 9 7/8” hand size, 4.67s 40-yard dash, 35” vertical jump, 9’9” broad jump, 17 bench press reps, 9.11 Relative Athletic Score

Experience

**Colleges:** Auburn (2023-25) **Career statistics****:** 37 games (32 starts) | 1,588 defensive snaps, 129 special teams snaps | 109 tackles, 11 missed tackles (9.2%), 19.5 TFLs, 1 FF, 2 FRs | 92 QB pressures (10 sacks, 9 hit, 73 hurries) | 1 target, 1 catch surrendered, 9 yards, 5 PBUs | 5 penalties (incl. 1 declined/offsetting) **Accolades:** Third-team All-SEC (2025), SEC All-Freshman (2023) A two-sport athlete at Highland Home High School in his Alabama hometown, who excelled both on the gridiron and the basketball court, Faulk received plenty of interest as a four-star defensive line recruit. Alabama, Georgia, Michigan, LSU, Notre Dame, Penn State, Florida, and multiple other high-profile schools offered him scholarships, but he eventually, after a brief initial commitment to FSU, opted to join Auburn. Faulk spent three seasons with the Tigers, during which he started 32 of his 37 games and registered 10 total sacks. While his best year from a production perspective was 2024, when he had seven sacks as well as his lone career forced fumble, he continued to be a disruptive player as a junior in 2025 as well. A team captain, he earned third-team All-SEC recognition before opting to forgo his senior year to turn pro.

Draft profile

**Projected round:** 1 | **Consensus big board****:** No. 20 | **Patriots meeting****:** N/A **Strengths:** Standing at just under 6-foot-6 with long limbs and good overall bulk at 275 pounds, Faulk offers an intriguing size/length/athleticism package on the edge. He uses his arms and hands well to keep blockers at a distance, and to set the tone in 1-on-1s from the get-go. It also helps that he comes with the necessary power to control or shed blocks, and to set a hard edge in the run game if need be. While his size and strength are the basis of his success, he also has shown the ability to diagnose blocking patterns as well as the lateral movement to execute line games. In addition, Faulk is a versatile player. He aligned primarily over the tackle in college, but was moved further inside the line to also attack other gaps. In addition, despite his youth — he will turn 21 a few days before the season opener — he was a team leader at Auburn who was voted a captain in 2025 and named to the SEC Football Leadership Council. **Weaknesses:** Faulk’s pass rush and killer instinct are lacking at this stage in his development, and he left more plays on the field than a player of his physical attributes should have. In general, his production and talent didn’t quite align in college, particularly in 2025. The main issue is his pass rush plan, which is basically non-existent and leaves him overly-reliant on his length and strength rather than a sophisticated sequence of moves and counters. He also needs to learn to use leverage to his advantage in order to maximize the burst that he has (which, in itself, is not jumping off the page either).

Patriots preview

**What would be his role?** Similar to the aforementioned Dre’Mont Jones, Faulk can line up inside and outside along the defensive line and play multiple techniques at a high level. He projects as an edge/end-type player at the NFL level, depending on the structure of the defense, with the flexibility to move further inside to create favorable matchups. He would start out as rotational option in New England alongside Jones and Harold Landry, and grow his role alongside his technical development. **Does he have positional versatility?** Faulk’s versatility is one of his defining features, and an asset if used correctly. Even though he might start out in a relatively clearly-defined role, he will expand upon it and eventually could be used similarly to former Patriot Deatrich Wise Jr: another big lineman, he played on the end of the line but also kicked inside on select passing downs during his most productive seasons in New England. **What is his growth potential?** Even though he is still only 20 years old, Faulk is already an NFL-caliber player in many respects. What he needs to reach his sky-high potential, however, is some proper teaching and refined technical setup. If he can get those and puts in the work, he should become a three-down player fairly early in his career and potentially further develop into a Pro Bowl-caliber player along the line. **Why the Patriots?** Faulk is more multi-faceted than a majority of this year’s edge class, but he would nonetheless be a tremendous addition to the Patriots’ defensive line. His upside is significant and he checks plenty of boxes in terms of size, off-field conduct, and versatility. He could become a difference maker for a team that has not had one on the edge since Matthew Judon’s heyday in 2021 and 2022. **Why not the Patriots?** There are two primary reasons why Faulk-to-the-Patriots might not happen. The first is that he simply might be off the board before the team has a chance to pick him up, either at No. 31 overall or through a modest trade up the board. In addition, a classic outside linebacker — coverage responsibilities and all — might be more what the team is looking for. **One-sentence verdict:** Faulk is one of the most promising players in this year’s draft, and would join a perfect situation in New England that would allow him to develop alongside two veteran starters. *For more information about Keldric Faulk and the rest of this year’s class of prospects, please take a look at Adam’s 2026 NFL Draft Guide.* *Also, what do you think about ******Faulk****** as a potential Patriots target? Do you like him? Where would you pick him? Please head down to the comment section to share your thoughts.*