The Patriots Didn't Draft Well, But Does It Matter?

Utah Utes offensive tackle Caleb Lomu

The Patriots Didn't Draft Well, But Does It Matter? originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

I don't think it's a secret that the New England Patriots did not have their strongest showing in the 2026 NFL Draft.

If the draft only lasted two rounds, the Patriots would have been discussed among the winners of the weekend. Unfortunately for New England, the NFL Draft has 257 picks, and they dropped the ball on day three.

Caleb Lomu is an outstanding offensive tackle who was never supposed to be available for the Patriots at No. 31. There will be a need at tackle soon when Morgan Moses retires, and who knows what the team has agreed to give up in the impending A.J. Brown trade. That uncertainty made filling the hole this year a priority.

Additionally, Gabe Jacas was a player who could have been in the mix for New England to select at No. 31. So, landing the Illinois edge rusher at pick No. 53 is an A++ selection.

The Patriots were able to keep their third-round pick, despite executing two trade-ups to get Jacas and Lomu. They used that third-round pick on the tight end out of Notre Dame, Eli Raridon.

Raridon is a pure traits pick. At 6-foot-7, he moves very well and has relatively good hands. However, he didn't play meaningful snaps until his junior year at ND. In that junior season, he snapped his career high in both receptions and receiving yards, but did not find the end zone a single time. He is inexperienced, unpolished, and majorly unproven, but possesses a large upside.