Day 2 of the 2023 NFL Draft is in the books and the Patriots added two more rookies to their class. Because the amount of players taken in the night has doubled, I’ll do a high-level rundown of what occurred last night, mainly focusing on hopeful Patriots picks, and the players who Bill actually drafted.
The night started at pick 32 with a cool, full-circle moment, as CB Joey Porter Jr was drafted by the Steelers, following in his father, Joey Sr’s footsteps who was also drafted by Pittsburgh in 1999.
With pick 33, the Titans traded up to take QB Will Levis, whose fall from a top-10 projection, to first-round obscurity made headlines yesterday. From a Patriots perspective on this pick, there were multiple reports saying the Patriots had no interest in taking Will Levis.
Then came the Great Tight End run that doesn’t involve the Pats (Sorry Clare!) – The Lions, who’ve had a weird draft so far, took Sam LaPorta, whilst Michael Mayer joined old friend Josh McDaniels in Las Vegas, with picks 34 & 35 retrospectively.
Green Bay then took the fourth TE off the board at pick 42 when they selected Luke Musgrave.
After much conjecture about them trading up, the Patriots stayed put at pick 46 and selected DE Keion White out of Georgia Tech. White played DE and TE at Old Dominion before transferring to Georgia Tech at the end of the 2020 season.
A bit further on, more Tight Ends came off the board as Luke Schoonmaker, a Patriot hopeful for many, was selected by the Cowboys at pick 58. TE Brenton Strange also went shortly after to the Jaguars at pick 61.
Just hopping over to the Wide Reviervers for a moment, one player who I liked as well as many others as a night two pick for the Pats, Marvin Mims from Oklahoma, was snagged by Denver with the final selection of the second round with pick 63. A new weapon for Russell Wilson.
QB Hendon Hooker, who was thought to have a fair chance of going on night one, finally went off the board at pick 68, he heads to Detroit.
Straight after at pick 69, another WR I would have been interested in seeing in a Pats uniform, Nathaniel “Tank” Dell was taken by the Texans.
Then a bit further along, the Patriots stayed put with their pick at 76 and selected S/LB Marte Mapu out of Sacramento State. Appears like a very versatile player that could aid more so in the Safety position, and perhaps on special teams.
A few slots later at pick 78, TE Tucker Kraft was selected by the Packers, making it their second selection at that position of the night. I thought the Patriots could be interested in Kraft in round 3, but, it seems the position wasn’t at the top of their priority board.
WR Josh Downs who was also on the list of 2-3 round pass-catchers I thought the team could have had interest in, went to the Colts at pick 79.
In mine and Clare’s draft-off last week, we both picked DB Riley Moss as someone we could see the Pats picking up, but, we were wrong. He was snagged by the Bronchos with pick 83.
The final TE of the night went with pick 93 as the Steelers took Darnell Washington, who slid a good way following reports of an injury that caused teams worry, think that’s an excellent pickup for Pittsburgh.
KICKERS ARE PEOPLE TOO! – The 49ers, with pick 99 took Jake Moody, the top kicker in the class from Michigan.
And that is your roundup from an underwhelming night two from a Patriots perspective, some interesting picks that have all come on the defensive side of the ball, but hopes of trading up to get some offensive support never came to fruition.
Later today the final rounds will commence, and the Patriots still have the following picks:
Round 4: 107 – 117 – 120 – 135
Round 6: 184 – 187 – 192 – 210
Round 7: 245
I expect them to consolidate a bunch of these picks to trade up, as well as trade out for 2024 Draft picks.
Shoutout to our lovely Clare Cooper who stayed up preparing to do a Pats TE deep dive to only be disappointed. We love ya Clare!
Another recap tomorrow – enjoy the final draft day everybody!