Subscribe
Follow Us
We're onto the offseason in New England. While the 2023 NFL draft process is only just getting underway, it's never too early to see who the New England Patriots should select in this spring's draft. They'll hold the No. 14 overall pick after going 8-9 in 2022, which is their highest draft selection in 14 years.
So, the Patriots will have the opportunity to add a rookie that can make a major difference in their first season in the league. With that in mind, here are three draft prospects Bill Belichick and Co. should give a look at with the No. 14 overall pick.
Boston College WR Zay Flowers
There might not be any receiver that did more with less in the college game over the last few seasons than Flowers.
The BC product was on the wrong end of quarterback injuries, inconsistency, and poor play. And yet, his play didn't suffer. After a 56-catch, 892-yard season with 10 total touchdowns in 2020, Flowers had 44 receptions for 746 yards and five touchdowns in 2021, which saw him play with a backup quarterback for much of the season or an injured Phil Jurkovec.
Flowers stepped up his play in 2022 while Jurkovec took a step back and Boston College's quarterback situation was a mess. He had 78 receptions for 1,077 yards and 12 touchdowns, finding ways to not just get the ball despite the situation at quarterback but also make plays with the ball as he averaged 13.8 yards per reception.
Flowers should potential to be a legit deep threat at the NFL level over his final three seasons at Boston College. Arguably his most impressive play came against Louisville in the 2022 season when he made a 57-yard touchdown grab over a pair of Cardinals defenders at the goal line.
In that same game against Louisville, Flowers turned a screen pass that likely would've been a loss into a 22-yard gain, getting pushed out of bounds at the 1-yard line after he ran from sideline to sideline.
Flowers isn't the most physically intimidating receiver to look at. He measured at 5-foot-9 and weighed 182 pounds when he checked i at the East-West Shrine Bowl earlier this week, which might be why some mock drafts only have him going late in the round at the earliest at this point.
However, the Patriots' coaching staff is getting a front-row seat to see what Flowers can do as they're coaching him at the Shrine Bowl this week. Flowers has reportedly impressed, so much so that it's looking possible he could up the draft boards in a relatively weak wide receiver draft class.
Barring a dramatic climb up the board, Flowers should be available when the Patriots are on the clock with the No. 14 overall pick. They should certainly consider drafting him there, or consider moving back to snag him because the Patriots have lacked a receiver with the big-play ability that Flowers has for years.
Illinois CB Devon Witherspoon
There was quite possibly no draft prospect that had a higher rise in 2022 than the Fighting Illini product.
Witherspoon was dominant in 2022, recording three interceptions as opposing quarterbacks completed just 22 passes on the 63 times they targeted him. His play helped Illinois have a surprising 8-5 season. Oh, and he was also a unanimous All-American and won the Tatum-Woodson Defensive Back of the Year Award, which goes to the best defensive back in the Big Ten.
Witherspoon has fine size for a corner, too. The 22-year-old is listed at 6-feet tall and weighs 180 pounds, so size shouldn't be a concern for him when he goes against the majority of receivers in the NFL.
Witherpoon's play and size have many draft evaluators listing him as the best cornerback prospect in the 2023 NFL Draft. Pro Football Focus' Mike Renner is one of them, and he recently wrote that Witherspoon “just feels like a Belichick pick.”
Article Continues Below
“Belichick has talked about his draft philosophy over the years, and it’s not height, length, size, speed,” Renner wrote. “It is intangibles and how guys play the game of football. And if you flip on Devon Witherspoon’s tape, he plays the game of football the correct way.”
The Patriots' secondary could certainly use a corner that has star potential like Witherspoon. Marcus Jones and Jack Jones, who were both selected by the Patriots in the 2022 NFL Draft, had fine rookie seasons, with the former making plays in all three phases of the game and the latter recording a pair of interceptions while briefly being in the race for Defensive Rookie of the Year.
But they were both mid-round picks. Marcus Jones projects to be more of a slot corner with his smaller frame while Jack Jones and Jonathan Jones (who's a free agent this offseason) both struggled against some of the elite receivers in the league, such as Stefon Diggs and Justin Jefferson.
The Patriots' pass rush is already elite, so adding a possible elite shutdown corner could make feel impossible for teams to move the ball against them through the air.
Northwestern OT Peter Skoronski
Drafting an offensive tackle with the No. 14 overall pick isn't the sexiest choice, but the Patriots certainly have to consider adding one early in the draft unless if they add one in free agency or a trade.
Skoronksi is the best option if they opt to add on in the draft. The Northwestern product was a force over the last two seasons. After being named first-team All-Big Ten in 2021, Skoronski reached an even higher level in 2022 by allowing just six pressures in the entire season, per Pro Football Focus. That helped him become a unanimous All-American and win the Rimington-Pace Offensive Lineman of the Year, which goes to the best offensive lineman in the Big Ten.
Skoronksi is also viewed as a versatile prospect, with some teams believing he could play one of the interior offensive lineman spots. But if the Patriots draft him, they should play him at left tackle, where he played at Northwestern.
Trent Brown wasn't terrible in 2022, but he wasn't great, either. He allowed eight sacks and 39 pressures on top of being one of the league leaders in penalties committed last season.
The Patriots need to give Mac Jones a chance to succeed in 2023, and that starts with protection upfront. Brown played well at right tackle in 2021 and adding a left tackle like Skoronski, who is viewed as the best at his position in the 2023 class and projected to be a top-15 pick, can help the Patriots give Jones the protection needed.
