Patriots fill biggest remaining need in latest mock draft
The New England Patriots maintained depth at the majority of their offensive and defensive positions in free agency with one notable exception. The Patriots are one man short at safety and cornerback after Devin McCourty retired and Jalen Mills was released. So, it makes sense to see New England taking Penn State cornerback Joey Porter […]
The New England Patriots maintained depth at the majority of their offensive and defensive positions in free agency with one notable exception.
The Patriots are one man short at safety and cornerback after Devin McCourty retired and Jalen Mills was released. So, it makes sense to see New England taking Penn State cornerback Joey Porter Jr. in Mel Kiper’s latest mock draft for ESPN.
Porter is just what the Patriots need as a 6-foot-2, 193-pound long, physical cornerback with 34-inch arms and a 4.46-second 40-yard dash. The Patriots’ top current cornerbacks are all slightly undersized in 5-foot-10 Jonathan Jones, 5-foot-8, 175-pound Marcus Jones and 5-foot-11, 175-pound Jack Jones. New England needs a bigger cornerback to match up with more physical receivers, and that’s what Porter — the son of Pittsburgh Steelers legendary linebacker Joey Porter — brings.
Porter was the third cornerback off the board in Kiper’s mock draft behind Oregon’s Christian Gonzalez and Illinois’ Devon Witherspoon. The three top offensive tackles were all off the board for New England, who could use a left tackle of the future. Tackle is less of a pressing need than cornerback since the Patriots signed Riley Reiff and Calvin Anderson last week. They already have Trent Brown at left tackle.
The Patriots could also use another young pass rusher in their defense. It appears they're going to fill their free safety need from within, but New England could use one more safety, as well.
Featured image via Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
