7-round mock draft 5.0: Reading the tea leaves with one week to go

A look at who the Patriots might draft based on who they’ve met with.

The 2025 NFL Draft is right around the corner! The New England Patriots have conducted all of their pre-draft visits and are finalizing their boards internally now. In my final mock of the cycle, I looked at who the Patriots have been tied to the most throughout this process to build out a draft board.

One quick note: After each pick, I have also listed a prospect’s consensus rank according to the NFL Mock Draft Database, which helps put the selections into some context. So, with that said, let’s get right into it. These rankings are sure to move quite a bit in the next few weeks as media boards are readjusted with player testing and NFL intel.

Round 1

1-4: OT Will Campbell (LSU | No. 5): Will Campbell would not be my choice here if teams believe Mizzou’s Armand Membou can play on the left side, but all reporting indicates Campbell has fans in Foxboro. It is easy to see why.

Campbell started at left tackle at LSU as a true freshman and has been a quality player at the position for the last three years. He has great core strength and footwork with mobility to make blocks at the second level in the running game. Campbell is also a high-character guy and locker room leader.

The question around him all offseason has been about his arm length. NFL tackles typically have arms at least 33 inches long in order to handle the speed, power, and length of pass rushers at the pro level. Campbell’s arms were measured two times in the draft process: once at 32 5/8”, once at 33” exactly. Will that be enough to make him a tackle good enough to be worth taking in the top five? And, if the answer is no, could he be a guard good enough to be worth taking in the top five?

Reports indicate the Patriots are confident the answer to the first question is “yes”. Mike Vrabel has recent experience with Peter Skoronski, a first-round tackle with short arms who was converted to guard with limited success, that could give the team extra information on Campbell’s projection.

Round 2

2-38: TE Mason Taylor (LSU | No. 45): The Patriots start this mock with consecutive picks from LSU’s offense. Mason Taylor is the son of former Dolphins defensive end Jason Taylor, a friend of Mike Vrabel’s. The tight end met with the Patriots at both the Senior Bowl and NFL Combine.

In his rookie year, Drake Maye showed a proclivity towards throwing the ball to his tight ends. With both Hunter Henry and Austin Hooper turning 31 years old before the end of this season, drafting a high-upside tight end to develop alongside Maye could give the offense a pairing to build around for the future.

Like with Will Campbell, Taylor is a three-year standout who started as a true freshman, catching an overtime game-winning two-point conversion against Alabama that year. He is the most productive tight end in school history with over 129 catches for 1,308 yards and six touchdowns. While he isn’t a great blocker, combine that production as a receiver with his 8.87 Relative Athletic Score and you have a tight end who projects very well into a receiving role in the NFL.

Round 3

3-69: WR Jaylin Noel (Iowa State | No. 64): I took Noel at this pick in my last mock, and nothing the Patriots have done will make me deviate from that at this point. While Noel has been rising on boards, he should be the pick if he’s still on the board when the Patriots pick here. The Patriots brought him in for a top-30 visit after getting the chance to meet with him at the Senior Bowl, so clearly there is some degree of interest from the team. It is easy to see why.

Noel had nearly 1,200 receiving yards in 2024 with eight scores as a team captain, functioning as Iowa State’s deep threat from the slot while also winning Big 12 Co-Special Teams Player of the Year. With 4.39 speed, he was able to get behind defenses to create big plays, with eight catches of at least 50 yards over the past two seasons. And, despite his lack of size at 5’10”, he is fiercely competitive on contested catches with few drops.

Noel is the kind of deep threat who could give Drake Maye an option down the field while also creating the space for underneath options like Mason Taylor to navigate. While he may be limited to the slot in the pros, offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels should be able to find ways to get him the ball all over the field. His special teams ability gives him even more opportunities to impact the game.

3-77: DL Joshua Farmer (Florida State | No. 74): New England’s front seven struggled in 2024, unable to find success against the run or the pass for much of the season. Perhaps that’s why the team brought in Joshua Farmer for a top-30 visit.

As a 3-technique defensive tackle, Joshua Farmer picked up nine sacks and 15 tackles for loss over the past two seasons as a starter for Florida State. Despite inconsistent technique, he had the second most pressures for their defense in 2024 while rushing from the inside.

Farmer is a good athlete on the defensive front who can cause disruption against the pass. He is a work in progress as a run defender, but he could make an impact as a rotational pass rusher in year one with potential to develop into a starter by year three.

Round 4

4-105: RB R.J. Harvey (UCF | No. 115): Few running backs have been more productive over the past two seasons than UCF’s RJ Harvey. A six-year college product, Harvey redshirted at Virginia as a quarterback in 2019 before transferring to UCF and switching positions in 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic shortened his first year at the position, and a torn ACL ended his second before he could get on the field. By 2022, he was productive as the second back on the depth chart, and in 2023, he exploded for over 1,400 rushing yards and 16 rushing touchdowns. He added almost 1,600 rushing yards 22 rushing touchdowns this past season.

Harvey is an explosive runner who is able to navigate through the second level to create big plays. He’s quick, balanced, and dangerous in the open field as a runner with a natural feel for defenders around him. He isn’t the strongest running back, but as a quick change-of-pace back in the NFL, he should be very useful with potential to expand his role as he improves on passing downs.

Harvey was also picked as a team captain in 2024, and he met with the Patriots at both the Senior Bowl and the combine.

Round 5

5-144: S Jonas Sanker (Virginia | No. 125): The Patriots reportedly met with Virginia safety Jonas Sanker twice this cycle, once at the Senior Bowl and once at the combine. With Jabrill Peppers aging, Kyle Dugger’s play not meeting his contract, and no players behind them who currently look like starter-level players, adding at this position in the draft makes sense.

Sanker is a rock-solid safety prospect who has been one of Virginia’s top defensive players over the past two seasons. He earned First-Team All-ACC honors in each of those seasons, leading his team in tackles in both times. Sanker added team captain to his resume in 2024 as well.

The Virginia safety is at his best in the box where he can read the quarterback and deliver hits on opponents. Sanker has the speed to play deep, but he’ll need to get faster mentally to play there in the NFL.

5-171: C Drew Kendall (Boston College | No. 194): Patriots fans had their eyes on Boston College tackle Ozzy Trapilo, but they may not have noticed the team meeting twice with another Boston College offensive lineman as well.

Like Sanker, center Drew Kendall was First-Team All-ACC and a team captain in 2024 under head coach Bill O’Brien. That connection would make the mental transition to Josh McDaniels’s offense easier. His father also played at Boston College and in the NFL on the offensive line, facing off against Mike Vrabel at both levels.

Kendall is a bit undersized at center, but his agility makes him very useful as a puller and at the second level in the running game. It also helps him pick up line games in pass protection. He allowed just one sack and five pressures with two penalties in 2024.

Round 7

7-220: CB Bilhal Kone (Western Michigan | No. 211): The Patriots met with this Western Michigan corner three times, talking with him at the Senior Bowl, combine, and his pro day. He has an interesting journey to this year’s draft. Kone (pronounced cone-ay) played for two years at the JUCO level at Iowa Central Community College before moving up to the FCS level at Indiana State in 2022. He jumped to the FBS level the next season and made an immediate impact, defending nine passes to lead his team. He repeated that performance in 2024, finishing his career with 18 passes defended and a pair of interceptions at Western Michigan.

Kone is tall, fast, and nimble in coverage with a willingness to tackle. However, at just 190 pounds, he’s on the lighter side for an NFL corner which will be tested in the running game. He’ll also need to improve his eye discipline against the more complicated formations and play designs at the next level. Kone has upside as a developmental outside man corner who could provide depth for New England in year one and who could become a part of the defense across from Christian Gonzalez after Carlton Davis.

7-238: K Andres Borregales (Miami | No. 250): John Parker Romo is currently the only kicker on New England’s roster. While the team could opt to look to the UFL to find a veteran, they have certainly shown interest in the Miami product.

The Patriots got to meet with Andres Borregales at the Shrine bowl and again at his pro day. He made 18 of his 19 field goal attempts in 2024 and 74 of his 86 in his four-year career with the Hurricanes. He also made 183 of 184 extra points.