Patriots draft profile: Luther Burden III is electric with the ball in his hands

Burden is one of the top wide receivers in this year’s draft.

The New England Patriots were quite active in the early parts of free agency, but there is still plenty of room for improvement at the wide receiver position. Even after signing Mack Hollins to a two-year deal, the group stands to benefit from an infusion of young, high-upside talent. In order to find that, turning to the draft makes the most sense.

One of the targets to keep an eye on in that regard is Missouri’s Luther Burden III, who projects as a fringe first-round prospect. Let’s take a closer look at him.

Hard facts

Name: Luther Burden III

Position: Wide receiver

School: Missouri

Opening day age: 21 (12/12/2003)

Measurements: 6’0”, 206 lbs, 76 1/2” wingspan, 31 1/4” arm length, 8 1/2” hand size, 4.41s 40-yard dash, N/A Relative Athletic Score

Experience

Career statistics: 38 games (33 starts) | 1,732 offensive snaps, 133 special teams snaps | 276 targets, 193 catches (69.9%), 2,283 receiving yards, 21 TDs | 32 carries, 210 rushing yards (6.6 yards/carry), 4 TDs | 24 punt returns, 265 yards (11.0 yards/return), 1 TD | 1 kickoff return, 0 yards | 1 fumble, 3 muffed punts

Accolades: First-team All-ACC (2023, 2024), Second-team All-American (2023)

A five-star recruit coming out of East St. Louis Senior High School, Burden originally committed to Oklahoma before eventually joining Missouri. He quickly burst onto the scene as a true freshman, appearing in all 13 games with 10 starts and finishing in the team’s top three in receptions (46), yards (398) and touchdowns (6).

Burden followed it up with the statistically best season of his career. As a sophomore, he was on the receiving end of 86 passes that he took for 1,209 yards and 9 scores. The Tigers’ top receiver earned his first All-ACC recognition that season, and the arrow was definitively pointing up. However, his production dipped across the board — 61 catches, 676 yards, 6, TDs — in what was increasingly becoming a run-centric offense handicapped by insufficient quarterback play.

Despite seemingly heading in the wrong direction, Burden decided to forgo his final year of eligibility to declare for the draft following his junior campaign. He was invited to the Scouting Combine.

Draft profile

Expected round: 1-2 | Consensus big board: No. 32 | Patriots meeting: N/A

Strengths: Give the ball to Luther Burden and positive things will happen. The 21-year-old is as good a player as any in this draft maximizing his opportunities with the football in his hands, as evidenced by his top-of-the-class 30 missed tackles forced in 2024 and his 6.1-yard average after the catch (relative to an overall 11.1 yards/reception number). He combines body control and short-area quickness with the acceleration to either shake off or run away from would-be tacklers.

While he is a standout after the catch, he is no less impressive before it. He has shown an ability to stack cornerbacks and run a refined route tree out of various splits and alignments, and also has the hand-eye coordinator to track balls very well; over-the-shoulder passes do not pose a problem for him. While not a classic deep threat, he also has the tools to get separation and stress defenses vertically.

In addition, Burden might be one of the best and most willing blockers the wide receiver class has to offer this year. His work in the running game and on screen plays will be positively noted by scouts.

Weaknesses: Questions about his decline in production from 2023 to 2024 will follow Burden throughout the draft process, as will the fact that most of his production has come in the short and underneath parts of the field. There are also more tangible weaknesses about his game, though, like his relatively small frame or the fact that he is not one of the high-end athletes at the wide receiver position.

There also is untapped potential in Burden. At times, he appeared to let in-game frustration get the best of him — he had to end more than one drive on the bench as a result — and sometimes appeared to be trying too much, trying to make a play where the was none to be made. He also needs to get better at applying his physicality as a blocker to his work as a receiver; disengaging quickly when press-man cornerbacks get their hands on him is a definitive area where he can and needs to get better to survive at the next level.

Patriots preview

What would be his role? Burden projects as a starter-level slot or Z-receiver from early on in his rookie season. In addition to his work as a volume target inside and in the short and intermediate parts of the field , he also offers the potential to see designed touches on either screen plays, jet sweeps or end arounds. Given his willingness as a blocker, he projects as an every-down player on offense.

What is his growth potential? Burden brings a high floor to the NFL, but his success and development will depend on his ability to address certain shortcomings in his game. His ability to succeed versus press in particular will decide whether he can reach what looks like Pro Bowl potential.

Does he have positional versatility? While better suited to line up off the line either in the slot or as a Z, Burden offers a diverse skillset. Finding ways to get the ball into his hands will be a fun exercise for his NFL offense, whether that be in a traditional receiver alignment, in the backfield, or on motion plays or other designed touches.

Why the Patriots? Even with Drake Maye under center, the Patriots’ passing game lacked explosivity in 2024. Burden would help address this, and give the young quarterback a go-to receiver to grow alongside him. His skillset and willingness to get his hands dirty also projects to fit very well in with how Josh McDaniels designs and calls his offense; Burden becoming a Julian Edelman-type operator is not an entirely unrealistic outlook.

Why not the Patriots? The biggest uncertainty within the Patriots’ receiver room at the moment is who will line up outside the numbers and stress defenses deep — two issues Burden is not particularly well-suited to address, at least early on in his career. Instead, he would join a slot/Z group that already features the likes of DeMario Douglas, Kendrick Bourne and Ja’Lynn Polk.

One-sentence verdict: Burden is a potential go-to guy in the Patriots’ offense, who would make sense in the late first or early second round.

What do you think about Luther Burden III as a potential Patriots target? Would he make sense for the Patriots? Should they trade up if he falls into their range? Please head down to the comment section to share your thoughts.