3 Most Likely Patriots Draft Targets After Losing Out on First Overall Pick
By Ryan Markham
After Joe Milton led the way for New England on Sunday to defeat the Bills 23-16, the Patriots moved down 3 spots to the now having the 4th pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. A 4-13 season could get you the 1st pick in many other years, but the Titans, Browns and Giants all ended up with 3-14 records, and the Pats will have to settle for 4th.
With needs up and down the roster (and now a head coaching vacancy), there are many ways that Eliot Wolf and company could go with the 4th selection. The offense ranked bottom-3 in points per game and last in yards per game. The defense ranked 22nd in yards allowed per game, total points allowed and points allowed per game. The Patriots gave away the ball 23 times, the10th most in the league, and only had 12 takeaways, the 3rd fewest in the league. That is not a good recipe for winning football games, and the Patriots had looked like a 4-win team all season, the stats don't lie.
Aside from finding a new HC, the draft should be the first thing on the Patriots minds. Here are the 3 most realistic draft targets that the Patriots are going to be looking to select with the 4th pick.
1. Will Campbell, Offensive Tackle, LSU
A glaring issue for the Patriots this past season was their offensive line, which consisted of unproven or below average players that had trouble protecting rookie quarterback Drake Maye. A good NFL offense starts with a solid group up front that can both run and pass block on any down, in any situation.
Campbell stands 6-foot-6 and weighs 324 pounds. He would start from day one and improve the offensive line immediately, providing Maye with security for years to come. Campbell is regarded as the best OL in this year's class, and playing at LSU had him blocking some premier pass rushers in the SEC. Campbell has started for the Tigers since his freshman year in 2022 and is known to be an excellent run blocker. One insane stat from collegefootballnetwork.com is that Campbell has allowed just 4 sacks over 1,500+ pass blocking snaps in his career at LSU.
Campbell is everything the Patriots have been looking for and more, and he would provide some stability to an O-Line room that has been bad, to put it lightly. If the Patriots are looking to address this position in the draft, Campbell should be at the top of their list, and he would be a massive upgrade over Vederian Lowe and Demontrey Jacobs. Given his stature and experience at tackle, that's where he would slot in for the Patriots.
It would be hard for Drake Maye and this Patriots team to progress without addressing their offensive line, as they still have an abundance of money they can spend in free agency. Solidifying the trenches should be a priority for Eliot Wolf this off-season, and what better way to do this than adding some top-end talent to a position that clearly needs it? Campbell just turned 21 years of age and will be surely hearing his name early in the 1st round in April, with the hope that it's to New England.