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The New England Patriots are about to undergo a ton of changes this offseason. New England already replaced Jerod Mayo with Mike Vrabel. Now they are not set up well to make wholesale changes to their roster that could have a huge impact during the 2025 season.
New England enters the offseason with roughly $128 million in cap space to spend. That gives them the most available cap space in the NFL by a considerable margin. They will enter free agency in a great position to outmaneuver other NFL teams and drive up prices on several players at once. The Patriots could certainly use that to their advantage to bring in multiple difference makers in one offseason.
This is great news for a team that has needs at almost every position on the roster. In fact, quarterback may be the only position New England has figured out thanks to Drake Maye.
The Patriots also have nine picks in the 2025 NFL Draft, including four selections in the top 100 selections. Those picks include the fourth overall pick, which should allow New England to grab one of the best non-QB prospects in this year’s draft.
But with so many options to choose from, which players will the Patriots end up pursuing in the 2025 NFL Draft?
Below we will explore who the Patriots could select during the 2025 NFL Draft according to the PFN mock draft simulator.
The Patriots start the 2025 NFL Draft out with a chalk pick. Even though it is not much of a surprise, Patriots fans will love the selection.
New England sticks at the fourth overall pick and selects Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter.
Many NFL draft analysts consider Carter to be a generational prospect. That term gets thrown around too loosely these days, but Carter does seem to match the description. In fact, NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein gave Carter a “Pro Bowl talent” prospect grade. This is honor that is rarely awarded to players without having played a snap in the league.
Carter projects as an incredibly productive 3-4 edge rushing linebacker, one of the biggest needs the Patriots need to fill. He is a gifted athlete with a strong build and plenty of urgency and quickness to his game.
The Patriots have a great shot at actually drafting Carter in real life. The Titans, Giants, and Browns are the only teams that pick before the Patriots in the 2025 NFL Draft. They all arguably have a big need at quarterback, which means Shedeur Sanders and Cam Ward are likely to be picked ahead of New England.
If Heisman-winner Travis Hunter is selected before Carter, then he should land in New England’s lap.
Patriots fans would be thrilled if that happens in April.
The Patriots start the second round by selecting tackle Grey Zabel from NDSU with the...
