FOXBORO, Mass. — The New England Patriots didn’t just take Georgia teammates in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft, they selected college roommates.
The Patriots grabbed Georgia offensive lineman Isaiah Wynn 23rd overall and running back Sony Michel 31st overall. To learn more about the picks, let’s take a closer look at Wynn and Michel by the numbers.
74.75: Inches Wynn stands. He played left tackle in college, but his height has NFL draft analysts thinking he could move to guard in the NFL. Patriots director of player personnel Nick Caserio indicated New England at least would try him at tackle. Chicago Bears left tackle Charles Leno is considered undersized for the position, and he’s a full inch taller than Wynn.
33.325: Length, in inches, of Wynn’s arms. His arms are as long as Patriots third-round pick Antonio Garcia, an offensive tackle. Wynn is short, but he has long arms for his frame. For a left tackle, however, they’re still a bit short.
5: Total pressures Wynn allowed in 2017 as a senior with the Bulldogs, according to Pro Football Focus. He let up just 26 pressures on 2,609 snaps in his college career.
4.54: Seconds in the 40-yard dash for Michel. At 5-foot-11, 214 pounds, Michel ran his 10-yard split in a blazing 1.52 seconds and his short shuttle in 4.21 seconds. He didn’t time in the 3-cone, and he didn’t attempt a vertical leap or broad jump. He was pinpointed as a Patriots fit based on his available measurables.
54.8: Career touches per fumble for Michel. Michel fumbled much more in his college career than a typical Patriots running back draft pick. He fumbled 12 times in 658 college touches. That improved as a senior, when he fumbled just twice in 165 touches. James White, the last running back the Patriots drafted, fumbled every 377 touches in college. Stevan Ridley fumbled once every 107.7 touches, Laurence Maroney fumbled once every 101.4 touches and Shane Vereen fumbled once every 93.4 touches.
39: Missed tackles forced by Michel in 2017. He averaged 3.83 yards after contact. He broke 127 tackles on 592 college carries.
2: Pressures allowed by Michel as a senior. He spent 48 snaps as a pass blocker in 2017 and ranked 11th in Pro Football Focus’ pass-blocking efficiency metric.
78.8: Michel’s catch rate as a senior. He dropped just 6.7 percent of his targets.
16: Runs over 15 yards for Michel. Pro Football Focus notes Michel picked up 903 of his 1,227 yards in 2017 on big plays.
