Patriots Address Key Defensive Need In Latest ESPN Mock Draft

Could the New England Patriots use their first-round draft pick to patch their biggest defensive hole? That’s the path ESPN’s Todd McShay has them taking.

In McShay’s latest mock draft, published Wednesday morning, the Patriots grab Penn State cornerback Joey Porter Jr. with the 14th overall selection. Here was his rationale:

With Jonathan Jones now a free agent, cornerback seems like a very possible Day 1 target for the Pats — especially if none have come off the board by the time they pick. Porter had only one career interception at Penn State (in 2021), but he broke up 11 passes last season. He has length and plays a physical brand of football, rerouting receivers off the line of scrimmage and outmuscling them on 50-50 balls despite weighing just 198 pounds.

Porter is the son of former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Joey Porter — who, it’s worth noting, has harshly criticized the Patriots in the past — and can offer something New England’s cornerback group lacked last season: height and length.

At 6-foot-2 with what The Ringer draft analyst Danny Kelly called “go-go gadget arms,” he’s much taller and longer than impending free agents Jonathan Jones and Myles Bryant and 2022 rookies Jack Jones and Marcus Jones. He also has a few inches on 6-foot, 191-pound Jalen Mills, who missed the final six games with a groin injury.

Beyond his measurables, Porter possesses the type of physicality New England often looks for in its corners and is considered a sound tackler. Kelly wrote in The Ringer’s draft guide that he “plays about how you’d expect the son of a legendary Steelers pass-rusher to play, using his size and length to outmuscle opposing receivers, get his hands on them, and disrupt timing and routes.”

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Overall, the Patriots’ cornerbacks performed well this season despite lacking the Pro Bowl-caliber No. 1 they’ve traditionally boasted. But they struggled against elite wide receivers and were depleted by injuries, with Mills and both rookie Joneses all missing games down the stretch.

Jack Jones looked at times like a player who could step into Jonathan Jones’ starting spot if the latter leaves in free agency, but his standing on the team now is complicated after he received a rare team-imposed suspension late in the season. Marcus Jones has top slot potential along with his prodigious return-game talents, but his 5-foot-8 frame limits his effectiveness as a perimeter corner.

The Patriots have drafted just one Round 1 cornerback during the Bill Belichick era: Devin McCourty (2010), who later moved to safety.

The top three prospects at the Patriots’ biggest position of need (offensive tackles Peter Skoronski of Northwestern, Paris Johnson of Ohio State and Broderick Jones of Georgia) all were off the board by No. 14 in McShay’s projection.

The Patriots will get a closer look at hundreds of the top draft prospects when the NFL Scouting Combine kicks off later this month in Indianapolis. The 2023 NFL Draft is set to begin Thursday, April 28.