ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. sees the Patriots addressing one of their biggest needs in Round 1 of the 2023 NFL Draft.
Speaking Wednesday on a conference call with reporters, Kiper listed three players he could envision New England targeting at No. 14 overall: Oregon cornerback Christian Gonzalez, Tennessee offensive tackle Darnell Wright and Ohio State wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
“I think the receiver, the O-lineman, the corner — it could fall pretty well in the first round where they have three very good options if Gonzalez were there, Darnell Wright, the right tackle from Tennessee, was there or if they got lucky and Jaxon Smith-Njigba were there,” Kiper said, via MassLive.com. “What would they do? I don’t know, but that would be a good option to have.”
Kiper had the Patriots taking Gonzalez at No. 14 in his latest ESPN mock draft, but there’s no guarantee any of those three players will be available at that spot.
Many draft analysts view Gonzalez — arguably the best cornerback in this year’s draft — as a top-10 prospect. Smith-Njigba is widely considered this year’s top wideout. Most pre-draft rankings have Wright behind fellow tackles Peter Skoronski, Paris Johnson Jr. and Broderick Jones, but he seems to be rising up draft boards, with some prominent experts — including Kiper — now pegging him as a possible top-10 pick.
With two weeks to go before the draft kicks off April 27, offensive tackle, wide receiver and cornerback (in some order) are New England’s three most obvious roster needs.
“They certainly have a chance to (land an impact player) with Christian Gonzalez or Jaxon Smith-Njigba,” Kiper said. “If they go offensive line, there’s going to be somebody there who can be an attractive addition as a rookie coming in and starting. Gonzalez is the bigger corner, and in the AFC against all these elite quarterbacks, matching up in coverage is critical. Gonzalez would give them something in terms of length that they need. Jaxson Smith-Njigba I had going a little earlier, but they could certainly use him. He’s great in the slot. He can also play out wide.”
NESN.com’s mock drafts have pegged both Wright and Smith-Njigba as first-round targets for New England.
