Patriots Made One Of Analyst’s Favorite Late-Round Draft Picks

The Patriots might have committed an act of thievery on Day 3 of the 2025 NFL Draft.

After focusing on offense with its first four selections last weekend, New England shifted to the defensive side of the football in Round 4. Mike Vrabel and company grabbed safety Craig Woodson with the fourth pick made last Saturday and then scooped up Joshua Farmer right before the draft moved to Round 5.

Farmer, a defensive tackle out of Florida State, was one of Field Yates’ favorite late-round selections this year.

“Farmer showed up only in flashes during his final season at Florida State, but those plays were strong enough to land him a third-round grade on my final board,” Yates wrote in an ESPN column published Tuesday. “He has strong, explosive rush skills; he just needs to be a more consistent player. Mike Vrabel leaned on a defensive line rotation in Tennessee and has shown an ability to maximize talent with his roster, so this is a good spot for Farmer to provide interior depth.”

The 22-year-old was baffled to see 16 defensive tackles hear their names called before him in Green Bay last week. Farmer already played with a chip on his shoulder, but he plans to use his draft slide as another source of motivation going into his rookie campaign in Foxboro, Mass.

That edge could be a common theme within New England’s locker room, as the rebuilding Patriots likely will enter the 2025 season without much attention from the national audience.