The Patriots didn’t contact Keion White before the draft. They made him a surprise pick anyway.
"I want to work. I want to win. I feel like that’s what the Patriots offer and that’s where we meet in the middle at"
Keion White was surprised that the Patriots selected him with the No. 46 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft because he didn’t have any predraft contact with the organization.
Still, the 6-foot-5, 285-pound edge-rusher thinks he’ll fit right in with New England.
“I’m a very big business person,” White said. “I’m not too big into the glitz and glamour of football. I want to work. I want to win. I feel like that’s what the Patriots offer and that’s where we meet in the middle at.”
White was one of 17 players invited to watch the first round of the draft in Kansas City. His name wasn’t called on Day 1, but he didn’t let that ruin his experience.
“The draft was fine for me. I enjoyed my time there. I got to experience going to the NFL draft,” White said. “I’ll never get to experience that ever again and there were only 17 guys in the world that got to experience the 2023 NFL Draft, so you take the moment. No matter where I got picked, I still got picked and I still have to put work in after this point. It was a good experience and now it’s time to get to work.”
White said having to fly home from Kansas City without hearing his name called didn’t add any extra motivation. His motto going into the draft was “the job’s not finished.”
No matter where he got picked, the draft is just the beginning and there’s plenty of work that must be put in after draft night, he said. Especially for the explosive athlete who is still learning how to play defensive end after beginning his college career as a tight end.
“There’s still so much stuff that I have to learn technique-wise, game-wise, everything,” White said. “The transition was for the best. It got me to this point where I am now. But, I’m still working, still improving because I feel like we all are. Whether you’re an all-pro or a rookie we’re improving day by day. If you’re not improving, you’re getting worse.”
A video clip from the draft’s TV broadcast circulated on social media. In it, White didn’t appear too thrilled to be taken by New England.
But, he assured reporters that he is happy to be joining the Patriots.
“They do a really good job developing their players,” White said. “Being a part of that, and knowing that I have an incredible amount of things I can improve on and learn from the game of football, I feel like there was no better situation that I could go into.”
White said he typically doesn’t show too much excitement on his face, regardless of the situation.
“I don’t know if y’all saw on TV but I’m a pretty chill person,” White said. “I’m not very explosive on excitement in any form. So I’ve just kind of been taking it in. I haven’t even talked to my family, to be honest. I’m just kind of taking it all in and handling it myself.”
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