Patriots reportedly hosting OTs, TE for pre-draft visits
New England is seemingly focused on bringing offensive draft prospects to Foxborough for visits ahead of the draft.
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With roughly three weeks left until the 2024 NFL draft, the Patriots are reportedly hosting several offensive position players at Gillette Stadium for pre-draft visits.
On top of reportedly bringing in top quarterbacks Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye for Top 30 tours, New England is hosting offensive tackles Blake Fisher (Notre Dame) and Caedan Wallace (Penn State), plus tight end Jared Wiley (TCU).
Fisher, 21, visited the Patriots on Friday, according to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport. Maye also reportedly met with New England on the same day.
The 6-foot-6-inch, 310-pound Fisher allowed just three sacks through 12 starts in 2023. He played every snap at right tackle during his three-year Fighting Irish career.
On a related note, the Patriots signed offensive lineman Michael Onwenu to a three-year, $57 million contract extension at the start of free agency last month. If New England were to draft Fisher, he presumably would not see much action at right tackle as the Patriots reportedly intend to start Onwenu at the position moving forward, per Rapoport.
Fisher experienced a serious knee injury at the beginning of the 2021 season. Nevertheless, he healed up and became a full-time starter on a contending Notre Dame team.
As for Wallace, whose visit with New England was reported by The Draft Network, the Penn State product played every game at right tackle, similarly to Fisher.
Wallace, 23, started 40 games for the Nittany Lions over his four-year collegiate career. The 6-foot-5-inch tall, 328-pound tackle allowed only one sack in 13 games during his 2023 senior year.
Wallace dealt with undisclosed injuries in 2022 that kept him out of five games, but he played in every game for the Nittany Lions in 2021 and 2023.
Rounding out the latest reported Patriots’ visitors is Wiley, according to Bleacher Report’s Ryan Fowler. The tight end, 23, spent the final two years of his college career with TCU.
The 6-foot-6-inch tall, 249-pound player was the Horned Frogs’ No. 1 tight end in 2023, logging 520 yards and scoring eight touchdowns on 47 receptions. Wiley was also a team captain last year.
He ran a 4.62 40-yeard dash at this year’s Combine and competed at the Senior Bowl. One point of emphasis from draft analysts is that Wiley needs to improve his blocking strength.
Regardless of whether or not the Patriots end up drafting any of these players, it is clear that the team is putting an emphasis on meeting with offensive prospects.
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