2025 NFL mock draft roundup: Who experts have Patriots selecting ahead of combine
A few mock drafts have the Patriots addressing their need for an offensive tackle while a few others have them focusing on defensive line help.
One of the next big steps in the NFL Draft process will take place this week.
The NFL Scouting Combine begins in Indianapolis this week, with workouts running from Thursday to Sunday. The event will give the Patriots the opportunity to interview and evaluate the top few hundred prospects in the 2025 NFL Draft.
As the combine is set to get underway, here is who some of the top draft experts have the Patriots selecting with the four overall pick.
NFL Media’s Daniel Jeremiah: LSU OT Will Campbell
Just like he did in his first mock draft, NFL Network’s top draft guru has the Patriots selecting Campbell.
“There are higher-rated players available here on my board, but the Pats need to upgrade their offensive line in a big way,” Jeremiah wrote.
Campbell is ranked eighth on Jeremiah’s big board, so it isn’t a massive reach for the Patriots to select him with the fourth overall pick. There’s been some speculation that Campbell’s arm size will cause him to play guard instead of tackle in the NFL. However, Jeremiah doesn’t believe that will be the case for Campbell, writing that he doesn’t see a major issue there.
There’ll be some more clarity on Campbell’s measurable this week. What is clear, though, is that Campbell produced at a high level in college. A three-year starter at left tackle, he allowed just four sacks and 45 pressures over his college career, per Pro Football Focus. He was a consensus All-American as a result for the 2024 season.
CBS Sports’ Ryan Wilson: LSU OT Will Campbell
Wilson also has the Patriots selecting Campbell with the fourth overall pick. But he has them passing on Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carer and Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter, arguably the two best prospects in the draft, to help fill a need.
“Campbell has been my OT2 throughout and while he’s not as athletic as Kelvin Banks Jr., he’s been incredibly consistent throughout his LSU career,” Wilson wrote. “He had his struggles with Jared Verse in ’23 (who didn’t), and the formidable South Carolina front four gave him trouble at times in the fall, but good luck finding a left tackle more reliable play in and play out than Campbell.”
As Campbell is widely regarded as the best offensive tackle prospect in the 2025 NFL Draft, Texas’ Banks seems to be the consensus second-best tackle. Banks won the Outloand Trophy and was a unanimous All-American in 2024, allowing just one sack.
ESPN’s Field Yates: LSU OT Will Campbell
Yates is also a part of the crew of experts who has the Patriots selecting Campbell in their latest mock before the combine. Similar to Jeremiah and Wilson, Yates has Campbell going to the Patriots because of their massive need at left tackle.
“There is a case for taking the best player available, and per my own board, that would be Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham,” Yates wrote. “Not a bad fit. But offensive tackle is a massive need for the Patriots, and Campbell is my highest-graded player at the position in this class (No. 6 overall). He has excellent footwork to mirror opposing pass rushers screaming off the edge and the body control to absorb power and then reset his feet.”
Left tackle has really been a problem for the Patriots over the last few seasons. After the team let Trent Brown walk in free agency, Vederian Lowe became New England’s primary left tackle and allowed five sacks plus 33 pressures over 14 games, per PFF.
But left tackle isn’t the only posotion on the offensive line where the Patriots have struggled; they could use help across the board. They ranked 31st in pass block win rate and gave up the league’s fifth-most sacks (52), struggling to keep Drake Maye protected across the board.
CBS Sports’ Chris Trapasso: Colorado WR/CB Travis Hunter
Trapasso broke the mold of experts having the Patriots select Campbell in their mock drafts. Instead, he has them nabbing Hunter with the fourth overall pick.
“While Will Campbell would be sensible as a building block — pun intended — for Drake Maye, the Patriots feel better about landing suitable offensive linemen later in the draft and can’t pass on the supremely gifted Hunter here. They also need more dynamic playmakers on the roster,” Trapasso wrote.
Hunter could fill two needs for the Patriots. He was arguably the top wide receiver and cornerback in the nation this past season, helping him win the Heisman. Offensively, he recorded 96 receptions for 1,258 yards and 15 touchdowns, adding a score on the ground. Defensively, Hunter recorded 35 total tackles, four interceptions, 11 passes defended, and a forced fumble. He also gave up 23 receptions on 41 targets for just 222 yards and a touchdown, per PFF.
But arguably the most astonishing thing about Hunter’s season was amount he played. He logged over 1,500 unofficial snaps in 2024, playing wide receiver and corner on a full-time basis.
It’s unlikely Hunter will continue to play both positions in the NFL, but he’s still expected to be a two-way player in some capacity. No matter which position Hunter ends up playing, the Patriots could certainly use his talent.
ESPN’s Matt Miller: Michigan DT Mason Graham (Round 1); Ohio State EDGE Jack Sawyer (Round 2)
Miller has the Patriots bulking up along the defensive line in a major way. He has them selecing Graham with the fourth overall pick, citing the impact defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons had during Mike Vrabel‘s time as the Titans’ head coach for the motivation of the pick.
“Graham is a fiery, active interior pass rusher with great technique and the burst needed to be a difference-maker at the 3-technique,” Miller wrote. “Graham, third-year defensive end Keion White and standout interior lineman Christian Barmore (currently out because of blood clots) would be a nice starting point for Vrabel and his new defense.”
Graham was a unanimous All-American in 2024, recording 24 total tackles, 3.5 sacks, 34 pressuers, and 30 run stops.
As for Sawyer, Miller mentioned the poor play from the Patriots’ defensive front as the reason why they would double down on defensive linemen with their first two pick in the draft. Sawyer had 59 total tackles, nine sacks, three forced fumbles, an interception, and 64 pressures, and graded out as one of PFF’s top pass rushers in 2024.
The Patriots, meanwhile, were last in sacks (28) in 2024, as no player had more than five sacks.
NBC Sports Boston’s Phil Perry: Georgia EDGE Jalon Walker (Round 1); Minnesota OT Aireontay Ersery (Round 2); Texas DT Alfred Collins (Round 2)
Perry has the Patriots trading down from the No. 4 pick in his mock draft, having them swap first-round picks with the Raiders, who have the No. 6 overall pick. As a result, New England picks up the 36th overall pick in teh 2025 NFL Draft.
Similar to Miller’s reasoning for the Patriots picking Graham and Sawyer, Perry has them selecing Walker to help liven up their defensive line.
“In this scenario, the new Patriots regime puts its stamp on its first draft by taking a player who brings a familiar trait to the table for Mike Vrabel: versatility,” Perry wrote. “Walker doesn’t have the size that made Vrabel a moveable front-seven chess piece for Bill Belichick, but he has the ability to be a hybrid player in the new-look Patriots defense.”
Walker emerged as the latest great edge rusher from Georgia this past season, recording 61 total tackles, 6.5 sacks, and 34 pressures to be named a first-team All-American in 2024.
With the pick the Patriots snagged in the trade with the Raiders, Perry has them selecting much-needed offensive line help in Ersery. The Minnesota product has been one of the top offensive tackles in the nation over the last couple of years, winning Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year in 2024 after he allowed just one sack and 12 pressurers in 2024.
With the Patriots’ own second-round pick, Perry has them taking Collins, who he called “one of the most physically-gifted” defensive tackles in the draft. Collins didn’t put up the biggest pass rushing numbers at Texas this past season, recording one sack and 18 pressures. But he had 55 total tackles, showing upside as a run stopper.
NFL Media’s Chad Reuter: Penn State EDGE Abdul Carter
In one of the few mock drafts that has Carter slipping past the No. 3 pick, Reuter has the Patriots puncing on the opportunity to select the star pass rusher.
“The Patriots land a difference-maker with the No. 4 pick,” Reuter wrote. “Carter’s speed and relentless nature immediately improve one of the league’s worst pass rushes, while his experience as both a hand-down and off-ball defender gives new coach Mike Vrabel flexibility up front.”
Carter has been ranked as the top overall prospect in the 2025 draft by many evaluators. It’s not hard to swee why. The 6-foot-3, 259-pound showed tremendous athleticism during his time at Penn State, recording 68 total tackles, 12 sacks, two forced fumbles, 66 pressuers, and 43 run stops this past season.
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