Robert Kraft maps out why he thinks Patriots’ drafting issues are due to improve

"The truth is I’m very excited about this coming year, and I can’t wait for the games to begin.”

Robert Kraft believes that the Patriots' drafting woes are due to improve. (Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP Content Services for the NFL)

By Conor Ryan

April 1, 2025

2 minutes to read

Several factors have played into the Patriots’ descent from perennial contenders to cellar-dwellers in the AFC.

And while the free-agent exit of Tom Brady in March 2020 officially shut New England’s contention window, the Patriots’ decline started even before the legendary QB’s exit due to the team’s inability to draft elite talent to supplement deficient areas of the roster.

While names like N’Keal Harry, Duke Dawson, Isaiah Wynn, Cyrus Jones, and Dominique Easley continue to haunt Patriots fans as draft whiffs, the 2024 NFL Draft also didn’t necessarily move the needle for a New England roster short on high-end talent across the depth chart.

Despite Drake Maye’s emergence as a potential franchise QB, second-round pick Ja’Lynn Polk had a disastrous rookie season (12 catches, 87 yards, two touchdowns), third-round pick Caedan Wallace dealt with injury, and fourth-round wideout Javon Baker finished with just one catch in 2024.

New England should be able to address an area of need in the 2025 NFL Draft with the No. 4 pick, be it a two-way talent like Travis Hunter or an offensive tackle in Will Campbell.

But beyond the need to land a star player with that No. 4 pick, Eliot Wolf and the Patriots’ top brass also need to hit on other lineup regulars with the remainder of their haul of draft picks this month — a fact that team owner Robert Kraft reinforced at the NFL annual meetings in Florida on Tuesday.

“I hope that we’re never drafting No. 4 again in my lifetime,” Kraft said. “But today, it’s a great opportunity, and in the end, if you want to build a team that is going to win and sustain winning, you have to have good drafts.

“Unfortunately, over the last few years, we have not done a good job in that area. I think the organization has reshuffled how we do things, on priorities, and how we value it. And I hope we start to see the impact of that over the next couple of years.”

While the Patriots’ track record in the draft has been underwhelming for years now, Kraft believes that the presence of new head coach Mike Vrabel and his personnel should help New England identify the type of players that can claw the team out of the bottom of the AFC East.

“I’ve learned in every organization, it’s the culture that matters, and people have to be comfortable speaking up and saying I don’t agree. And sometimes you can be in a business environment where people are afraid to do that,” Kraft said. “I think the culture now is an open culture where people are free to express opinions. There are a lot of different points of view, and it’s healthy. In life, it’s important to know what you don’t know and then get the best people around you.

“I think having the infusion of the new people, and having a plan and being able to connect the dots and put it all together, I see it happening, and I’m probably too excited. But I am. The truth is I’m very excited about this coming year, and I can’t wait for the games to begin.”