New England added three players on Friday.
The New England Patriots added three offensive players — RB TreVeyon Henderson, WR Kyle Williams, and C Jared Wilson — on Day 2 of the NFL Draft Friday night.
Here’s who the pick impacts for better, or worse, moving forward.
Winners
QB Drake Maye: After selecting Maye’s blindside protector in the first-round, New England continued to build up the infrastructure around their young QB in rounds two and three. That included adding a pair of explosive weapons in running back TreVeyon Henderson and wide receiver Kyle Williams, as well as more support up front in center Jared Wilson.
OC Josh McDaniels: In a similar fashion to Maye, McDaniels got two new weapons to work with and another potential starter along the offensive line. When it comes to his weapons, Henderson is tailored-made for McDaniels’ offense due to his explosiveness and ability to contribute as a pass catcher and in pass pro.
McDaniels will also be able to deploy Williams and numerous ways and design ways to get him the football, as the receiver was one of the top YAC players in college football.
Locker room: In a reoccurring theme, New England added three more high character individuals to the locker room as Mike Vrabel continues to establish his culture. Henderson was a captain on Ohio State last season while Wilson and Williams were seen as team leaders and given strong character reviews.
Losers
OL Garrett Bradbury: Signing a two-year, $9.5 million deal — with just $3.8 million guaranteed — in free agency, Bradbury was penciled in as the team’s starting center despite a down season last year. While the veteran will likely still have a chance to compete for the spot, Jared Wilson was a consensus top-two center in this class and has the ability to start out of the gate at the position. This should be a training camp competition.
WRs Ja’Lynn Polk and Javon Baker: The numbers are getting tight in New England’s wide receiver room. With the addition of Kyle Williams in the third-round the Patriots depth chart is now 10 deep — while a healthy Stefon Diggs, DeMario Douglas, Mack Hollins, and now Williams appear as locks. The final spot(s) will feature plenty of competition which (barring a trade) will include Kendrick Bourne, Kayshon Boutte, and the sophomore wideouts — likely putting at least one on the outside looking in.
Honorable mention
RBs Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson: While both Stevenson and Gibson remain under contract, adding Henderson, who Eliot Wolf noted the team views as a three-down back, in the second-round puts the long-term future of both backs in question. In the short-term, however, Henderson’s skillset complements the duo well especially as he’ll help take some of the burden off Stevenson’s workload.