The Patriots entered the final day of the 2022 NFL Draft with seven picks in four rounds. We’ll be tracking the picks live. Read on for news and analysis all Saturday long. The rest of the Patriots’ Day 3 picks are:
Sixth round: 183rd overall
Sixth round: 200th overall
Sixth round: 210th overall
Seventh round: 245th overall
But first, let’s meet the players the Patriots have already drafted:
No. 21: Cole Strange, OL, Chattanooga (Scouting report) (Four things to know)
No. 50: Tyquan Thornton, WR, Baylor (Scouting report) (Four things to know)
No. 85: Marcus Jones, CB, Houston (Scouting report) (Five things to know)
No. 121: Jack Jones, DB, Arizona State
No. 127: Pierre Strong, RB, South Dakota State
No. 137: Bailey Zappe, QB, Western Kentucky
Draft resources: Tracking every pick in the draft | Searchable prospect profile database | How Day 1 unfolded | How Day 2 unfolded | All the Patriots’ picks | Sign up for Point After, our Patriots newsletter
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Patriots draft a QB — 1:39 p.m.
The Patriots drafted Bailey Zappe, a quarterback out of Western Kentucky, with the No. 137 pick.
Scouting Jack Jones — 1:30 p.m.
We’ve got an overview, the strengths, and weaknesses. Check out a highlight reel, too.
What Pierre Strong brings to the Patriots — 1:20 p.m.
By Nicole Yang
Running back is one of New England’s strongest positions this season, but Strong fills a potential void in the near future. Damien Harris is expected to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the year, while 30-year-old James White is coming off a season-ending hip injury.
At 5-foot-11 and 205 pounds, Strong was extremely productive on the ground at SDSU. He became the fourth player in school history to record three 1,000-yard seasons. Over the course of his college career, he eclipsed 100 yards in 18 games, including two in which he topped 200. He also scored 40 touchdowns, including nine that covered at least 50 yards.
Strong was a team captain his final two seasons. He turns 24 in December.
Strong tied Rutgers’ Isiah Pacheco for the fastest 40-yard dash time (4.37 seconds) among running backs at the combine. He also posted a vertical of 36 inches and broad jump of 10 feet, 4 inches, both of which ranked within the top 8 at his position.
Patriots draft Pierre Strong at No. 127 — 1:14 p.m.
The Patriots’ running back room just got bigger.
New England drafted Pierre Strong, a running back out of South Dakota State, with the No. 127 pick.
Strong grew up in Little Rock, Arkansas, and was the Missouri Valley Conference freshman of the year in 2018 after scoring 11 touchdowns on 117 carries, along with 1,116 rushing yards.
He was named to the FCS All-American first team in his final season with the Jackrabbits, and led FCS with 1,686 rushing yards in 2021.
What Jack Jones can contribute to the Patriots — 1:10 p.m.
By Nicole Yang
Jones has high potential to contribute at a position of need for the Patriots, but he struggled to stay available for off-the-field reasons during college.
After a promising start to his college career at USC — he earned a starting role as a sophomore, leading the Trojans in interceptions — Jones could not play his junior season because he was ruled academically ineligible. The school later dismissed him after he broke into a closed restaurant and pleaded guilty to a second-degree misdemeanor charge of commercial burglary.
Jones then spent a year at Moorpark College, near his hometown of Long Beach, Calif., before transferring to Arizona State for his final two years of eligibility. He appeared in 12 games in 2019, starting two, and registered three interceptions, 13 pass breakups, and 43 tackles. In 2020, however, Jones played just one game because he and teammate Aashari Crosswell were suspended indefinitely for team-conduct reasons.
As a graduate student last season, Jones returned to play 11 games, logging three interceptions, six pass breakups, and 41 tackles. He forced an incompletion on 12.5 percent of the targets opposing quarterbacks threw his way.
Jones will turn 25 in December.
Patriots draft Jack Jones at No. 121 — 12:53 p.m.
The Patriots drafted Arizona State defensive back Jack Jones with their first pick in the fourth round.
Jones started his college career at USC before transferring to play for the Sun Devils.
Jones turns 25 in December.
Breaking down the top stories from an unexpectedly exciting NFL Draft — 12:05 p.m.
By Ben Volin
For a draft that didn’t have any elite quarterback prospects or must-have players in the top 10, the first round of the NFL Draft produced unexpected fireworks.
It included a record nine trades between picks 11-32. A record six receivers drafted within 11 picks. A record five defensive players from Georgia. And two major trades that rocked the NFL.
Let’s take a deeper look at the top stories from Thursday’s first round.
Matt Groh explains why the Patriots drafted Cole Strange — 11:55 a.m.
By Nicole Yang
Director of player personnel Matt Groh vehemently defended the Patriots’ decision to draft guard Cole Strange at 29th overall on Thursday, several slots earlier than most projections expected him to be taken.
“It’s not all so cut and dry with where you think a guy’s going to go,” Groh said late Friday night. “You have to look at what the rest of the board is telling you. If you value a player high enough, then you want that player to be a part of your team. That’s certainly how we feel about Cole. We’re really excited to have Cole aboard.”
Read more here.
Three positions of need on Day 3 — 11:45 a.m.
By Christopher Price
The Patriots head into the final day of the draft with seven picks in rounds four through seven. Here’s a quick look at some of the needs they could end up addressing with those selections:
Linebacker: The Patriots got faster and more versatile on Friday with the additions of the versatile Marcus Jones and Tyquan Thornton, but they could still use a jolt when it comes to their front seven. New England does have multiple linebackers like Cam McGrone and Raekwon McMillan who were on the shelf all last year, as well as newcomer Mack Wilson Sr., but they could still use some depth at a position where they were sorely lacking in 2021.
Cornerback: While Jones projects as a slot corner — and he should get a chance to compete for playing time right out of the gate — look for New England to continue to add at a serious position of need. (Especially given the personnel losses it has sustained over the last year-plus.) In a division that’s only gotten more pass-happy with the addition of players like Tyreek Hill and the return of Stefon Diggs, the Patriots could always use an extra layer of depth along the boundary.
Tackle: While the addition of Cole Strange theoretically provides some help at one guard spot, with Trent Brown on a two-year deal and Isaiah Wynn playing on his fifth-year option, New England is going to need more tackle help sooner rather than later. A late-round pick or two on a project could end up paying dividends down the road for the Patriots.
Nicole Yang can be reached at nicole.yang@globe.com. Katie McInerney can be reached at katie.mcinerney@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter at @k8tmac.
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