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          NFL Nation

          In a draft with few top-flight WRs, would Pats consider it in first round?

          • Mike Reiss, ESPN Staff WriterApr 20, 2018, 07:52 PM
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              Mike Reiss is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the New England Patriots. Reiss has covered the Patriots since 1997 and joined ESPN in 2009. In 2019, he was named Massachusetts Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. You can follow Reiss on Twitter at @MikeReiss.
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          FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- What might the New England Patriots be looking for at the wide receiver position in the 2018 NFL draft?

          Need rating: Tenth

          Current personnel: Julian Edelman, Chris Hogan, Jordan Matthews, Phillip Dorsett, Malcolm Mitchell, Kenny Britt, Cordarrelle Patterson, Riley McCarron, Cody Hollister, Matthew Slater (special teams captain).

          What's missing? A healthy, high-upside prospect on a rookie contract to add another layer for the future with Hogan, Matthews, Dorsett, Britt and Patterson all having contracts that expire after the 2018 season. Of course, the need for that could always change with any of those players in the final year of their contracts agreeing to an extension at some point.

          2018 draft class primer: Not strong at the top, with the best value coming in the late-first-round-and-beyond area. Given the variety of receiver prospects in this year's draft, NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock had projected that teams selecting players at that position between the second and fourth round will likely have a notable contrast in their grades based on what skills they value most.

          Six who fit for the Patriots: Calvin Ridley (Alabama), Christian Kirk (Texas A&M), D.J. Moore (Maryland), Dante Pettis (Washington), Deontay Burnett (USC), Braxton Berrios (Miami).

          Key stat: Of the 13 receivers drafted in the first round from 2015-2017, only one, Amari Cooper (No. 4, 2015), has earned a Pro Bowl berth (per Mayock).

          My take: I had this group as a lower need before the team traded Brandin Cooks, and while I wouldn't move it too far up the list with Cooks now with the Rams, the deal does open up an intriguing question: If the Patriots have a chance at one of the top receivers late in the first round, should they pounce? For example, in our soon-to-be-released NFL Nation mock draft, the Patriots had their pick of any receiver at No. 23 and that type of scenario would fall into the "player value" conversation that Bill Belichick referenced last week. That wouldn't shock me. Part of the consideration for the team will naturally be what options are available at other positions of greater need. Regardless of how the Patriots proceed, their current setup is such that a rookie receiver likely wouldn't be pressed into immediate duty unless he was ready, giving him time to be groomed in a lower-pressure environment.