The Patriots decided to reshape their safety room this offseason, walking away from a culture-setter in Jaylinn Hawkins for someone who helped define Mike Vrabel’s Titans teams in Kevin Byard. That there is a five-year age difference between the two certainly should raise an eyebrow or two, but Byard is so beloved by all the Tennessee castoffs now situated in Foxborough that, mostly, no one has blinked.
As I wrote at the time of the signing, Byard shouldn’t be as prone to the coverage busts that popped up with Hawkins from time to time. But he also doesn’t run as well, and thrived mostly as a deep safety for the Bears this past season. The Pats have said they like having interchangeable safeties, but perhaps the way Craig Woodson blossomed late in the year, playing more in the box, has changed their thinking, at least for this year.
Don’t get me wrong. It’s not as if Byard can’t play in the box. He still has a nose for the ball (93 tackles last year), but how much do you want to subject his soon-to-be 33-year-old body (his birthday is in August) to pulling guards, or a bigger-bodied tight end? I’d let Woodson handle that more often than not. We’ll see how Zak Kuhr decides to approach that.
Behind those two, there’s former UDFA Dell Pettus, who they like, recent signee Mike Brown, and, of course, a non-safety safety in Brenden Schooler. Practice-squader John Saunders Jr. also remains on the 90-man roster. So, with Byard's age and perhaps a lack of a suitable long-term solution alongside Woodson, safety is a need. Would Vrabel and company want one on day one? Feels unlikely. After that, the door is open.
TIER ONE: Caleb Downs, OSU (6', 206 lbs); Dillon Thieneman, Oregon (6', 201 lbs); Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, Toledo (6'3.5", 201 lbs)
Downs belongs in a tier of his own, but for my own well-being, I’m coupling this trio. I don’t expect any to end up in NE, so I won’t be spending a ton of time explaining them.
The argument could easily be made that Downs has been the best safety in college football since the day he walked in the door at Alabama. He starred for them, then transferred to Ohio State, and nothing changed except for his NIL paycheck. Positional value - and a knee that was red-flagged for, reportedly, a degenerative ACL - probably has him slipping a little. But when I write that, I’m talking to like 10 overall. Downs is an absolute stud. Tackles well. Covers ground. Covers receivers. Football IQ off the charts. He will start immediately and make an impact.
Thieneman seemed like a late first-rounder, then backed up his terrific season with the Ducks with an eye-popping combine performance. Now he seems to be unlikely to get out of the top 20. He runs well, hits like a truck, and while he’s not Downs, he should start right away. A very instinctive player, always in the middle of everything. To watch Thieneman trigger on a play happening in front of him is a sight to behold.
McNeil-Warren is intriguing. Obviously, Toledo isn’t Alabama or Oregon, but every time he got the opportunity to show out against higher competition, he did. Quite frankly, if you don’t like his tape, we can’t be friends. McNeil-Warren forced eight fumbles over the course of his career, and attacks the ball like few I’ve ever seen. There’s a little stiffness that’s evident when he changes directions, and so man coverage isn’t his best suit, but otherwise, this is a solid player. Stick him closer to the line of scrimmage and let him cook. Should land somewhere between 24 and 32 in round one.
(I just wrote about those 3 more than I told myself I would. Fun group)
TIER TWO: Treydan Stukes, Arizona (6’1”, 190); A.J. Haulcy, LSU (6'.215 lbs)
For the next 7 or 8 players, there is no consensus—choosing between them feels like picking your favorite bubble gum: Big Red, Fruit Stripe, Juicy Fruit, Bubbalicious. They're all represented.
I think Haulcy is a