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Rating the New England Patriots Draft: #113 Aaron Hernandez

113. Aaron Hernandez, TE/HB Florida

Players left: TE Dennis Pitta, OLB Thaddeus Gibson, DE/DT Al Woods, LB Eric Norwood

Pros:

  • Versatility as both a tight end and, in some packages, a HB.
  • Gives us a strong HB to help fight for the short yardage.
  • High upside as a top flight receiving tight end.
  • Presents great value as a 2nd round player in the 4th round.

Cons:

  • Not the best in-line blocker.
  • Probably won't become a good in-line blocker due to his size.

Summary: Hernandez will be the Robin to Gronkowski's Batman. Hernandez provides Brady with a great downfield target who's hard to tackle and has wide receiver speed. While he won't be a great blocker, he is a great option in two tight end sets (that we might be seeing more of).

Final Player Grade: B+. How will the Patriots start using tight ends after not using them for a couple years? It remains to be seen if the Patriots are actually going to maximize his talents. However, he has the potential to be a game changing TE.

Final Draft Pick Grade: A-. Grabbed a 2nd round player in the 4th round. Bump up his draft pick grade due to the great value of the pick. However, I won't give him a full A because teams passed on him for a reason.