Instant analysis from the Patriots trade down with the Chiefs for a pair of seventh round picks

The New England Patriots traded away the 198th overall pick to the Kansas City Chiefs for a pair of seventh rounders- 233rd and 243rd overall. The Patriots added a pair of linebackers today in Ja’Whaun Bentley and Christian Sam and it seems like the team is intent on adding more picks to claim preferred free agents.

Remember that head coach Bill Belichick treats sixth and seventh round picks as opportunities to get an early claim on preferred free agents, and that there’s no difference in likelihood of NFL success in a sixth or a seventh round pick. So the Patriots just turned one lottery ticket into two.

New England now has the 210th, 219th, 233rd, and 243rd picks in the draft. Look for them to add a bunch of low-risk, high-upside players to close out the draft.