NFL Draft 2023: Stanford’s Michael Wilson becomes latest wide receiver prospect to visit Patriots

The New England Patriots are using the pre-draft process to take a close look at the wide receiver position. The latest player on their radar is Stanford’s Michael Wilson, who took a top-30 visit with the team per a report by Ryan Fowler of the Draft Network.

Wilson, 23, spent his entire five-year college career with the Cardinal and developed into a productive player for the team. Compared to other wideouts available in this year’s class, however, his numbers do not stand out: in 2022, for example, he had just 27 catches for 421 and four touchdowns.

Injuries played a major part in this. Wilson was limited to just six games last year, and 14 overall in the last three years.

Nonetheless, he entered draft month with some serious momentum on his side. Not only did he boost his stock by putting on a show at the Senior Bowl, he also followed it up with some solid performances at the Scouting Combine and the Stanford Pro Day.

Measuring at just under 6-foot-2 and 213 pounds, Wilson had a 37.5-inch vertical jump, 125-inch broad jump, 6.81-second three-cone drill, and 1.53-second 10-yard split; he also managed 23 reps on the bench. While he fell short of expectations in the 40-yard dash (4.58 seconds), he still posted a Relative Athletic Score of 9.55 out of 10 — eighth-best among this year’s wide receiver class.

Wilson, who might come off the board as early as Day 2, has also drawn the Patriots’ interest. A well-sized perimeter option, he would join a receiver corps currently headed by JuJu Smith-Schuster, DeVante Parker, Kendrick Bourne and Tyquan Thornton.

He is not the only wideout on New England’s radar, though. In fact, he is the fifth reported receiver to take a top-30 visit with the club, joining Jonathan Mingo (Ole Miss), Jordan Addison (USC), T.J. Luther (Gardner-Webb) and Zay Flowers (Boston College).

In total, the Patriots have either brought in or are planning to bring in 12 known draft prospects for visits so far.