The Patriots are tired of playing safe. They went wild this off-season. They walked into the post-Belichick era like a crew that’s been waiting to rip the caution tape down. Mike Vrabel back in the building, Stefon Diggs in the locker room, and the Patriots holding the 4th overall draft pick? Yeah, that storm’s coming. But the craziest part? The move that might flip the whole script isn’t even what folks expected. Not a QB. Not a corner. And not even a lineman. It’s a 4,769-yard sledgehammer-in-cleats who just hijacked the draft conversation.

Mike Vrabel didn’t come home to sip Gatorade and clap on the sidelines. Man pulled up with a blueprint, a sledgehammer, and zero patience. You thought this was a rebuild? Nah. This is a reload with laser sights. The Patriots grabbed Stefon Diggs off the market like they were snatching the last pair of Jordans at the mall—three years, $63.5 mil, no hesitation. Added Harold Landry for edge pressure. Brought in Milton Williams to wreck shop inside. Then slid Morgan Moses onto the O-line to keep the quarterback clean.

But now it’s draft time. The Pats got that No. 4 pick just sitting there like a loaded clip. And the streets have been whispering one name heavy—Ashton Jeanty. You know the one. Boise State’s problem child. Ran for 2,601 yards last season. Not career—last season. Finished with 4,769 total yards, 50 tuddies, and a chip on his shoulder that you could see from space.

Forget the 40-yard dash. Ashton Jeanty dropped a whole letter on NFL execs and straight up put his name in bold. He said, “If you pick me, it’s simple: I’m coming to your franchise to do what Saquon and the Eagles just did. I’m coming to win, big, soon.” He ain’t ducking no smoke. “It’s TACKLE football… you know what I’m sayin’? I’d draft the guy they can’t tackle.” That isn’t your average pre-draft quote. That’s a whole sermon. And Patriots fans heard every word loud and clear.

This isn’t just about Jeanty being a beast. It’s about Drake Maye. The Pats’ new golden boy. The second-year QB with raw talent, a cannon arm, and zero help last year. He was throwing to ghosts and praying for protection. Frank Ammirante hopped on X and spelled it out: “The Pats wanted to make a splash at WR in free agency but had to settle for Stefon Diggs. This team needs to surround Drake Maye with playmakers. Getting a difference-maker like Jeanty would be a good start.” And he ain’t lying.

The Patriots ranked 28th in yards per carry last season. Their run game was straight-up poverty. Rhamondre Stevenson has been coughing up the rock like he got a chest cold. Antonio Gibson? A gadget RB. You need a dog in that backfield. Jeanty ain’t a dog. He’s the whole kennel. Now, let’s talk facts….

Daniel Jeremiah pulled up on The Pat McAfee Show last month and kept it a buck. “If you’re just going pure ‘best available player,’ it’d be Jeanty,” he said. Daniel Jeremiah called him the No. 3 overall player on his board. Ahead of every offensive tackle. Ahead of WRs. Even ahead of freaks like Cam Ward. That’s not a running back—that’s a cheat code. And you best believe Mike Vrabel sees it too. Man had Derrick Henry in Tennessee. Jeanty? Got that same bulldozer DNA but with smoother hands and better wiggle. Put him next to Diggs and Drake Maye, and you’ve got a recipe for mayhem in the AFC East.

Is Ashton Jeanty a good fit for Pats over Will Campbell, Mason Graham, and Tetairoa McMillan?

Tell you why this pick makes sense; sure, Will Campbell’s been sitting on the Pats’ radar like a tattoo. Big, mean, 6’6”, 319 pounds. But those 32⅝-inch arms? That’s stubby by left tackle standards. That isn’t Vrabel’s kind of bet. Then there’s Mason Graham out of Michigan. Dominant D-lineman. Got them Rose Bowl MVP flowers. But after loading up with Milton Williams and Harold Landry? Might not be priority number one.

Tetairoa McMillan at WR could be an exception here. But with Stefon Diggs already in the fold, the need just ain’t as loud. Jeanty? He checks the boxes nobody else can. Physicality, explosion, attitude, and that “you can’t teach this” type of aura. Yeah we know the rules. Don’t take running backs in the top five. Heard it a thousand times. But rules ain’t gospel when the talent breaks the scale. Saquon Barkley went No. 2. Bijan Robinson went top ten. What happened? Teams shifted whole offenses around them.

Jeanty is that type. Not just plug-and-play. Plug-and-pop-off. He had 569 receiving yards in 2024, too. So you aren’t just getting a bruiser—you’re getting a three-down weapon who can torch linebackers in space. Best believe, if Travis Hunter and Abdul Carter are gone by the time the Pats pick, Jeanty is going to be sitting right there looking like the prize behind door number three.

Mike Vrabel and Eliot Wolf are trying to ditch the shadow of Belichick and build something fresh in New England on their own. You don’t do that with half-measures. You do it with heat. And Jeanty? He’s fire in cleats. He’s exactly what this offense has been begging for since the Brady era ended. If the Pats want real results in Year One of Vrabel, they better stop playing it safe and start playing for keeps. You brought in Diggs. You got your QB. Now give him the sledgehammer in the backfield. Go get Ashton Jeanty. If Mike Vrabel dials up Ashton Jeanty’s celly at 4, ya’ll can expect a winning season. Word.