When all was said and done, and the dust had settled on the 2021 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots welcomed eight new players to the fold. While they all still remain unsigned as of Thursday afternoon, the rookie wage scale that was introduced by the league in 2011 creates a pretty-straight forward situation when speaking about their contracts and salary cap impact.
While some negotiation still has to happen before a deal is signed, the framework is already very much in place. As a result of this, we also already have a good understanding of how much money it will eventually cost New England to sign its eight drafted rookies.