While the draft is naturally stealing the spotlight at this point in the NFL offseason, the college players added are only one part of a team’s roster construction. For the New England Patriots, this process also included acquiring a veteran defensive lineman via trade to bolster a position group undergoing significant changes due to the departures of 2018 starters/top rotational options Trey Flowers and Adrian Clayborn.
Shortly before the start of free agency, the Patriots traded a fifth-round draft pick to the Philadelphia Eagles for Michael Bennett and a seventh-round selection.