There was certainly no shortage of surprises in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft. It felt like as soon as the Atlanta Falcons took Drake London and teams started scrambling for wide receivers, we were off the rails in a hurry. One of the biggest eyebrow-raisers of the night was the New England Patriots taking IOL Cole Strange out of UT-Chattanooga with the 29th overall pick. Scouts and analysts seemed to collectively tag Strange as a 3rd round guy who had worked himself into 2nd round consideration. But, it’s obvious that Bill Belichick thought otherwise.
The Patriots had an urgent, immediate need along the interior of their offensive line, and Strange is a guy that offers value at guard and center. I figure the Pats see him as the Week 1 starter at left guard, but could easily slide over and play center when the time comes that they have to think about life after David Andrews. But, fans weren’t the only ones surprised by the selection. Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay and general manager Les Snead were at the podium at the moment Strange was drafted, and their reactions were damn good stuff.
Sean McVay and Les Snead reacted to the Patriots' pick of Cole Strange at No. 29 overall.
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) April 29, 2022
"And we wasted our time watching him thinking he'd be at 104 maybe."
H/T @AndrewSiciliano | #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/K9rgA4FqfN
“Strange just went!” The disbelief and surprise is just radiating off of McVay. “How about that? And we wasted our time watching him, thinking he’d be at 104 maybe.” If you stop and think about it, this is the most Patriots pick ever. I actually love it. I love the way Strange plays the game. He’s a feisty, athletic, and versatile offensive lineman. He plays the game with a hell of a punch, and he’s constantly out in front of the play just looking for someone to block. I actually had the chance to interview Strange after the Senior Bowl, and we had ourselves a fun little conversation:
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Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network, and a Dogs Playing Poker on velvet connoisseur. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD, #BeBetter, and ‘Minds right, asses tight.’ “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, Yankee Candle, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
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