The Patriots entered Friday with more draft picks than any team in the NFL. That allowed them to move back into the second round to draft outside linebacker Josh Uche from Michigan with the 60th overall selection.
The Pats made a deal with the Baltimore Ravens to grab the edge rusher. They traded two third-round picks (71 and 98) for picks 60 and 129.
Uche immediately fills a need. He's a 6-foot-1, 245 pound athletic edge rusher. Last year, he led Michigan with 8.5 sacks en route to earning second team All-Big Ten honors. He had seven sacks the year before in which he earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors. Uche led Michigan in sacks the past two seasons.
This offseason, the Patriots lost linebackers Kyle Van Noy, Jamie Collins and Elandon Roberts. Van Noy and Collins finished 1-2 for sacks on the Patriots, so edge rusher was a big need heading into the 2020 NFL draft. That's where Uche comes in. He'll join linebackers/edge rushers Don'ta Hightower, Chase Winovich, John Simon, Brandon Copeland, Ja'Whaun Bentley, Shilique Calhoun and Derek Rivers on the depth chart.
Uche was a late bloomer in college. He didn't start any games for Michigan during his first three years _ even when he led the team in sacks in 2017. Last year, was his first as a starter and he finished with 8.5 sacks, 35 tackles, 11.5 for loss and two forced fumbles.
