Joel Klatt defends Will Campbell as Patriots draft pick over Travis Hunter

There might not be a team with a more interesting pick ahead of them in April than the New England Patriots. Not in need of a quarterback, the Patriots might be in position to select the best player available on the board. That’s where the debates will begin as New England has multiple different avenues potentially available.

One of them is Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter. Hunter has a great chance of still being available at No. 4 but in a mock draft from FOX’s Joel Klatt, he does not think the Patriots will select him.

“I think it’s tempting to go Travis Hunter,” Klatt said. “He’s still on the board here, it’s tempting to go Travis Hunter because they can address the corner issue and the wide receiver issue with one player. However, I think you’re going to go first principle here and get better at the line of scrimmage.”

LSU offensive tackle Will Campbell is who Klatt would go with. A three-year starter in Baton Rouge, Campbell stepped into the left tackle role once on campus and never gave the position up. He protected Jayden Daniels and then Garrett Nussmeier as LSU thrived on offense the past three years.

And with the Patriots a year removed from taking Drake Maye, Klatt believes finding somebody to protect your franchise quarterback should be a top priority. Even if somebody such as Hunter is available. He pointed toward the recent Philadelphia Eagles Super Bowl run and even Ohio State winning the national championship. Injuries affected both but depth and quality line of scrimmage play was why they won.

Campbell gets the offensive line rebuild started in a big way for New England.

“If you give the keys to your castle to Drake Maye, you better be able to protect him,” Klatt said. “It may not be the sexiest pick but it’s a really solid pick… They’re going to have to pass on Travis Hunter right there.”

Hunter is working out as a cornerback at the NFL Combine, potentially signaling which side of the ball he might prefer. But the versatility is going to be intriguing for every team out there, especially with Maye also needing a big-time weapon on offense.

Klatt says the route of shoring up the offensive line would be better for Maye long-term. There might be debates as to who the class’s top offensive tackle might be but Klatt decides to roll with Campbell for the Patriots.