The New England Patriots entered the NFL Draft needing some depth at cornerback, but they didn't actually address the issue until the seventh round, when they picked up Memphis Tigers defensive back Kobee Minor.
Minor — who also played at Texas Tech and Indiana before transferring to Memphis — is certainly an interesting prospect. He registered 38 tackles, seven tackles for loss, a couple of sacks, a pair of forced fumbles and six passes defended in 2024, so he was productive last year.
However, the 5-foot-11 defender is not the most athletically gifted corner, and he will have to fight for his spot on the roster as a result. Bernd Buchmasser of Pats Pulpit made that very clear in his assessment of Minor.
"Even though the Patriots spent a draft pick on him, Minor making the team this fall is far from a safe bet," Buchmasseer wrote. "In fact, he projects to be firmly on the roster bubble and will need to outperform several more experienced players higher up on the depth chart — the aforementioned Alex Austin, Marcellas Dial Jr. and Isaiah Bolden among them — in order to get a realistic shot."
New England obviously saw something in Minor to use a draft choice on him, even if the Pats waited until Day 3 to do it. But Buchmasser is entirely correct: Minor absolutely does not have any sort of inside track to making the team, as there is really nothing about him that stands out.
But given how much the Patriots need depth behind Christian Gonzalez and Carlton Davis at cornerback, there is a chance that New England decides to keep the youngster just to see what he has. Of course, he will need to put forth quite a show in training camp and preseason, too.
