The Patriots used their first draft pick of the 2020 NFL draft to select safety Kyle Dugger from Lenoir-Rhyne. No, Lenoir-Rhyne isn’t a school that has produced Hall of Famer after Hall of Famer, but don’t be fooled by his school of choice. Dugger is deserving of an early draft pick.
He played five years of college ball, however, his redshirt sophomore season ended after only one game due to injury. Dugger’s college career finished with 237 tackles, 36 passes defended, 10 interceptions, and six forced fumbles.
The knock against him will be the level of competition he played against in college. Making the jump from Division II to the NFL is a difficult transition, but the Patriots think Dugger has the ability to make the leap.
These three things can be taken away from the Patriots’ decision to draft Dugger.
1. The Patriots will continue to use a three-safety approach.
Since Patrick Chung returned to the Patriots in 2014, New England has used three safeties pretty frequently. With Devin McCourty and Chung and that the starting spots, Duron Harmon was left to play that third role. Now, that Harmon is in Detroit, Dugger can come in and play that position.
However, Dugger isn’t the same player that Harmon is. Dugger has the ability to play in coverage, deep safety, and in-the-box. With his athleticism, he should be able to make an impact in his rookie season.