On the third and final day of the 2020 NFL Draft, the Patriots picked up where they left off on Day 2. Operating from remote locations as a result of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic lockdown, New England's top brass kept themselves active throughout Rounds 4 through 7. The club made yet another trade to move up the selection board (they made three such deals on Friday) and chose another five players, equal to the amount they chose on Friday.
When drafting resumed at noon Eastern Saturday, the Patriots had to wait a while before getting involved, though, as they were without a fourth-round selection. However, once the fifth round started, so, too, did the Patriots. In the early afternoon, they surprised many draft observers with their selection at Pick 159 overall.
New England went with Marshall University kicker Justin Rohrwasser (6-3, 230), a transfer from the University of Rhode Island and the first kicker selected in this year's draft. It wasn't the position that caught many off-guard – New England, after all, was without a kicker on its roster entering this draft – but the relatively obscure player chosen.
Rohrwasser tried to give a sense of who he is and a person and a player during his introductory conference call with the media shortly after his selection.
"I always was a bigger kicker… I look more like a punter, to be honest," he remarked. "I'm just focused on doing the job I was brought in to do, and that's kick the football through the uprights. [The Patriots] are getting a hard worker, somebody who is going to chase after the best version of themselves, a good teammate. I want to do my best in order to help the team win."
Shortly afterward, the Patriots packaged a pair of consecutive picks at the bottom of the fifth round, numbers 212 and 213 overall, and sent them to Indianapolis for the Colts' choice at 182. There, New England chose another big-bodied player, University of Michigan guard Michael Onwenu (6-2, 345), the second Wolverine chosen by the Patriots in this draft (LB Josh Uche, the other).
"Last season, I played around 368 [pounds]," Onwenu told reporters during his conference call. "I'm liking being lighter, so, I'm anticipating I'm playing around – wherever the coaches ask me to be is where I'll be. During the pre-draft process, there wasn't really any talk of specifics. But you know, I would style myself in terms of playing any position that's needed, whether that's tackle, guard or center."
New England doubled down on o-line help with their next selection, 195th overall in Round 6, taking Wake Forest's Justin Herron (6-4, 308).
"They told me that they've seen me play tackle," Herron said of his pre-draft conversations with the Patriots, "but they're also interested to see if I can play any other positions. So, that's kind of what we talked about. I'm happy with any position or positions."
Later in Round 6, at 204 overall, the Patriots returned to the defensive side of the ball, where they tapped three players on Friday, by choosing University of Wyoming linebacker Cassh Maluia (6-0, 250).
"I like to describe my play as aggressive, hard-nosed, and I'll do whatever I can for the team," Maluia asserted during his conference call introduction to the media. "I've got the versatility of many positions. I'm willing to do whatever the coaches want me to do, just to go out there and contribute the best I can for the Patriots. I can definitely contribute on special teams."
In Round 7, New England closed out its 2020 draft board with a third offensive lineman, University of Memphis center Dustin Woodard (6-2, 285), the draft's 230th overall choice. Now that all seven rounds of this year's draft are complete, the Patriots and other teams will spend much of the rest of this weekend rounding up as many undrafted rookies as they can sign to fill out their 90-man rosters.
