ESPN’s Mike Sando spoke with “four NFL personnel evaluators for their favorite steals in each of the seven rounds” of the 2017 NFL Draft and the New England Patriots claimed the steal of the third round in EDGE Derek Rivers.
"I figured Rivers would go in the second or third round," one of the evaluators told Sando. "He is a perfect fit for the Patriots' defense."
Rivers played at Youngstown State in a small school FCS program, but was coached by former Patriots LB coach Bo Pelini. He is expected to immediately play a part in the Patriots edge defender rotation with Trey Flowers, Rob Ninkovich, Kony Ealy, and fellow rookie Deatrich Wise.