Could Patriots LB Josh Uche Be 'Second-Day Star' of 2020 NFL Draft?

After selecting Lenoir-Rhyne safety Kyle Dugger with the 37th overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots moved back into the second round to make another selection.

The Patriots traded with the Baltimore Ravens for the 60th overall pick, and in turn selected Michigan linebacker Josh Uche. The pick made sense, as New England needed to spend a premium pick on the linebacker position since they lost Kyle Van Noy, Jamie Collins and Elandon Roberts to free agency this offseason.

But just how good is Uche?

He may be better than you think despite being taken late in the second round.

Yahoo Sports' Charles Robinson noted after the selection of Uche that a few "very respected" evaluators told him leading up to the draft that Uche was their pick to be the draft's second-day star.

That #Patriots Josh Uche selection in the second round...a few very respected evaluators said during the process that Uche was their pick to be the second-day star from this draft. Limited overall body of work but some stellar flashes were there - particularly in 2019.
— Charles Robinson (@CharlesRobinson) April 25, 2020

On top of that, Senior Bowl director Jim Nagy told NBC Sports' Phil Perry back in March that Uche was someone that in his eyes should be talked about more as a mid-first round pick.

"He had a great Senior Bowl week. I actually thought he was the best defensive player in our game outside of Javon Kinlaw," Nagy said. "Uche is like, the guy in this draft that I don't understand isn't being talked about more as even a mid-first-round pick. I think he's super talented.

"He's one of those guys that you can rush him all over. He can get through cracks. He showed down here in Mobile that he can really cover. He can play off the ball and cover people. His ability to track running backs and tight ends down here in Mobile was super impressive. So right now to me, he's really a guy that's under the radar."

You're probably wondering, "If Uche was that good, then why did he go on Day 2?" Well, it has to do with his overall body of work. Along with only becoming a full-time starter for the first time in his senior season at Michigan, Uche was labeled as a one-trick pony when it comes to his pass-rush ability. He very often did his damage as a pass rusher by using his speed, and seldom was effective using any other type of move. However, it's his athleticism and overall potential as a pass rusher and off the ball linebacker that has evaluators pegging him as someone who can become a great player at the next level.

While many people question Bill Belichick for using his first pick of the draft on a Div. 2 safety, those same people should be applauding the Patriots head coach for potentially getting the steal of the draft in Josh Uche.