After already welcoming projected early-round picks Emmanuel McNeil-Warren (Toledo) and Zakee Wheatley (Penn State) to Gillette Stadium, the New England Patriots hosted another safety on pre-draft visit on Tuesday. Michigan State’s Malik Spencer was in town as the third reported player at the position to visit with the team.
Spending his entire four-year college career with the Spartans, Spencer appeared in 38 games with 29 starts. He finished his career in East Lansing with 173 tackles as well as two
interceptions and sacks each. He also forced a pair of fumbles and broke up 13 passes.
The 6-foot-0, 197-pounder played all over the place for the Spartans, aligning deep, in the box and in the slot. He also saw some action on special teams, but as a defensive starter was primarily employed on that side of the ball.
A three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree, Spencer projects as either a late-round selection in this year’s draft or a free agent. In the pre-draft process, he ran a 4.51-second 40-yard dash, 7.21-second three-cone drill and 4.38-second short shuttle, and had vertical and broad jumps of 32 inches and 10 foot, 3 inches, respectively. He posted a 5.76 Relative Athletic Score.
The Patriots are entering the draft with Kevin Byard and Craig Woodson atop their safety depth chart, but questions further below. Dell Pettus projects as the current No. 3 with Brenden Schooler, Mike Brown and John Saunders Jr. rounding out the depth chart. In addition, Byard will turn 33 in training camp and is on a one-year deal.
