The New England Patriots knew what they were doing.
They used their seventh-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft on a specialist, and he won the job and started in Week 1.
That'd be Julian Ashby. He was the only first-stringer in Week 1 out of the entire seventh round, which you can see in this awesome data visualization work from Anthony Reinhard:
Week 1 roles for 2025 draft picks pic.twitter.com/6gVysu2M2N
— Anthony Reinhard (@reinhardNFL) September 10, 2025
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Ashby is the Patriots' new long snapper.
He's originally from the Atlanta area, and he went to Furman for his first four college seasons. The Paladins made it to the FCS quarterfinals while Ashby was there, and he was a first-team FCS All-American.
Ashby then went to Vanderbilt for his final college season.
The Patriots made him the No. 251 pick overall in April's NFL Draft. That made him the first Vandy player and the first long snapper drafted since 2021.
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New England used Ashby to replace Joe Cardona, which was a bit of a surprise. Cardona had been the Pats' long snapper for a decade and was a 2024 captain.
But a little bit of salary savings and a chance to develop the next long-term snapper in New England meant Ashby won out.
With a skill this specialized, as long as Ashby keeps doing his job, he'll have a chance to stick around the league for a long time even as a seventh-round pick.
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