Three things to know about new Patriots DT Joshua Farmer, who overcame adversity to reach the NFL - The Boston Globe (2025)

Here are three other things to know about Farmer.

Farmer, who is the youngest of eight kids, lost both of his parents when he was a child. His father, Greg, died from complications following stomach surgery when he was 2. When Farmer was 11, his mother, Pauline, died from a brain aneurysm.

While Farmer doesn’t have many memories of his father, he recalled the night his mother diedin an interview with theTallahassee Democrat’s Curt Weiler in 2021.

“She came home at night and she said her headwas hurting,” Farmer said. “She asked me and mysister [Jazmyne] to help her up, she wasn’t feeling good, and she hit the floor.

“We had to call our older sister to come help us. My older sister and my brother, they were in the room, they had to come help us. We called the ambulance, but it was taking too long so we got our car, put her in there and took her to the hospital.”

Farmer moved in with his grandma, Ruby Lee Farmer, after his mother’s death. He credited her for his football journey, sharing that she got him in shape when he wanted start playing as a kid.

“[My grandma]would take me to the track, I would run, run, run, run, run, run every day for three weeks. She just told me, ‘If this is what you want, thisis what you’ve got to do,’” Farmer told Weiler, recalling that he needed to lose 11 pounds to play football in the league he signed up for.

“I stepped on the scale and I had lost 13 pounds,” he said. “I was like, ‘This is what I want to do. This is for me.’ I just knew ever since then that it was for me.”

Farmer keeps both of his parents close to heart. When he attended ACC Media Days last summer, he wore a necklace that paid tribute to them.

Farmer also credited his siblings for helping build a strong support system, telling reporters Saturday that they were the ones who decided to throw him a draft party.

“I didn’t even want to do a party, but my brothers and sisters, they’re still happy,” Farmer said. “They treated me like I’m a top-five pick, and I’m just thankful and I’m blessed.”

The Patriots traded back into the fourth round in order to get Farmer, who some had tabbed as a Day 2 talent. NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah had Farmer as the 77th-best prospect on his big board.

“This was about some injury concerns with some durability and longevity. But this is a player that deserved to go much higher than this, who’s got some pop in his hands, got a quick first step,” Jeremiah said on NFL Network’s broadcast of the draft. “He can win early. I think with what we saw at the Senior Bowl, there’s more pass rush upside.

“[Some might wonder] how long this guy’s going to play. With this guy, give me him for the next five years. If that was all I was going to get, that would be a heck of a pick at this point in time.”

ESPN’s Louis Riddick said that the Patriots’ selection of Farmer was a “nice value pick,” noting that the Florida State product has a “real sudden first step and very twitchy body.”

“The kind of guy that the flashes were outstanding. He could’ve shown a little bit more consistency,” Field Yates added on ESPN’s broadcast of the draft.

The Athletic’s Dane Brugler gave Farmer a third-round grade, ranking him as the 76th overall prospect in the draft.

“Overall, Farmer goes through too many quiet stretches on film, but he is a force creator with his natural power as a two-gapper and promising pass-rush tools,” Bruglerwrote of Farmer. “He should step into a rotation as a rookie and has the potential of a full-time starter.”

The Patriots got pretty familiar with Farmer during the draft process. They hosted him for a top-30 draft visit, which allowed him to reunite with Patriots defensive assistant Clinton McMillan, who coached Farmer at Florida State. He also got to meet Mike Vrabel during his time in Tallahassee, too.

“I love Coach Vrabel,” Farmer told reporters. “I remember him my freshman year, coming to Florida State and putting on the pad and letting them guys strike him. He’s been catching my eye. I just remember seeing him. He’s a guy that wants to feel you out and I couldn’t be more thankful. I got Coach Vrabel, Coach T and Coach Clint. Coach Clint was my first coach. What other situation can I be in?”

Farmer was also able to get acquainted with one of his new teammates during his trip to Foxborough. Milton Williams was in the building the day he visited Gillette Stadium. Farmer flashed a picture he took with Williams during his video press conference on Saturday.

Farmer expressed an appreciation for Williams.

“[Williams] sat down and talked with me for at least 30 minutes,” Farmer said. “It was just me and him. He was a later-round guy, kind of like me in the third round and fourth round. He just sat down and talked to me. No other visit I went on was like that. He’s just a great guy. Awesome. Fantastic.”