PatsPropaganda

An Independent Patriots Blog

Mike Dussault

2018 PatsPropaganda Patriots-Only Mock Draft

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If ever there was a Patriots offseason that needed an injection of fresh storylines, this is it. After Rob Gronkowski‘s weird press conference last week, the NFL Draft will give those of us wanting some real football news a reprieve from all the sideshow drama.

The NFL Draft is spring Christmas, when we get all kinds of new presents to incorporate into our favorite football team. For a team that’s been to the Super Bowl three of the past four seasons, it’s strange saying they really need to solidify their foundation, but this is an important draft for the Pats.

With eight picks the Patriots are really set up to give their team a much-needed injection of youthful talent and what they need is pretty obvious.

There was just too much turnover and too many injuries in 2017. It started with Chris Long and Jabaal Sheard leaving, then Rob Ninkovich retiring, then injuries to Julian Edelman, Dont’a Hightower, Marcus Cannon and plenty of other bumps and bruises along the way that often left the Pats scrambling to insert new, unproven players. They’ve built some good depth, but they definitely need a talent injection at the second-level of their defense, with more athleticism and more edge depth.

The offense needs to have an eye on the future so they don’t get stuck in a turnover year like the defense did last year. And there’s a very interesting competition at left tackle shaping up, with LaAdrian Waddle and Tony Garcia officially back in the mix, free agent signees Matt Tobin and Ulrick John joining second-year players Jason King and Andrew Jelks, all in the mix for significant roles as the starting LT and swing backup tackle.

I know Belichick doesn’t draft for need, but here arejust three critical ones for the long-term health of the team.

  1. Off-the-Ball Linebacker
  2. Offensive Tackle
  3. Defensive Edge

This speaks to the depth they’ve already built, and while they should take a CB, QB, RB and WR, there aren’t many truly pressing needs for 2018.

These are my favorite Patriots fits, taken about when I think they’ll be available. Let’s see if I can crack a two-year streak of no hits in my mock draft!

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Choosing from Patriots Hall of Fame Finalists

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The Patriots announced the three finalists to be inducted into the team Hall of Fame this summer, putting us all in a bind over trying to choose amongst our favorite players from the original days of the dynasty. This year Matt Light, Mike Vrabel and Richard Seymour are those whom we have to choose from, no easy decision by any means.

All three burst onto the scene in 2001, with Light and Seymour stepping in immediately as impact rookies and Vrabel being one of the first of many veteran castoffs who found success under Bill Belichick in New England.

Let’s take a quick look at all three and then decide who gets the PatsPropaganda vote this year.

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Patriots 2018 Regular Season Schedule Breakdown

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The Patriots 2018 schedule has been leaked early online so it won’t interfere with my Bruins playoff watching tonight. Nice. I always get excited when the campaign is laid out, the games are set and no matter who is or isn’t playing, the Patriots will take the field.

This season’s schedule features five primetime games in the first nine weeks of the season, a week 11 bye, then six Sunday games, four of which are at 1pm. On the surface there’s nothing that unfair or difficult about this schedule. Not that I ever really complain about that kind of thing since the opponents are set long in advance, but it’s nice not have any crazy road trips back to back or anything similar.

Most of all it’s just nice to finally know when it will all go down. Here’s a bunch of quick-hit thoughts on the 2018 schedule.

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Making Sense of Brady, Gronk and the Future of the Patriots

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This offseason sure has had a different feel to it than any other in the last 17 years. Yes, there was always turnover, interesting moves that surprised us all, but the holy duo of Belichick and Brady were always secure and that meant that the Patriots were basically secure.

Now, after a year with plenty of rumblings about off-field problems, we still don’t know if Brady or Gronk are fully in for the 2018 season and that uncertainty is splitting Patriots fans down the middle even as they prepare for what should be an exciting couple of weeks featuring the release of the schedule and the draft.

There are so many camps right now within Patriots Nation. There’s those still furious and waiting for an explanation from Belichick about why he benched Malcolm Butler in the Super Bowl. There are those who are frustrated with Brady and Gronk for dragging this stuff out well into the offseason as we’re staring down the barrel of 2018. And then there are those outside of New England, content to watch it all finally burn to the ground.

I also know there are plenty out there who think it’s all “fake news”, that this is all media-driven and everything will be a-okay when the opening game comes around, with Brady throwing touchdowns to Gronk then both high-fiving Belichick as they begin another campaign for title number six. As a faithful blogger of the team I’ve been a big “Ignore the Noise” kind of guy, but there’s too much noise this time to believe it’s all a total fabrication, especially when reports are coming both locally and nationally.

There’s too much smoke for there not to be some kind of fire and now the million dollar question is can that fire be put out in time for another run in 2018?

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2018 PatsPropaganda Draft Big Board

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Welcome to year eight of the PatsPropaganda Big Board! The goal here is to hit as many Pats’ draft picks as possible with these 50 players, so it’s a combination of fits and needs, even if Bill Belichick doesn’t subscribe to need picks.

These are the football nerds, the team leaders, the special teams demons, the kind of players that would buy into the Patriot way and be able to make some sort of impact or at least push the starters. Next week I’ll release my mock draft featuring my favorite of this list.

The biggest areas I focused on were athletic off-the-ball linebackers, mid-round quarterbacks, potential left tackles and versatile edge players. Those are the biggest glaring needs as I see them, though I can certainly see running back, tight end and defensive back being taken because there are quite a few good fits in this draft class.

Am I missing someone you love as a fit? Let me know in the comments!

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Should Patriots Move Up in Draft for a Quarterback?

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With reports in recent days that the Patriots are “most interested” in Lamar Jackson, including, gasp, Tom Brady calling Jackson a beast, the fires of speculation that the Pats could move up in the first round have only added more fuel. Quarterback is the most vital position in football so it’s no wonder why players like Sam Darnold, Josh Rosen and Josh Allen are all expected to be taken in the top 10.

How exactly they’ll be drafted will be the subject of great debate over these next couple weeks. If you feel good about how things might unfold Sports Betting Dime has locked in a few good sites with some draft prop bets.  But for the Patriots it’s unlikely they’ll mortgage their huge draft pick capital just to take one player who won’t even play this year, injuries willing, especially with so many holes to fill.

But Jackson could be within striking distance and is certainly an intriguing prospect. What’s not up for debate is that he’s an elite athlete at the position, a next-generation quarterback who could really develop with a year or two behind Tom Brady.

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PatsProp Bruins Diary: Bruins Playoff Preview

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Something a little outside the norm here on this usually-Patriots-only blog as I take a little dive into, gasp, hockey and specifically the Boston Bruins. It’s the slowest time of the NFL season and while researching draft prospects is keeping me busy, the urge to write about hockey has been overwhelming so it’s time to throw a little changeup.

First, a little background on me because most of you only know me as the Bill Belichick Hoodie blogger guy who’s been writing about the Pats for over a decade. But the weird thing is that the Bruins were really my true love when I was growing up. Those early 90’s years were lean for the Patriots but the Bruins were in the Stanley Cup hunt every year and they helped eased the pain of one- and two-win Patriot teams.

I played hockey all the way through college, with many players who went on to pro careers. Since moving back to Boston I’ve found myself re-immersed in the sport that was really everything to me growing up.

Last fall, I started reffing youth hockey, which is probably worth its own blog post series itself, and have been lucky enough to work with Jimmy Murphy and CLNS producing the Garden Report on Ice. I’ve been credentialed for a bunch of Bruins games and practices this season so yes, I’ve been enjoying this unexpected season up close and personal. Here’s the latest video we put together.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75rxGiOUQL0&t=3s

As the season has progressed I’ve found myself getting the itch to write some hockey posts more and more. So what am I going to do? Start another whole blog from scratch? Ask some other blog to let me write for them on their terms? Nope. I’m just going to fire them up here from time to time.

If you’re here just for the Patriots stuff there will be plenty more coming, with the Top 50 Big Board on tap for early next week, along with my mock draft, more Patshow broadcasts, and plenty more draft analysis as the picks and signings start to come in. You can stop reading now, while any brave souls who happen to love the Bruins like they love the Pats will hopefully enjoy some of my Bruins analysis as they embark on a playoff run that starts with a tough Toronto Maple Leafs team.

Let’s do that hockey!

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