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Draft

Draft Prospects: Tight End

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This year the wide receiver depth seems a lot less than the previous few years. Just a couple of guys projected to go in the first round, however, as you are probably aware the one skill position that seems to have depth, the best in a decade in fact, is the tight end one. It really is a serious, athletic filled, draft class this year. 

You lovely lot didn’t actually think there was going to be a draft with so many tight ends, and I wasn’t going to cover it?!? Don’t worry, I’m just going to give you a little taste of what there is because I know you aren’t all quite as enthusiastic as I am. But there are some (maybe!) later round tight ends that the Patriots might target to fill the cupboard for the future.

Generally, first round tight ends haven’t worked out quite to the expected level. The most recent one is Kyle Pitts, selected fourth overall in the 2021 NFL draft. Now, I fully appreciate he has talent and athletic ability but he didn’t catch my eye for some reason and he hasn’t quite performed to what was expected from those that championed him.

Thus, many Patriots fans are rather against that first round selection for a tight end, and that’s fully understandable. Even I, a tight end enthusiast, is swaying towards a later round kinda guy. For me the top need is tackle, tackle, tackle, oh and a large cornerback too! Besides, how can I judge when I am tainted with superstition to not take a wide receiver in the first round, following a certain 2019 first round draft selection, even if it was the 32nd pick. 

Anyways, moving along!

Michael Mayer of Notre Dame is my draft crush but deep down I know he won’t be a Patriot. Dalton Kincaid and even Darnell Washington may be a little “too rich”, but with such a cacophony of athleticism, later round selections could still have some serious promise in a position that really is a difficult one to play in this sport today.  

With players draft stocks moving up and down, particularly following the combine and pro days and also the team visits, it is becoming increasingly tricky to assess the round in which a guy may go. But, to that end I have selected a few names that may be possibly a little more realistic for the Patriots. 

Sam LaPorta is a solid framed, 6’ 3.5” versatile pass catcher with a powerful looking lower body out of Iowa. 

Luke Schoonmaker, is a name I am hearing more and more, which worries me as he may become too much in demand for the Patriots! From Michigan, a tall, lean built, inline Y tight end with the room to add weight, Schoonmaker is good in the run game and whilst not necessarily dynamic, he shouldn’t be overlooked as playmaker.

Tucker Kraft of South Dakota State may not be unfamiliar to you either. The surname is a big one in New England, and this 6’ 5” combination tight end has good body skills and acceleration. Clocking up a 7.08 second three cone drill, this big guy is smooth. 

Brendon Strange, Penn State’s own, is perhaps more of a developmental player than those mentioned above. A great blocker on the outside, good hands and his sledge work at the combine warranted a nice job in the Clazzy Clare tightendage notebook! Plenty of strengths when it comes to blocking and the run game, Strange has a few problems with drops, his pass catching and route running need sharpening up. A solid 6’ 4” good tight end that would benefit from a year of developmental time behind say two starter veteran tight ends?

Whichever type of tight end takes your fancy, this draft class is almost dripping with them, I just hope the Patriots pick one!

Tight Endage!! Unisex T-Shirt

The Combine Cometh!

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from the notebook of Clare “Clazzy Clare” Cooper

Firstly, I just want to give a big thank you to everyone who reads my work and supports Pats Propaganda. I have been writing for this fabulous site for over two years now, two years on Tuesday 7th March, and I am so blessed to be able to do so. So, a huge thank you to YOU who is reading this, as well as my awesome colleague (and buddy) Tom Shaw-Mellors, and the founder and chief Mike Dussault. I appreciate you all!

And so, another combine has wrapped up, pro days on the horizon, but many of us are still chewing over the tape, reading the statistics, and checking the interwebs for highlight reels in order to get our draft prospect fix. 

Now, I know many may say that the combine is just a media event and the teams have no real value to it, and whilst that may be somewhat true, there is still plenty to champion, especially as a fan for the event that is held near St Elmo’s with its fabulous shrimp cocktail (as I have been told, I am yet to sample personally). 

The interviews and medicals are something that I have heard have value for the teams, and this makes complete sense, and the interviews are what the sports media roll up to Indianapolis to indulge in. 

But, the 50 hours of “on field” coverage is what the fans get when they turn on their televisions, and whilst that’s a lot for a small brain like mine to contend with, it is great to be able to find the player classes that you are most interested in, and spend some time doing that eyeball testing. 

I fully appreciate that the combine is only a sample of what these players can do, but for someone who doesn’t watch much college football, and has never been shy in admitting that I don’t, mostly for access reasons, having the opportunity to see these players “in the flesh” is definitely of an advantage. 

You can make reasonable assessments from an individual’s performance, and you can also make those “gut feeling” choices that may come back and severely bite you in the behind when the guys absolutely sucks, but hey that’s half the fun… Right?

I am rarely shy in admitting my draft crush (I am shy generally, but not when it comes to that!) and if you are a regular reader or listener of my work, you will be able to confirm as such. To me, a draft crush is that “gut feeling” one, not necessarily the sensible one, or the one that fits your team the best, it’s the one that you’re just like “Oh I want that guy!!”. 

It will not surprise you that my draft crushes are pretty much always tight ends, what can I say folks, I like to live up to the nicknames I have been given. 

However, the Patriots have significant needs, and the two that most of Patriots Nation agree with are offensive tackle and cornerback. 

The only thing is… free agency happens before the draft, and there appear to be a few rather decent names suddenly potentially available. Does that mean that with the number one pick in the 2023 NFL draft the Patriots may not need to take a tackle? 

Whilst there is a potential for that, and I am so looking forward to bringing you a bit of free agency fun soon, lack of depth at that position really hindered the Patriots in 2022, and so, even if it isn’t number 14, I am pretty darn certain we will be hearing “and the Patriots pick *insert name and collage* offensive tackle”. 

But to that end, I thought I’d give you a sneaky peak at the names of some of the top offensive tackle draft prospects, and how they faired at the combine, should you so fancy.

First off is the one who seems to have plenty of controversy around him, because of… an inch. Yes folks, Peter Skoronski has 32 1/4 inch arms which is, reportedly, short for a tackle. However, he is an exceptional player who lined up as a left tackle for three years at Northwestern. Rashawn Slater, who plays left tackle for the LA Chargers, has been proving this size “requirement” wrong for a season. And with the wealth of experience Skoronski has, it does feel a little crazy to miss on a proven quality player because of, about this ___________ much. 

For the sake of stats, I can advise the NFL has Skoronski running a 5.16 seconds 40 yard dash, bench press of 30 reps, a 34.5 inch vertical jump and a 7.8 second three cone drill. And from the notebook of one Clare “Clazzy Clare” Cooper, I can confirm: nice strong base, big guy, nice footwork on the fold block, versatile, NICE.

The next two prospects are both much larger athletes, but are a lot lighter on experience than Skoronski. 

Paris Johnson Jr of Ohio State comes in at 2 inches taller and with arms almost 4 inches longer, but with only one year experience at left tackle. Johnson didn’t undertake many of the drills at the combine, bench pressing 29 reps is pretty much all that I can report. 

Broderick Jones from Georgia drops size wise in between Skoronski and Johnson with 34 3/4 inch arms. His NFL combine results were a 4.97 seconds 40 yard dash (!) and a 30 inch vertical jump. The “Clazzy Clare” note book can confirm: Wave drill: wide base, legs wide – athletic – nice!, good feet, good athleticism. And my personal favourite: DISPATCHED the coach wearing the pad in the screen drill, threw that guy outta the club!

So there you have it you lovely lot, a sneaky glance at the combine! Keep your eyes on us for more content, and also listen out for a special episode of A Clare Perspective, a Patriots podcast that delves into a few behind-the-scenes bits of the NFL combine, coming soon!

Addition by Subtraction? A Pats recap by Clazzy Clare

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Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

Obviously, following the draft the Patriots have added to their roster with several of the draft selections already signing contracts, but is it the players who have left that’s of more significance?

(For a full draft recap see the great work from Tom Shaw-Mellors https://www.patspropaganda.com/patriots-2022-draft-recap/)

Going back aways the Patriots said bye bye to Chase Winovich for Mack Wilson — bit of addition by subtraction — kinda. Maybe just a like for like in regards to player talent, but time will tell. It would seem both guys needed a change of scenery so expectation may not be too high. 

Ted Karras and Shaq Mason — you know what, it’s still too fresh, I can’t talk about their departure from Foxborough just yet…

But the Patriots and the NFL, did poach a shining prospect in Drew Desjarlais, top offensive lineman from the CFL. They also added depth to the wide receiver room with DeVante Parker heading over from Miami. 

Terrence Mitchell, Jabrill Peppers, and Malcom Butler came over to put a bit of extra experience in the defence, with the Patriots not signing one linebacker in the draft. They picked up the UDFA DaMarcus Mitchell, who is noted as a DE, but did play in the linebacker position at Purdue, but it’s looking like all those year two chaps might have some time to shine in 2022. 

Jarrett Stidham recently joined the slew of participants on the bus to Las Vegas, catching up with the likes of Brandon Bolden and Jakob Johnson who departed New England as free agents. And whilst we are talking about it, other past Patriots have been drawn to the bright lights of Sin City and Josh McDaniels, with the Raiders signing Chandler Jones, Duron Harmon, Jacob Hollister, Tashawn Bower and Cre’van LeBlanc. Not to mention a stack of coach and personnel peeps too! 

And how can I forget, the release of the very versatile Devine Ozigbo, who was another casualty of the draft with running back being a double dip position. 

But you know what they did bring in !?!?!? A tight end!! Yeah okay, I’m not that excited by Matt Sokol really, yet, he hasn’t played many games in the NFL after being picked up as an UDFA by the Chargers in 2018, but he’s said to be a great blocker and we all know how much I like those! Probably a bit of a practice squad addition really, indicating it’s a good chance Troy Fumagali isn’t on his return stint to New England, but with the revolving door that is training camp, you never know. 

Whilst some fans wait to see if N’Keal Harry gets on the Vegas bus, or any other for that matter, some of us wonder if Devin Asiasi has a ticket out of Foxborough too. Some even believe Nelson Agholor could be another candidate for exit. Agholor did help the offence last year by drawing coverage, but there’s a possibility that role could be filled with the addition of the speedy receiver in the draft of Tyquan Thornton. I feel it’s a catch-22 situation, they spent a lot of cap on him to give up after just one year, but there’s the catch, spent a lot. So moving on from him could free up some cap. According the fantastic @patscap Miguel Benzan, releasing Nelson Agholor in 2022 could create $3.9M, trading him opens $8.9M and extending him (I know, I know that’s the opposite, but it’s for informational purposes!) $3.94M. 

It’s still all kinds of “ifs and butts and candy and nuts” right now, but the schedule is out and we have games on the calendar, it’s beginning to smell a lot like football!

Patriots 2022 Draft Recap

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Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Well the 2022 NFL Draft has been and gone, let’s take a look at every pick made by the Patriots!

Round 1 – Pick 29 – C/G Cole Strange (Chattanooga)

Many were surprised (me included) that the Patriots went with Strange, not so much the guard position itself, I just didn’t think the team would go with him in the first round. I think a defensive player such as Trent McDuffie, who was available before the Patriots traded down from 21, would have been a better pick in terms of value.

But, the pick was made and Strange will head into Training Camp with the expectation of being a day 1 starter for the franchise at the guard position.

Mike Reiss’ Bio:

Round 2 – Pick 50 – WR Tyquan Thornton (Baylor)

A speedy WR for the Patriots? YUP! The Pats traded up four spots to land the fastest wideout in the entire draft, taking Tyquan Thornton out of Baylor. I’m intrigued by this pick, Thornton has elite speed but comes with some questions about his catch/route run ability.

With good production last year, Thornton could become the go-to deep threat option, especially with Nelson Agholor’s contract up at the end of the 2022 season.

Mike Reiss’ Bio:

[Read more…] about Patriots 2022 Draft Recap

Patriots Draft Guard Cole Strange In First Round of 2022 NFL Draft

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Wow, somewhat of a stunner by the Patriots as they take a projected Day 2 pick in the first round. Originally the Pats traded down eight spots with Kansas City, and with the likes of Nakobe Dean, Dax Hill, and Anthony Booth Jr still on the board, Bill decided to fill the interior line position.

I won’t lie, I don’t like the pick this high, I think there is more elite talent on the board, however, the team hasn’t been afraid to reach a little for players they really like, I guess we’ll see.

https://twitter.com/Patriots/status/1519879317064364033?s=20&t=EMj_gJDDXwtpBSr51bEjAQ

Remaining Patriots Picks:

Round 2-54
Round 3-85
Round 3-94
Round 4-121
Round 4-127
Round 5-158
Round 6-183
Round 6-200
Round 6-210
Round 7-245

Clazzy Clare does the Draft: Tight End

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Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Now you know I couldn’t write any draft articles and not tell you all about some of the tight ends for this year. 

Whilst I know the Patriots early round picks need to be spent elsewhere, and I’m not in any argument, I want me a cornerback and some offensive line please. But, late round picks, undrafted guys…. I fancy a spot of that.

If you are a team who needs an earlier round tight end, you are going to be hearing names like Trey McBride of Colorado State, a complete tight end who is projected to go early in the third round. Second to him would be Greg Dulcich of UCLA projected to go around 70th, mentioned at the combine by Daniel Jeremiah as his number one tight end. These guys are both quality tight ends, but the Patriots aren’t going to be looking at these boys. 

Further down the ranks, moving into the later rounds such as a projected fourth, is one guy I had my eye on, and that is Daniel Bellinger from San Diego State. A traditional Y tight end, a great blocker at 6 foot 5 and 253 pounds with very sure hands. He has been an afterthought in the pass attacks, so has a low yard average. 

A fifth round guy that has been on the NFL radar is Jake Ferguson out of Wisconsin. Strong hands and great with the ball, he has limited speed, and whilst he is an experienced line blocker, he may have some difficultly transitioning those skills into the NFL. So a possibility for needing a developmental first year, but hey it was good enough for Jonnu Smith, right?

My favourite tight end who may be feasible for the Patriots is Austin Allen out of Nebraska. His skill set hadn’t been shown in the best light with Nebraska’s offense underperforming in recent years but his combine tests went well. 

Really tall at 6’8” (depending on what you read), he performed as a good blocker, had good hands, and great movement for such a tall guy.

Bottom line, I know not many Patriots fans are looking for a tight end right now, and I am totally with you there. But, I do implore you to think about tight ends for the future, and some of these later round guys might just be feasible. The Patriots went through some lean years at tight end, and I feel they need to set up so that they don’t again. Hunter and Smith, yep top guys for a few years. But that doesn’t mean the Patriots should sit on their heels. If Keene and Asiasi don’t pan out, then the back up cupboard, the developmental tight end shelf, is empty baby and you can’t have that!

Clazzy Clare does the Draft: Running Back

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Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

To say I was weak on my defensive line research is nothing compared to my running back scoping.

At the moment my personal opinion is that the Patriots don’t need to think about running backs this year. 

I appreciate there are many of you out there who are running back enthusiasts, and I applaud you! I applaud any player position enthusiast to be honest. 

And so to that end, I took a little time to go back and assess some of the combine info, and read the scuttlebutt on running backs for 2022. 

During my research, I came across a possibly sleeper guy who could be a great Rex Burkehead replacement, and that is Wan’Dale Robinson out of Kentucky. He is noted in the draft and combine information as a wide receiver but previously at Nebraska, Robinson played as a running back. This kid could be a great Swiss Army Knife, and whilst the market for wide receiver can be hot and crazy, he is a projected fourth round guy, and look at how hot the market is for Deebo Samuel right now, a wide receiver who can carry the ball out of the back field. 

Now, whilst I am not claiming in any way that Robinson is on the same level as Samuel, he is one of those players that when on the field, defenses may be uncertain as to why, and we all know that Bill likes some versatility in his ranks. 

So perhaps running back is a low priority in my fan opinion but with the draft you never really know what anyone is going to do!