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My general rule of thumb is that you can’t go wrong drafting an OL or DL in the first round, assuming the guy fits. But I think taking an RB, when they’ve really been devalued in recent drafts, is going to be a common feeling for Pats draft pundits.

Let’s face it, if the Patriots were able to add an explosive running back that could make something out of nothing, it would be scary. They’ve never had that kind of back for Brady, but at the same time, those kind of backs are very rare and usually gone by the last pick of the first round.

Are Gurley/Gordon that player? I don’t know, but if the Patriots felt they were and they were available, there’s certainly an argument to be made that they would be a good choice.

However, the unfortunate truth is that the Pats are probably trading out of the first round to a team that wants to give up their second rounder plus other picks to get that last player on day one who fell.

On a basic level, the 34 is actually must more creative than the traditional 43 because the linebackers can do anything.

But generally we need to get away from discussing 34 vs. 43. It’s about the individual players in the front 6 or 7 and what their responsibilities are. Belichick drove this evolution, where in the past you had a 34 with the front 3 two-gapping and the 4 LBs making the plays.

That’s just too simple of a defensive schematic now. 

Instead you’ll have variations across the front of who is two-gapping and who is single-gapping and it will change from down to down.  If you drew a line down the middle of the defense you might see one side look like a 34 while the other side is a 43.

The way I breakdown the Patriots defense now is you have your two edge players who are pure DE/OLB hybrids who must contain but will drop into coverage occasionally (less than tradition 34 OLBs).

Then you have your two defensive tackles, where you want a diverse skillset so that you can run two two-gappers (Wilfork/Siliga), a two gapper and an upfield one gapper (Wilfork/Chris Jones (or hopefully Easley in 2015), or two upfield guys for pass rush situations (Chris Jones/Easley).

Then you have your linebackers who, like the DTs, you want to be diverse. But in today’s NFL, they have to be able to run, all of them. That’s why Brandon Spikes couldn’t be a long term fit, despite being an elite run stopper.

What it boils down to is having enough versatility in your front seven players to mix-and-match and play whatever game plan you need to stop any particular offense.

The 34 will always be the defense Bill Belichick teaches out of in training camp and occasionally they might go to it to stop run-heavy teams. It’s what he teaches the calls, checks and gap responsibilities out of, but that regular 34 defense just doesn’t give modern offenses enough problems. It’s easier to block and it doesn’t generate enough pass rush (because the front 3 are all two-gapping and rarely causing disruption and getting pressure) to be effective in a pass-heavy league.

Here’s how I’m looking at it. If Revis really wants to chase a paycheck with two teams currently without a starting quarterback on their rosters, so be it. 

There’s no replacing Darrelle Revis. Period. But cornerback just might be the deepest position on this team. We haven’t even entered the team-building portion of the offseason yet and the Pats could already field a very good secondary without Revis. 

Of course not as good, but compared to what we’ve seen prior to this year, they would be okay.

So if Revis bolts there would be plenty of time to evaluate other options both in free agency and the draft, but even still, they’d be okay. And who knows what Butler’s potential is.

This is a one of those good problems to have. I think Revis/Browner are locked in as the starters on the outside. Browner’s physicality is worth the 1-2 penalties per game and who knows if we’ll still have the stupid “point of emphasis” on no downfield touching.

The thing that we saw a lot this year, is that with two great outside corners, the other guys become the main targets so it’s important to have at least two more good corners that can play inside and play man.

Arrington had an up and down year, some games he was great, but the he struggled with the size matchup with Matthews in the Super Bowl and was benched. I’ve always been a fan of Arrington, though I know he is polarizing. But he’s tough, physical and is one of the better slot corners in the NFL when the matchup is good for him.

I’m just so-so on Ryan, I’m not sure his ceiling is higher than a backup 4th/5th option and when he’s in the game, they’re throwing at him. He does deserve some credit for a couple good plays in the Super Bowl though, so there is that.

Then there’s Dennard who is pretty interesting to me. He’s undersized so he was dead meat when asked to cover Demaryius Thomas in the 2013 AFCCG. Still, he’s tenacious and makes plays on the ball. The problem is that it seems like he’s limited to playing outside as they tried to move him inside this year and he couldn’t crack the lineup.

Finally, we have Butler who just seems to keep getting better and even aside from the interception, he made multiple plays on the ball in limited time in the Super Bowl. 

So realistically I think Butler’s ceiling could be the starting nickelback. He has better size than Arrington and can play man. A full offseason should really benefit him, and he seems to understand he can’t let one huge play define his career. It will literally mean nothing when camp opens in July.

There’s great depth at the position (assuming Revis comes back) and we don’t really have to figure it all out right now. Competition and injuries will have a big say in how it all shakes out. But on paper they have good options, again, assuming Revis comes back.