PatsPropaganda

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PatsPosits: Counting down to more counting down

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The draft is here! Tonight! Probably. If not, tomorrow because you know the Pats are probably going to ditch 32 for a high second rounder.

I can’t let today pass without a brief lament for the old days when the entire draft was on s weekend and I’d just sit around eating and drinking all day enjoying it. I can still remember trying to figure out how to get Wifi hooked up in my old apartment so I could actually post things to the internet DURING the draft. 

Oh, how times have changed. Now I get to watch large chunks of the first two rounds from work, with a drive home sprinkled in in the middle. I might try to recreate the old weekend magic on Saturday but there just isn’t the same excitement for rounds 4-7.

Perhaps you’re like me and you’ve got draft fatigue by this point. The constant speculation of who could go where and whether or not the  team might trade up or down, it just gets tiresome.

Because in three days the Pats will have drafted a handful of guys, be in the process of signing a bunch of other rookie free agents and then we can cease the speculation and dive in on how these new players fit into the puzzle.

Until then we’ll just tough it out and try to enjoy it all. 

What will the Patriots do tonight? Of course, it’s impossible to predict, unless we’re talking about last year when there were quite a few of us who had a bead on Easley. 

This year it seems Eddie Goldman has a lot of Pats pundit support and I am on that train as well. I don’t think they can go wrong with a front seven defender pick tonight, whether it’s a big tackle like Goldman, or even an athletic DE/OLB.

The runner-up in a lot of mocks from guys I trust is Laken Tomlinson. He’s a good fit at an area of need but the question will be if they could get him 5-10 picks later.

All things being equal, it’s hard not to think there’s at least a 50 percent chance the Pats are trading out of today.

The value between 32 and 35-45 is not all that different, and if they can add another pick, maybe for next year, it would fit their past methodology of maximizing value.

Still, I can make a pretty good argument for trading up into the mid-20s. The Pats have nine picks and not a lot of front line holes on their roster. Outside of a guard is there really another position where they wouldn’t be at least solid to open training camp? 

Sure you want to maximize competition and there could easily be rookie starters at running back, cornerback and perhaps linebacker if the right players fall to the right spot.

But it shouldn’t be surprising that the most impactful draft moves of the past few years were the two trade ups to get Chandler and Hightower in 2012. Those two picks were key in this year’s Super Bowl win, and with okay depth almost everywhere on the roster, a trade up for an immediate impact player like those two guys would make a lot of sense.

The thing about the Patriots is they are completely unpredictable, unless you include Easley last year. That’s what makes them so much fun to follow, other than the winning. They’re could be trade ups, trade downs, trades for players, or a surprise pick that could go completely outside the schematic specifications we’ve come to understand.

I fully expect to have at least one shock moment in the next three days, with “who the hell is that guy they just drafted” being the most likely case.

Regardless of draft fatigue it will be a fun three days. Let’s hope the Pats fill some holes and bring in some players we can all be excited about.

Alright, Mike last year we were certain the Pats would take Easley but this year is a lot harder to predict. IF they stay in rd1, who’s your final prediction they take? I’m going Goldman, but not sleeping on Nelson Agholor or them maybe moving up to get Malcom Brown or Danny Shelton.

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I’m sticking with my mock draft and saying Goldman as well. Obviously I’d love Shelton but I think he’s as much a pipe dream as JJ Watt was a few years ago. If Goldman’s off the board at 32 I’d say a trade down is just about a lock. Sorry to everyone who’s going to stay up late tonight, excited to see who the Pats pick and then they pick no one.

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Draft Day!!!!!!

https://www.patspropaganda.com/draft-day/

Might want to throw Brady into that one trick pony category. Only, as it happens, his “trick” is making defenses disappear, so…

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Haha, I like that. But really it’s not like Brady is without his weaknesses and that feeds into why I disagree with people who think putting a small really fast receiver like DeSean Jackson into the mix is going to transform Brady and the offense to what it was in 2007 with Moss.

Mallett was about as close to a one-trick pony as you can get at the QB spot, and his lack of touch is what ultimately sealed his fate here I think. There’s no question, Belichick is intrigued by uniquely talented football players. He’ll at least kick the tires on them, even if they’re old vets with barely anything left in the tank.

Do you think belichick would take someone who is average at multiple positions over someone great at just one

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I know what you’re getting at and I think there is a kernel of truth in here but it’s also an oversimplified view of how BB drafts. I’d say Brandon Browner was essentially the kind of player who is great at one thing, but has holes in his game. They made it work last year.

What about Jamie Collins? He didn’t really have one position he stuck at in college and was essentially “good” at a lot of things but not “elite” at anything. He did have immense athleticism though and that allowed the Pats to find a spot for him.

Versatility is always a plus and it’s applicable to almost every position – defensive backs (zone awareness, man coverage athleticism/physicality), defensive linemen (one gap explosion vs. two gap strength), linebacker (downhill run stopping power, coverage ability), offensive linemen (zone blocking athleticism vs. man blocking power), running back (carrying, catching), etc. There are not a lot of players who do one thing so overwhelmingly well that their inability to do anything else is overshadowed.

I’d almost put Dominique Easley in that category, but his elite explosiveness in his pass rush also helps him do other things like we saw when he played some defensive end last year and did a good job setting the edge.

What are the single most valued skillsets in the modern NFL? The only one trick ponies who can get any recognition are pass rushers, otherwise at other positions you have to be able to be competent across the board or you’re getting attacked.

Look at Patrick Chung – very good in the box safety but his solid pass coverage, something he has been picked on before in the past, was a huge part of the Patriots beating Baltimore in the AFC Divisional playoff.

Other positions like wide receiver, where a player could have phenomenal deep speed over everything else, is where I don’t think the Pats are interested. Specialization will always be part of the game, but football has opened up so much more that athletes who can do a number of things in space are the most valuable and necessary parts of your team.