6 Hidden Gems Patriots Should Have Noticed at Combine
Starting to roll out my draft content with this morning’s piece over at B/R. Mock draft coming Thursday!
Diving in on the draft
Sorry for the lack of activity here the last few days, I have officially dove into the draft and at this point, narrowed down by Pats prospect list to 89 players. Yes, I’ve been buried in the draft and I’ve been enjoying it.
I’m still a long way from having them close to any kind of order, but some general thoughts so far…
– Really impressed with the number of quality players coming out this year. A lot of captain-types who definitely ping my Pats sense.
– For all the talk about Amaro, I’m focused more on the “Y” threesome of Seferian-Jenkins, Niklas,and Fiedorowicz. There are other F options down the line.
– As much as I’d love an undersized penetrating defensive lineman like Donald, I think the Pats would still lean towards a player like Hageman early on. Specialty rushers could be found later, not that I’m sure the Pats are ready for a specialty rusher like that.
– Taking a hard look at the pocket passers, including AJ McCarron. I think this is a good time to really look for a QB for Brady to help groom.
– Don’t love the cornerback or running back classes as far as the Pats are concerned.
– There are quite a few good centers. Sorting through them trying to find where the best value is and who is most desirable. The biggest thing as I see it is trying to get bigger at center and guard to deal with the middle pressure Brady struggles with so much.
– I like a lot of later round wide receivers as well. Haven’t quite found where the mid-round value guys are though.
– A collection of good hard-hitting strong safety types are sprinkled throughout the middle round range. I wouldn’t rule one of those guys out, especially if they bring a new dynamic to the safety group. That need will be easier to evaluate after free agency.
– Having a hard time finding good value on a defensive end who could contribute immediately. More and more I think they address the #3 DE need via free agency. They need to know they’re going to get something out of that spot and it’s too risky to rely on the draft for it. Pass rushing is an art form that is best developed with NFL experience.
First mock draft of the season will be out on B/R on Thursday. It will be a little rough, but on last year’s first mock draft I had both Dobson and Boyce, so maybe there’s something to be said for not over-thinking it.
Blogapalooza 2014: 3/29 at The Harp
If you’re going to be in Boston on March 29th, I encourage you to stop by The Harp for this year’s edition of Blogapalooza. Joe Gill, the man behind Boston Sports Then and Now, along with all the other Blogpaloozas going back to 2010, does an awesome job bringing the online community that loves Boston sports together.
It’s always a great event and a chance for bloggers and fans alike to mingle and share ideas. I actually met Frenz at Blogapalooza in November 2010. You’ll even have a chance to win some of the great stuff they raffle off, including a couple of the PatsPropaganda tees.
Get all the details here!
do you think the pats are set at least for next year at WR, if not why, and how do you think they will address it
There’s really an element of unknown with the Pats’ receiving corps right now. Of course, Edelman is a part of that, but even if he walks we really have no idea how happy or unhappy the Pats’ brass was about the development of Dobson, Thompkins and Boyce.
What about TJ Moe? Can he recover from a torn Achilles? Or Mark Harrison who blew up the combine with his measureables last season? Do they expect anything out of them?
Or how about Sa McGuffie, Reggie Dunn, or Greg Orton? Are any of them anything more than camp/practice squad fodder?
If we knew these answers we’d have a better gauge on how big of a target WR might be this offseason. Because right now it seems like they could stick with what they’ve got and count on improvement or they could add a high-profile guy and I wouldn’t be surprised.
My view: Edelman walks and they add a mid-range veteran free agent and draft another somewhere in the round 3 – 6 range.
After starters Chandler Jones and Rob Ninkovich, there was a noticeable drop on the depth chart in 2013. Even if Jones (98.1 percent of defensive snaps played) and Ninkovich (95.6 percent) come close to duplicating their ironman performances in 2014, a strong case could be made for reinforcements to give them a breather at times.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/after-starters-chandler-jones-and-rob-ninkovich/
Do you prefer two all around RBs or a multiple RBs with different strengths
I like it when everyone brings something different to the party. The Patriots are so gameplan specific it helps to have a selection of weapons to choose from whether they want to run an up-tempo, spread attack or a 22 personnel ground-and-pound.