Considering the work ethic Logan Ryan has had since he was just a child, it’s no surprise that the Patriots decided to draft him in the third round of this year’s NFL Draft. (PHOTO: USA TODAY Images)

---

FOXBORO, MA — Bill Belichick is known for being drawn to hard working, high character guys and it seems like defensive back Logan Ryan is someone who fits the mold of what the Patriots’ future Hall of Fame head coach generally looks for.

The third round pick out of Rutgers is a player who from the time he was young has had an incredible amount of drive and determination. That’s even been further reinforced along the way by his father, who has been extremely supportive throughout the newly acquired cornerback’s development.

According to the New Jersey Star Ledger it started when Ryan was just 8 years old. At the time Ryan told his father he wanted to play in the NFL and his father told him he needed to work harder in order to achieve those dreams.  As a result, Ryan scribbled “D-1″ onto an index card and taped it to his bed so that when he woke up each morning he’d see it.

From there it was the blood, sweat and tears of both he and his father working together while using various equipment including medicine balls and free weights in their backyard, with his father putting him through workouts and pushing him from that point on. One article in the Star Ledger last November described those workouts, which were certainly intense. Logan’s father had him catch 100 balls with each hand and 100 more from his knees. He learned to jam a reciever by also going up against his dad, who himself was a talented football player.

It even continued all the way through college and helped drive him toward becoming one of the best defensive backs in college football.  It’s rare to see that type of relationship and it’s even more unusual to see a player maintain that type of work ethic and remain so dedicated.

That’s the reason it’s so hard for many of them to get to the next level, as well as why even fewer of them go on to become successful.

Ryan plans on making sure that isn’t the case.  He told the New Jersey Star Ledger when he declared for the draft that he didn’t want to just be drafted, he wanted to become a great player in the National Football League.

“It’s just the start of the dream, really,” Ryan said of declaring. “No one wants to just declare for the draft. I want to play in the NFL. I want to be great.”

Logan Ryan says he wants to be a great player in the NFL, and he’ll get his chance here in New England. (FILE:USPresswire)

He’s already modeled himself after Patriots defensive back Devin McCourty, who is a former teammate of Ryan.  According to the rookie, McCourty was a big influence on him during his redshirt freshman season, helping him both in the film room and on the practice field.  After McCourty was drafted the two stayed in touch, with the Patriots defensive back texting Ryan each week during the season.

During a win over Pittsburgh during the 2011 season McCourty watched his former protege make his first career interception before later adding another that he returned for a touchdown.  It made him feel good watching Ryan succeed.

“It’s like watching one of your good friends,” McCourty told the Star Ledger that week. “It’s almost like when I watch (his twin brother) Jason play, I go crazy, too. Watching a lot of those guys out there, it’s just a great feeling.”

“I always feel like I have a close connection to the DBs and watching them play and make plays is just a great feeling. I feel like a big brother.”

Now McCourty has a chance to line up next to Ryan in the coming months and will once again become his mentor.  Ryan told the media during his conference call that he’s come a long way since the two first met and he’s excited about the opportunity that he has ahead of him.

“The relationship that Devin and I have goes beyond words,” said Ryan. “He’s a guy that helped me make the transition coming from being a talented high school player to becoming a college corner, and now for him to be there for this next step – I’ve grown up over the years – I’m not that 18-year-old boy anymore.

“To have the opportunity to compete alongside him in practice every day and the work ethic that he brings and the great leader that he is – I’m just honored to be able to play alongside him and [be in] the Patriots organization.”

He’s got his work cut out for him, but like McCourty he’s a guy who is a great tackler and according to most scouting reports, he has good technique and is constantly around the football.  The only knock on him seems to be that he sometimes doesn’t get his head around quick enough to look for the ball, which obviously could see him get hit with a flag in the NFL.

For the Patriots, the odds are pretty good that he won’t be asked to do too much early on as he learns the system. However, knowing his work ethic and his desire to be successful, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him eventually battle his way into the line-up.  The good news is he’s a guy who is willing to do whatever it takes and he just really loves playing football.  That’s one prerequisite that never goes unnoticed with Belichick and as a result it’s not exactly shocking that he ended up in New England.

In the months ahead he’ll begin immersing himself in the Patriots’ scheme but he doesn’t sound intimidated by what lies ahead.  Whether it’s man coverage or zone, Ryan says he’ll do whatever he’s asked to do in New England’s defense.

“At Rutgers, we did a little bit of both [man-to-man and zone] in that we were high-pressure and ran NFL complex schemes, which was something that we had great success doing and Rutgers asked me to do a lot of man and zone, and be able to tackle and play special teams,” said Ryan. “I’m a guy that doesn’t like to come off the field and I’m a guy that wants to win games and will do whatever it takes to win games.”

He sounds like a Patriot already.

Now that the NFL Draft is over, the Patriots spent the rest of last night bringing in a group of players who are likely disappointed – and probably as a result now extremely motivated – they weren’t selected.

According to our friends at NEPatriotsDraft.com, the team added 16 undrafted free agents including four offensive linemen. That was an area the team didn’t address during the draft and it should be interesting to see if any of them can earn a roster spot considering how important depth has always been up front.

The team also brought in two additional receivers as well as two tight ends, so things are shaping up to be quite competitive as we get closer to rookie minicamps and OTA’s.

Here’s the complete list:

Stephon Morris, CB – Penn State
Quentin Hines, RB – Akron
Zach Sudfeld, TE – Nevada
Matt Stankiewitch, OL – Penn State
T.J. Moe, WR - Missouri
Josh Kline, OL – Kent State
Brandon Jones, CB – Rutgers
Ben Bartholomew, FB – Tennessee
Kanorris Davis, SS – Troy
Elvis Fisher, OT – Missouri
Brandon Ford, TE – Clemson
Kenbrell Thompkins, WR – Cincinnati
Ryan Allen, P – La Tech
Cory Grissom, DT – South Florida
Chris McDonald, OL – Michigan State
Dwayne Cherrington, DT – Mississippi State

For those wondering who any of these players are and dismissing their potential impact, WEEI’s Christopher Price pointed out a big fact about the make up of New England’s roster in terms of how it relates to their current team:

For you guys asking “Who?” when it comes to the UDFA’s, Pats had 29 undrafted guys on the roster before draft opened. HUGE part of team.

— Christopher Price (@cpriceNFL) April 28, 2013

In 2010 the Patriots used three picks on three players from the University of Florida when they selected Aaron Hernandez, Brandon Spikes, and Jermaine Cunningham.

Steve Beauharnais became the third player selected out of Rutgers on Saturday. (FILE:USPresswire)

Three years later it seems as though they may have decided that Rutgers was where they’d grab their talent, grabbing cornerback Logan Ryan and safety Duran Harmon in the 3rd round on Friday, and finally linebacker Steve Beauharnais in the 7th round on Saturday.

Beauharnais seems to fit the mold that Bill Belichick tends to appreciate as he’s a guy who is a hard worker and a guy who was spotted frequently watching film after hours of an opposing team.

He’s worked hard despite being overshadowed by teammate Khaseem Greene, who was a guy who grabbed much of the spotlight during his tenure at the University.  Greene went to the Bears in the fourth round, but Beauharnais seems to be a guy who is hungry and now has a chance to make a name for himself here in New England.

Interestingly enough Beauharnais was also a captain, which is a characteristic that Belichick appreciates.  His work ethic was also something he tried to instill in his teamates as according to the Star Ledger he also set up private meetings during the offseason helping younger linebackers learn the defense.

“He had the unique ability to lead his peers. That’s a quality that’s rare in most people, especially young people,” his head coach Kyle Flood told the newspaper. “He was willing to hold everybody else to the same high standards that he held himself to, and that was at all times.”

According to the newspaper Beauharnais worked out for Belichick and his son Stephen a couple of weeks ago and it appears he liked him enough to select him on Saturday.

Needless to say he should be an interesting player to watch in the coming months.

Michael Buchanan seems like he could be a hidden gem for the Patriots. (FILE:USPresswire)

The Patriots have done a decent job in grabbing guys who are value picks at their positions and they managed to grab another one when they selected Illinois defensive end Michael Buchanan on Saturday.

Buchanan was a guy that many publications had pinned as a potential 4th or 5th round draft pick and he appears to be a solid pick up for the Patriots defense.  He’s a guy that during his breakout season in 2011 racked up 64 tackles including 13.5 for a loss along with 7.5 sacks.

He’s also another guy who has an interesting back story.  After his junior season some actually felt he could be a first round pick, but he suffered a broken jaw following an altercation that forced him to have his jaw wired shut.  The all liquid diet he was on ultimately caused him to lose a reported 20 pounds, which seemed to cause him to struggle during his senior season.

As a result his stock dropped but he’s a guy who seems to have the talent and just needs some bulk to return to being the type of player he was earlier in his collegiate career.

“I shouldn’t have put myself in that situation in the first place,” he told the Chicago Sun Times recently regarding the altercation. “I did have some issues, as far as my weight, but we had new coaches and everyone bought into the system, but we didn’t start figuring things out until late in the season.”

He’s now back up to 252 pounds and told the newspaper he’s never been healthier.

“That’s good for me.  The teams I’ve received the most interest from, they see me as a 3-4 outside linebacker,” he said. “But I think I can get up to whatever a team asks me to do.”

Sounds like he could be a guy who could surprise some people this season.

The Patriots found out recently that running back Jeff Demps heart seemed to be more into continuing his track career than playing football.

On Saturday they decided to let him do just that – albeit with another team.

According to published reports New England sent Demps to Tampa Bay in exchange for Buccaneers running back LeGarrette Blount along with a seventh round pick.

It’s somewhat disappointing but only because Demps showed so much promise during last year’s preseason.  He showed explosive speed and agility both in the return game as well as his ability to make plays in the open field and really seemed poised to come back strong this year after a knee injury caused him to end up on injured reserve.

Unfortunately Demps decision to pursue his track and field career left seemed to leave them with no other choice other than to move on and now the Buccaneers will be left to carry around a player who’s NFL dreams are more of a “maybe” at this point judging by his agent’s comments recently. 

For New England, Blount is a player who two seasons ago rushed for 1,007 yards on 201 carries and gives the Patriots some size and speed in their backfield.  He’s 6’0″ 247 pounds and well over 20 pounds heavier than Stevan Ridley (5’11″, 220 pounds) and more than 40 pounds heavier than Shane Vereen (5’9″ 205 pounds).

How he’ll fit into the offense here in New England remains to be seen. Ridley is clearly the incumbent starter this year coming off of a season where he rushed for 1263 yards including 82 first downs and 12 touchdowns, so it will be interesting to see where Blount could fit in. If nothing else he provides them some additional depth and he seemingly could push Brandon Bolden for a roster spot. Otherwise it’s a minimal risk for a guy the Patriots know wants to play football compared to the guy they just let go of.

He does have some character issues and some may remember him from an incident following a loss to Boise State in college where he punched opponent Byron Hout as well as his own teammate, Garrett Embry, who was trying to restrain him.

The incident was caught on video on ESPN (seen below) and it got him suspended for the rest of the 2009 season.

After signing with the Tennessee Titans as an undrafted free agent, he had a similar incident as a rookie. In that altercation his own teammate ripped his helmet off by defensive end Eric Bakhtiari and Blount threw a punch which connected with Bakhtiari’s facemask. However, then head coach Jeff Fisher took Blount’s side after it happened and Blount apologized for his role in the incident.

He was later placed on waivers by the Titans with the intention of putting him on their practice squad, but Tampa Bay stole him away by claiming him off waivers.

The Patriots grabbed another receiver in Josh Boyce to start off Day 2 of the 2013 NFL Draft. (FILE:USPresswire)

After an interesting day two for the New England Patriots, they made their first selection on day three after taking Josh Boyce out of TCU in the 4th round (102nd overall).

Boyce becomes the second wide receiver taken so far during the 2013 NFL Draft, joining Aaron Dobson as another big physical edge receiver for Tom Brady to target this season.

According to several scouting reports he’s a guy who can play both in the slot as well as outside, which should allow the Patriots to use him to create match-up issues.  Clearly New England is addressing what up to this point has been one of their biggest needs and it seems like they got decent value with this pick.

He probably would have gone higher, but he didn’t work out at his pro day after undergoing foot surgery following fracturing his pinkie toe at the NFL Combine.

The former Horned Frog caught 66 passes for 891 yards and 7 touchdowns last season.

Here’s a highlight of a 66yd touchdown he scored where he showed some pretty good elusiveness on a wide receiver screen, something as we know the Patriots do like to run here:

Having been to the Patriots pre-draft event just a few weeks ago, the fact they had so much tape on Marshall wide receiver Aaron Dobson should have been a strong indication about how they felt about him as a player.

Aaron Dobson was quite an impressive player during his tenure with Marshall. (FILE:USPresswire)

As I wrote while I was there, the team showed quite a bit of film of him featuring some incredible receptions Dobson made during his collegiate career and it was a highlight reel that was nothing short of spectacular.  That display had fans buzzing about him on their way out of the stadium that afternoon and Friday night the Patriots selected him with the 52nd overall selection in the second round.

Most scouting reports call Dobson the most promising pro receiver prospect to come out of Marshall since Randy Moss. We all know the type of player Moss was during his time here in New England, as well as the fact Bill Belichick considered him among the smartest players he had ever coached.
 
Friday night Belichick also used that all important word to describe Dobson, as well as praising his athleticism.

“He was a great high school basketball player and football player,” said Belichick.  ”[He was] very productive at Marshall, had a real good Senior Bowl.”

“He’s big, he’s fast, he’s got good hands, he’s a strong player.  [He's] smart, very smart.  He’s got some position flexibility and versatility.  Catches the ball very well, so we’ll see how it goes.”

Many young players have struggled in the Patriots’ system in recent years largely because of their inability to grasp it.  Moss was a player who understood it well and thrived during his career here, which is something they’ve been missing.  If Dobson can settle in, he could potentially be just the guy to come into New England and finally become a young impact receiver in their offense.

He already comes in with a reputation of being a guy who doesn’t drop a lot of passes, having not dropped a pass during his senior season, which is something he says he’s proud of.

“I definitely take pride in that,” Dobson told reporters during a conference call Friday night. “Me being a receiver, that’s what we do. That’s how we make our money so I definitely take pride in that.”

Another interesting note is the fact Dobson told reporters that “post-snap” adjustments are something he’s “familiar with”, which should be good news considering that’s been a sticking point for even the veteran players who have passed through here in recent years.  Given his physical attributes hopefully Dobson will start creating his own highlight reel in a Patriots uniform.

He also admitted that he had spoken to the team prior to the draft and had even visited Foxboro, saying that the team had shown interest.  Now here he is, starting his pro career catching passes from Tom Brady, which is something he’s looking forward to now that he’s a member of the Patriots.

“It’s an exciting time,” said Dobson. “Just to have the opportunity to play in the NFL and to play for a great team like the Patriots.”

“It’s just a blessing from the man above. I’m just excited to hit the ground running.”

If you’d like a taste of what this kid can do, check out the video below:

Last year the Patriots were looking to add an impact player when they selected Chandler Jones out of Syracuse and Friday night that’s the direction they went in yet again, selecting linebacker/defensive end Jamie Collins out of Southern Mississippi.

Jamie Collins is a guy who Bill Belichick considers to be a versatile player for his defense.. (FILE:USPresswire)

Heading into college Collins wasn’t even a defensive player and was actually a former high school quarterback. He was also a guy who was used to winning, having won back-to-back state championships during his sophomore and junior seasons.  In college, he enjoyed some early success but his final season didn’t go quite as well.

His team went 7-6 in 2009, followed by 8-5 in 2010 and 11-2 in 2011 where they beat Nevada in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl 24-17.

However, at the end of the 2011 season head coach Larry Fedora accepted an offer to take the head coaching job at North Carolina. The move didn’t work out too well for Collins or the Golden Eagles football team. From there new head coach Ellis Johnson directed the team to an 0-12 season in 2012, which according to several reports caused Collins not to play as hard as a probably should have because he wasn’t completely pleased with the coaching staff.

Collins told reporters Friday night that even though the team was losing, he was still playing hard during every game.

“I felt like I had to play hard every game just because we were losing,” Collins said. “I felt like that was going to draw a lot of attention to me to see how I played, despite that we went 0-12.”

Unfortunately it wasn’t enough and their overall record ultimately left Johnson without a job after just one season.

Now here Collins is, playing for a football team who has never experienced a losing season since Tom Brady took over as quarterback back in 2001, so losing shouldn’t be something he’ll need to get used to.  He’s also already familiar with Bill Belichick, telling reporters Friday night that the two have “talked a lot and watched some film,” so it appears Belichick felt comfortable enough with Collins to bring him in.

He’s got an interesting back story. Having been a quarterback in high school Collins actually started out his collegiate career as a safety but moved over to defensive end during his senior season, totaling 10 sacks.  It’s an intriguing transition and as we know, Belichick’s a guy who loves versatility. Now he’s got a guy who’s played several positions and while he won’t be taking snaps under center and probably won’t be playing safety, the good thing about a player like that is the fact he understands the roles of each position which will certainly make him a big asset.  

As a result he’s a guy who appears can rush the passer as well as drop into coverage and Collins even enters the NFL with a 97 yard interception return for a touchdown that he made in college on his resume.  Plus, according to Belichick, he’s played inside linebacker as well as outside in the 3-4 defense, which seems to make him a good fit in this system.

Belichick also compared Collins to Dont’a Hightower, who like Collins is another guy who fits the versatility mold defensively.   Now it’s just a matter of the rookie being able to come in and prove he can be a productive player.

“He has a lot of versatility,” Belichick told reporters Friday night.  ”[He's a] solid player, hard worker, great kid.”

“He was basically a defensive end last year, his sophomore year he was more of an off the line linebacker, his freshman year he was a safety and his junior year he was a 3/4 outside linebacker where he was on the line but he was in coverage, where as this past year he really wasn’t in coverage very often.  So he has a lot of versatility, but we’ll see how it goes.”

The NFL held their annual schedule release show on Thursday night, with the entire season now in place as fans finally get to see how the 2013 campaign will play out.

For the Patriots, they’ll open up with a 1:00pm game on the road against the Buffalo Bills before returning to Foxboro for a nationally televised Thursday night game at Gillette Stadium.

Here’s a look at the entire schedule (Home games in Bold, Nationally Televised Games in Red):

Week 1: Sun Sept 8th at Buffalo Bills 1:00pm on CBS
Week 2: Thurs Sept 12nd vs NY Jets 8:25pm NFL Network
Week 3: Sun Sept 22nd vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1:00pm FOX
Week 4: Sun Sept 29th at Atlanta Falcons 8:30pm NBC
Week 5: Sun Oct 6th at Cincinnati Bengals 1:00pm CBS
Week 6: Sun Oct 13th vs New Orleans Saints 4:25pm FOX
Week 7: Sun Oct 20th at NY Jets 1:00pm CBS
Week 8: Sun Oct 27th vs Miami Dolphins 1:00pm CBS
Week 9: Sun Nov 3rd vs Pittsburgh Steelers 4:25pm CBS
Week 10: BYE WEEK
Week 11: Mon Nov 18th at Carolina Panthers 8:40pm ESPN
Week 12: Sun Nov 24th vs Denver Broncos 8:30pm NBC
Week 13: Sun Dec 1st at Houston Texans 4:25pm CBS
Week 14: Sun Dec 8th vs Cleveland Browns 1:00pm CBS
Week 15: Sun Dec 15th at Miami Dolphins 1:00pm CBS
Week 16: Sun Dec 22nd at Baltimore Ravens 8:30pm NBC
Week 17: Sun Dec 29th vs Buffalo Bills 1:00pm CBS

For those wondering about the Pre Season, here’s a look at that as well:

Friday Aug 9th at Philadelphia Eagles 7:30pm
Friday Aug 16th vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers 8:00pm
Thurs Aug 22nd at Detroit Lions 7:30pm
Thurs Aug 29th vs New York Giants

After Wes Welker bolted to Denver via free agency, newly acquired receiver Danny Amendola has received a mixed response here in New England due to his injury history and because of who he was replacing.

Late Monday night he may have changed a few minds after the former Rams wideout made quite a promise following the devastating bombing that happened at the Boston Marathon.  The veteran has pledged to donate $100 for every pass he catches during the 2013 season, as well as $200 for any dropped pass:

I will DONATE $100 for EVERY pass I catch next season to whatever “Boston Marathon Relief Fund” there is. And $200 for any dropped pass.

— Danny Amendola (@DannyAmendola) April 16, 2013

That’s quite a gesture from a guy who is new to the area and hasn’t even played a game in front of fans here in New England yet. However, after last night he’s made quite an impression and as a result touched plenty of people thanks to this promise.  

Needless to say it’s just one more reason to root for him to have a productive year here in New England.