patchick

(Advance warning: bear with me on a convoluted concept and a rough attempt to sort out splintered, fractional trades...)

Heading into the 2007 draft, many of us felt it was unusually weak for Patriots-type players. The Patriots apparently felt so too, aggressively trading out of the draft. How much different is one draft from another, really? Let's take a look at the picks they did and didn't use in 2007, and compare.

2007 Picks available heading into the free agency period, by round:
1, 1
2
3
4, 4
5
6, 6, 6
7, 7

Wow. Of those, they actually drafted:
1, 4, 5, 6, 6, 6, 7, 7 -- 8 players (after trades).
Of those 8, only 1 (Brandon Meriweather) remains on the roster a year later.

They traded away:
1, 2, 3, 4, 7 -- 5 picks. (The difference between the picks used vs. traded in 2007 is 5, 6, 6, 6, 7 vs. 2 & 3...but wait, the trades also netted them an extra #2 for 2009! So it's even in terms of draft "capital" spent both ways.)
Of the resulting players, the following remain on the roster:
Jerod Mayo
Shawn Crable
Wes Welker
Matthew Slater
Randy Moss

Given how poorly the picks they did exercise in 2007 turned out, is there any chance that using the other half would have yielded the same bonanza they got through trades?

In retrospect, 2007 looks like brilliant management of a truly crappy draft.

BPF

2007 was considered a very weak draft class overall and viewed that way by many around the league. It's obvious the Pats felt that way because they continually traded out of that draft. Conversly, 2008 was considered a strong overall class and we see the results so far.

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"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit."
Aristotle

"I know nothing except the fact of my ignorance."
Socrates

STH since 1994....sec 236

Wildo7

That's a very good point and if you look at it in terms of draft quality vs. the return on talent, the Pats had a very strong draft. If Merriweather turns out how we want him to then you are looking at adding 3 pro-bowl caliber players to a team that went to the AFCCG the year before.

loosebearing

Not to mention but half of the 8 picks (5, 6, 6, 7) they did make in 2007 were compensatory picks which you are not allowed to trade. Betcha that torked BB and Pioli

As someone mentioned in another thread, they don't rebuild - they reload. The roster is composed of FA, the draft, trades, and UDFA. They use the draft as a spark for building the roster. Not the number one source.

Jimke

One out of eight draft choices making a team is not a good draft.

In retrospect, they should have packaged their picks like the Jets

to get a better player in round one.

signbabybrady

Do you not think we made a good rd one pick last year?

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patchick

In retrospect, they should have packaged their picks to move up in a weak draft rather than trading them for Jerod Mayo, Wes Welker, Shawn Crable and Randy Moss?

BelichickFan

Didn't you read the original post ??? Fine. Package the two #1s - who are you going to get that would be better than Mayo and Meriweather combined ? Maybe Patrick Willis but that's picking the one perfect guy. It's very difficult to argue with what they did looking at the names now.

Patsfanin Philly

I could give you 36 million reasons NOT to trade up and overpay for an unproven rookie. Revis may be good but not at that cap busting contract that voids after 4 years.......

BelichickFan

I'm guessing he didn't read your original post - either that or he's been drinking heavily.

Great work on the OP by the way.