mayoclinic

Coming on the heels of their positional rankins, Tony Pauline and TFYdraft today came out with a full 7 round mock draft:

TFY

They have the Pats picking #28 and have us taking (juniors with an asterix):

28. Jahvid Best*, RB, Cal
40. Jermaine Gresham, TE, Oklahoma
48. Tyson Alualu, DE, Cal
60. O'Brien Schofield, DE/OLB, Wisconsin
124. Shawn Lauvau, OG, Arizona St.
188. Rahem Alem, DE, LSU
213. Armanti Edwards, QB, Appalachian St.

Not a draft that I like. Some other noteworthy picks:

5. Oakland - Carlos Dunlap*, DE, Florida
8. Tennessee - Rolando McClain*, ILB, Alabama
12. Denver - Terrance Cody, DT, Alabama
13. Miami - Everson Griffen*, DE, USC
14. SF - Sergio Kindle, DE/OLB, Texas
15. NY Jets - Carmeron Heyward*, DE, Ohio St.
19. NY Giants - Derrick Morgan*, DE, Georgia Tech - I would hate for this to happen
21. Philadelphia - Brandon Spikes, ILB
25. Arizona - Bruce Campbell*, OT
26. Pittsburgh - Maurkice Pouncey*, C, Florida
27. Dallas - Taylor Mays, S, USC
34. Cleveland - Jerry Hughes, DE/OLB, TCU
35. Detroit - Mike Iupati, OG, Idaho
36. Tampa Bay - Sean Weatherspoon, LB, Missouri
37. Oakland - Tim Tebow, QB, Florida
47. NY Jets - Eric Norwood, LB, South Carolina
62. Minnesota - Vince Oghobasse, DE, Duke
65. St. Louis - Toby Gerhart, RB, Stanford
80. Jacksonville - Arthur Jones, DE, Syracuse
119. Denver - Dexter McCluster, RB/WR, Mississippi
131. Detroit - Greg Hardy, DE, Mississippi
181. Philadelphia - Zoltan Mesko, P, Michigan
189. Cincinnati - LeGarrette Blount, RB, Oregon

Hardy going 4th round is ridiculous, injury history or not.

Juniors who are left out (who I assume TFY thinks won't declare) include:

- Jason Pierre-Paul, DE, USF
- Greg Romeus, DE, Pittsburgh
- Jeremy Beal, DE/OLB, Oklahoma
- Joseph Barksdale, OT, LSU
- Ryan Mathews, RB, Fresno St.
- Jonathan Dwyer, RB, Georgia Tech
- Noel Devine, RB, West Virginia
- Gabe Carimi, OT, Wisconsin
- Adrian Clayborn, DE, Iowa
- Lawrence Marsh, DE, Florida
- Earl Wilson, S, Texas

I think it's unlikely that all of those guys stay in school. I also think Carlos Dunlap will slip due to inconsistency.

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Marqui

Greg Hardy drops to the 5th? I didn't know his injury was that bad.

mayoclinic

It's not. It's a wrist injury.

I don't understand why TFY lists Hardy as the #1 DE prospect and then has him drop to the 5th round. Makes no sense.

I can understand if teams drop Hardy a bit based on his injury history and he falls to the late 1st/early 2nd round. I can't see him falling later than that.

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SidelineSid

That mock was dumb. Pass rush is our biggest need. I don't think we waste anytime this year. Let's get the elite pass rusher that we need to take us to the next level. No more projects. I say we trade up with one of our second round picks for one of the better defensive linemen or McClain.

mayoclinic

I agree with you about focusing on the defensive front 7 (especially the pass rush). I would also focus on the OL and running game.

I'm not sure I like the idea of trading up for an "elite pass rusher". There are a lot of very good potential defensive linemen. Some are going to fall to within our range, without a tradeup. Consider (juniors with an asterix):

Guys Who Could Possibly Play 4-3 DE or the Elephant

- Carlos Dunlap*, DE, Florida. 6'6" 270+# athletic freak who could probably play the elephant for us. Upside is Julius Peppers. Could go top 10, but could slip based on inconsistency.
- Derrick Morgan*, DE, Georgia Tech. 6'4", 268#. Reminiscent of Shawne Merriman, with an intense motor. Plays run and pass both well. Likely top 20 at this point.
- Greg Hardy, DE, Mississippi. 6'5", 265#. Extremely talented, unstoppable when he's on. Top 15 talent, could slip out of 1st round due to injury concerns.
- Everson Griffen*, DE, USC. 6'3", 270+#, with very long arms. Extremely fast and agile for his bulk. Likely workout warrior, could go top 20 or 2nd round.
- Jason Pierre-Paul*, DE, USF. 6'6", 265# freak with 81" arms. Very raw, but huge upside. Likely workout warrior.
- Jeremy Beal*, DE, Oklahoma. 6'3", 260#. Makes plays all over the field. On no one's radar right now.
- Greg Romeus*, DE, Pittsburgh. 6'5", 265#. Extremely productive, with a non-stop motor.

Guys Who Could Possibly Play 3-4 OLB

- Sergio Kindle, DE/OLB, Texas. 6'4", 254#. Incredible athletic, fast off the edge.
- Jerry Hughes, DE/OLB, TCU. 6'3", 257#. Most productive sacker in NCAA football the past 2 years. Terrific motor.
- Eric Norwood, DE/LB, South Carolina. Very strong and versatile. Could also play SILB.
- Jeremy Beal*, DE/OLB, Oklahoma. See above.
- Brandon Graham, DE, Michigan. Compared by many to LaMarr Woodley.
- Ricky Sapp, DE/OLB, Clemson. Very fast off the edge. Has played in space.
- Brandon Lang, DE/OLB, Troy.
- O'Brian Schofield, DE/OLB, Wisconsin.
- Von Miller, DE/OLB, Texas A&M. Undersized terrific pass rusher in the Elvis Dumervil mold.
- Jermaine Cunningham*, DE, Florida. Underrated right now.

Guys Who Could Possibly Play the 5 Technique

- Ndamukong Suh, DE/DT, Nebraska. Concensus top 5 pick.
- Cameron Heyward*, DE, Ohio State. 6'6" 290# son of Ironhead Heyward, has terrific upside.
- Arthur Jones, DE/DT, Syracuse. 6'4", 295#. Injury history may cause him to drop.
- Jared Odrick, DE/DT, Penn State.
- Marvin Austin, DE/DT, North Carolina.
- Corey Wootton, DE, Northwestern. 6'7", 270+ with the frame to add more. Just recovering his pre-injury form.
- Adrian Clayborn*, DE, Iowa. Makes plays all over the field.
- Vince Oghobasse, DE/DT, Duke.
- Cameron Jordan*, DE, Cal. Son of former Vikings TE Steve Jordan is a disruptive force at the 5 technique.

Obviusly, not all of the juniors listed will come out, but the majority are likely to with the prospect of a rookie salary scale in 2011.

There's just too many talented guys likely to come out. And it's too early to really assess how they will end up being ranked. This time 2 years ago no one would have predicted Jerod Mayo as a top 10 pick. This time last year Sebastian Vollmer was an unknown, and Darius Butler rated as a 3rd rounder. A mere 2 months ago Derrick Morgan was a relative unknown.

I think this draft will be like 2009 in that it will have incredible red chip depth, but will be even stronger and deeper overall. With 4 day 1 picks again, I think BB will have another field day moving around.

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doesntmatter1

Predicting what Belichick will do in the draft is not always that hard. We obviously needed secondary help and many mock drafts had us taking chung and butler. Both are excellent players so far. Chung is basically James Sanders 2.0. I personally like Sanders. I feel that he is the most reliable open field tackler on the team and prevents many long td runs, but I knew his time was over when they drafted chung because he is/was known for his open field tackling ability. Sanders riding the bench is absolutely the best thing that could happen to this secondary because i could always see that he didn't have the speed to properly cover over the top(if you don't believe me watch how differently Hobbs played when Merriweather was over the top compared to when he had to rely on Sanders). And in my eyes Butler is already our best corner. No one on this team contests the deep ball like him. Others may be in good position but only Butler has showed the ability turn his head around and actually deflect the ball(our other cb s seem to just distract recievers by being near them without actually getting their head around.)

Sorry, i know I got off topic a little but now im focused. I truly believe Belichick will go offense heavy in the upcoming draft. With the 1st pick he will choose a pass rushing De that is more De than olb. This will also be insurance for jarvis green. We already have a few pass rushers on this team that i doubt a rookie could supplant anyway. Banta Cain and Burgess(he will be on this team next year after spending 2 picks for him) are not that bad and we still haven't seen what Crable can do. WE WILL draft a running back. I prefer a power back like ryan matthews but i would love jahvid best(hits holes much harder than spiller) just as much. Running back is a need for this team. Morris is one of our better backs but he seems to constantly injure his knee and you can't rely on a rb with bad legs. On to Maroney. Yes he has run hard this year but you can't lie to yourself and say that the pats can't upgrade. Personally, I think Maroney would do much better on another team and the pats could probably get a 4th maybe a 5th if they try to trade him after this season.

1st pick=derrick morgan 2nd=jahvid/ryan 3rd=best guard available 4th pick=Best tight end available(belichick can't help himself)

mayoclinic

I'm not as certain as you about predicting what BB will do. But in terms of what I think we need, I agree with several of your comments.

Derrick Morgan is probably my co-#1 prospect for the Pats along with Rolando McClain, but I think both go top 15. In my dreams we'd get both of them, but I doubt we get either. What separates Morgan from the other DE/elephant prospects to my mind are (1) his tremendous strength, and (2) his ability to set the edge and play the run just as well as he can rush the passer.

The 3 guys who I really like as DE/elephant pass rushers (as you say, "more DE than LB", but they can stand up effectively) are Greg Hardy, Jason Pierre-Paul, and Greg Romeus. All are 6'5" or better and can clog the passing lanes. All have a nice combination of speed, power and athleticism. All can really get after the passer. Romeus and Pierre-Paul are a bit raw but have tremendous upside, and have been progressing quickly this season. Hardy's injury may drop him to within reach. I'd be happy to get 2 out of those 3 guys. Everson Griffen and Carlos Dunlap seem more like 4-3 ends to me. The other guy I really like is a 5 technique guy, Cameron Heyward from Ohio St., who has been looking more and more like a young Richard Seymour. He's 6'6" and 290#, with a lot of upside. Depending on what happens with Adalius Thomas I could see one of the more traditional hybrid DE/OLBs like Sergio Kindle, Jerry Hughes, Jeremy Beal or possibly Eric Norwood being an option as well, but I personally like the idea of having a pair of 6'5"+ pass rushers at DE with Wilfork and Warren inside.

I'd use our other 2 day 1 picks on offense. I like the idea of a power back (Ryan Mathews or Jonathan Dwyer), but I really like the idea of a power line even more. If center Maurkice Pouncey comes out he has to get serious consideration, as Dan Koppen will be 31 next year and really struggles against the more powerful DTs. Mike Iupati would also be an option. And the guy I like most of all is junior OT Joseph Barksdale from LSU. He could really improve the right side of the OL. He current plays RT for LSU, has the feet of an elite LT, but has the power and aggressiveness of a dominating RT who can really drive to the second level.

Again, I really can't predict what BB will do, but those are the guys who I would like to see us target in the first 2 rounds.

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FreeTedWilliams

I see alot of mocks that have the Pats coming out of the 2nd round with C.J. Spiller RB, Clemson, and Jermain Gresham, TE Oklahoma with the picks from Jacksonville and Tennessee. That would be absolutley perfect!

Spiller is a 3rd down back, electric out of the backfield in the passing game, and a great returner. He is going to be a very good NFL player.

Gresham is a big speedy TE, who is going to slip to the 2nd round because he has missed most of this year with injury. At 6'5" 265, that is one big target for TFB.

I think the first rd pick is going to depend on wether or not the Pats re-sign Big Vince, but these two can both be had in the 2nd rd, and it would be a steal.

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mayoclinic

Why would that be perfect?

Both are fine players. I have nothing against either. But, assuming we can re-sign Watson, there is no need to use a high pick on a pass-receiving TE like Gresham given our other needs. And Spiller (or Jahvid Best, another common pick) are fine all-purpose backs, but you can usually find those kind of guys in the middle rounds just like we found Kevin Faulk in the 3rd round. A 1st or high 2nd round pick on what you call a "3rd down back" doesn't make sense to me. Noel Devine and Dexter McClutcheon are guys who should be available in the 3rd/5th round. And I think we need a power running game (both in terms of our OL and in terms of a RB) much more than we need that kind of back.

I personally wouldn't use our early picks in these areas when we have other needs that are much more urgent.

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FreeTedWilliams

Spiller does absolutely everything for Clemson. He has 4.3 speed (maybe faster), he is much more than a 3rd down back.

Player Bio: C.J. Spiller - CLEMSON UNIVERSITY OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE

He is a great returner, and he is SMART!!

will graduate in three-and-a-half years on December 17, 2009. Made first-team Academic All-ACC last year when he made the Dean's List. First Clemson running back to make first-team Academic All-ACC and first-team All-ACC on the field in same year in school history. ...rated among the top 15 players in the nation for the NFL draft by Mel Kiper...also a three-time All-American in track for the Tigers...first-team Strength All-American in 2008...has career best time of 6.58 in the 60 and 10.22 in the 100 meters.


A fast, smart,versitaile player who excells in special teams and you don't think he is worth a 2nd round pick????

Add this kid to the Maroney, Taylor, Faulk mix and the Pats are set.

as for Gresham, the Pats need another TE, especilly if they do not re-sign Watson. Gresham has the size to block and guys like this are a nightmare for defenses because they have to cover them with a safety, which takes a LB off the feild, and turns into a blocking mismatch with 6'5" 260 TE versus 5'10" 195 Saftey in the running game.

Don't get me wrong the very first thing the Pats need is a pass rusher. I just don't see any of them out there that will fit BB system. I think that is where the 1st rd pick will go. I still say that if the Pats can turn those 2 extra picks into Spiller and Gresham, it would be perfect.

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