jeffbiologist

With all the talk about the RBs being deep in the 08 draft I cant help but think that our spot in the 3rd rd wouldnt have been a great place to find one. I think all 3 of our RBs will be due a new contract within a year or 2 right? I cant help but think we could have "hid/redshirt" the guy in STs for a year. With guys like Smith and Charles and others still available in the 3rd rd to me its our biggest question of the 08 draft......trading for what is bound to be a very late 2nd rd pick. Yes, we can get a RB next year with that pick, but who is to say he will be as good as what we could have had here.....and I know BB likes Eckel but to think he cant be upgraded is kind of foolish right?

dryheat44

Fear not, next year is going to be just as loaded as this year at RB, led by Wells, Hill, Davis, Moreno, Lucky, Foster, and maybe Spiller. Too many talented kids, not enough NFL jobs. The FA market should be ripe too. Heck, guys like Shaun Alexander and Cedric Benson can't get a contract, and there will be a bunch of guys cut during camp looking for homes.

I'd like to see Lamont Jordan come here on a 1-2 year deal for little money to compete with Morris. He's always been productive when he's had a decent offensive line, and he's great in the passing game.

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When it's third and 10, you can have the milk drinkers and I'll take the whiskey drinkers every time. -- R.I.P. Max McGee

Jimke

A lot of juniors are supposedly concerned about possible changes

in the CBA with regard to rookie salaries. For this reason, the

2009 draft may have more underclassmen than normal. Perhaps, the

Patriots will spend one of their second round picks on a running back.

Faulk and Morris will have played another year and might be at the

end of the line by this time.

ctpatsfan77

Kevin Faulk carries, 1999-2007: 694
LaDainian Tomlinson carries, 2006-2007: 663

So why are we so concerned about Kevin Faulk falling apart in the immediate future?

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"Momentum was quickly snatched away by New England, who once again proved that any Patriot, at any moment, can make a play." —Inside the NFL, Packers v. Patriots

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BelizePats

There are a couple of issues at play here with how the Pats handled their 3rd that they traded to SD. I kind of agree with you regarding the need for a bit of new blood at the RB position and I was really hoping that Kevin Jones would sign with us for precisely this reason.
The one thing we do know here is that there will be a glut of quality runnuing backs available in the 2009 draft. But why trade that 3rd for what will almost surely end up as a very high second? How much is actually gained from this trade?
While none of us can really know what BB and SP are actually thinking regarding this question, we certainly can speculate. And with 3 days left until training camp starts, it's either this or actually doing some work.
From where I sit, the trade makes sense, even though we won't be jumping up a whole lot of slots because of how good San Diego is. Yes, it is possible that San Diego has a rotten injury plagued season and finishes up 8-8. However, it's far more likely that they will get into the playoffs and winning a game or two while there.
Its clear to me that a fundamental component of BB's draft strategy is to bank future picks whenever the situation allows. He clearly likes to have additional ammo at the draft and San Diegos high 2 fits nicely into this strategy. The flexibility that this allows him at the draft is something that he places a great deal of priority on. Its funny but I can't think of another GM who does this to the extent that BB does. Maybe he uses it to trade up when someone he really wants slides? Maybe he flips it with another pick for another teams 1st in 2010?
Regardless of what he actually does, it certainly gives him options and that can never be a bad thing for us.
For the 2009 draft, it looks as though we'l have our 1st, 2 seconds (ours and San Diegos) 2 thirds, (ours plus the comp pick for losing Assante) and 2 fouths (ours plus the comp pick for losing Stallworth)
Thats a $hitload of picks.
Dynasties are built through the draft and in 2009, if we use them all, we have 5 of the top 100 players coming out. This is how dynatsies are built.
I love that San Diego 2nd. If used properly (and BB and SP have a pretty good track overall) the pick will bring us something very nice. I guarentee it!
Respects,

Rich

ctpatsfan77

Don't forget, though, that it wasn't 2008 3 => 2009 2, it was 2008 3 => 2009 2 + 2008 5. Looking at the whole of the draft, the Pats started out with

7 - 62 - 69 - 94 - 129 - 164 - 197 - 238 and turned it into
10 - 62 - 78 - 94 - 129 - 153 - 197, a 2009 2, and a couple million bucks saved.

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"Momentum was quickly snatched away by New England, who once again proved that any Patriot, at any moment, can make a play." —Inside the NFL, Packers v. Patriots

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BelizePats

You are quite right in terms of my oversite. It makes the deal even better. I'll readily admit that I drink the Kool Aid every day. I'm sure that that late 2 in 2009 will pay off bigtime at some point!!

jeffbiologist

My point is that I dont ever like having 2 rookies at the same position at the same time because it divides learning focus. If we took a guy in the 3rd and he replaces Eckel this year, then we can still take one next year and so on....My bet is 4 years from now all 3 of these RBs on the roster are gone so why not groom a guy? I would say that one of the guys I mentioned WITH A YEAR IN THE SYSTEM will be better than anyone at that point in the draft next year.
Kool aid aside, the only reason not to do this is to basically postpone paying a guy 3rd rd $$ where you can pay a guy FA $$. Maybe at the bottom of the roster that makes a difference....but I say get as many guys coached up with this staff as soon as possible. Some people put $$ in the bank too, but some of us USE our money to make more $$ THIS YEAR. All I know is when its BBs last season I want to see him start mortgaging the future to insure a SB win. YES, at that point it will be worth it!

bradmahn

The San Diego trade is a good one because it gives the front office ammunition to make significant moves next year. A second round pick is more valuable than a third rounder in any trade scenario (for players or draft position) and I don't think we can overlook that point even if it does only turn out to be a jump of 10-15 spots. When you have three picks in the round, to be able to move one a year ahead (and improve position) while also filling a full-round-gap in selections is immense.

The concerns at RB are beginning to become ridiculously overstated, in my opinion. We have a young, former first round pick who came into his own at the end of last season, a very sturdy back up in Morris who has versatility, and the best third down back in the league. Where is a rookie going to get snaps? If any one of those three were to go down, the other two are capable of picking up the slack, especially when you consider the strength of the passing game.

Sure it would be nice to run four deep at the position, but depth comes with a price (in roster spots, dollars, development, draft picks). It just isn't worth it to this team to forgo a future second rounder (and the luxury that entails) to waste a spot on a player who will be wiling away a year of his rookie contract on the bench or special teams when Kyle Eckel (for instance) can provide the same thing for much cheaper.

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I don't like Dungy and that's because he [was] the head coach of the Colts. Period. End of question. The degree to which I like a player or coach is predicated solely on the color of the laundry they wear on Sunday. When fans admit this and stop bashing players and coaches for any other reason, the world of sports will be infinitely improved.

ctpatsfan77

I doubt it; Belichick has too much respect for the organization to do that.

Remember the Patriots mission statement: "''We are building a big, strong, fast, smart, tough and disciplined football team that consistently competes for championships.'' In other words--they want to win now and win later.

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"Momentum was quickly snatched away by New England, who once again proved that any Patriot, at any moment, can make a play." —Inside the NFL, Packers v. Patriots

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