Gil Brandt says Pats will take a LB at #23

[NE39]

In the Giants Blog for the NY Daily news, they note 10 things Brandt says about the upcoming draft, among them that the Pats are taking a LB at #23.

Here is the list of 10:

• LSU DE Tyson Jackson will go in the Top 5. Not might. Will. This qualified as the biggest shocker, to me, since almost every mock draft I looked at pegged Jackson to be a mid- to late first-rounder at best. I thought the Top 5 was pretty locked in, too. But, of course, I shouldn’t have doubted Mr. Brandt. I asked around after the show to see if I could confirm it, and sure enough one NFL source I know did tell me he’s heard the Kansas City Chiefs might take Jackson at No. 3, or trade down and take him a few picks later.
• The Seattle Seahawks, at No. 4, will likely select either Texas Tech WR Michael Crabtree or USC QB Mark Sanchez.
• Crabtree will fall somewhere between Picks 4 and 10, though given the variables it was impossible to guess exactly where.
• The Oakland Raiders will take a receiver at No. 7 (and it’s hard to imagine them passing on Crabtree if he’s available, so I suppose we can narrow down Crabtree’s placement to 4-7).
• There will be no defensive backs taken in the Top 10.
• The Saints, at No. 14, are looking for a big cornerback, and Ohio State’s Malcolm Jenkins is a good bet to be their guy.
• The New England Patriots, at No. 23 will take a linebacker.
• Oklahoma T Phil Loadholt (6-7, 332) will go in the first round of the draft. His teammate, G Duke Robinson (6-5, 330, and the top-rated guard on most boards), will not.
• Cincinnati DE Connor Barwin didn’t begin this process as a first-rounder, but he has managed to sneak himself into the bottom of the first round.
• The Buffalo Bills are targeting a DE with the 11th pick (and not Tennessee DE Robert Ayers, by the way). They are also pretty high on Oklahoma State TE Brandon Pettigrew, but aren’t likely to take him unless they trade down a few spots. (Important note: Things have obviously changed a little since then, since the Bills acquired a second first-round pick from Philadelphia in the Jason Peters trade. Now the Bills have both the 11th and 28th pick. Of course, they also have an obvious need for a tackle).

It is worth a read, as Brandt still has good NFL connections and sounds pretty sure.

 

[mayoclinic]

In the Giants Blog for the NY Daily news, they note 10 things Brandt says about the upcoming draft, among them that the Pats are taking a LB at #23.

Here is the list of 10:

It is worth a read, as Brandt still has good NFL connections and sounds pretty sure.

It's not too hard to put the Patriots LB in the 1st rumor and the Barwin in the 1st comment together.

So Don Banks has us taking Darius Butler, Mel Kiper hears we are taking Donald Brown, and Gil Brandt has us going LB. Yup. Things are right on schedule. No one has an F-ing clue what the Pats are actually going to do.

 

[BelichickFan]

So Don Banks has us taking Darius Butler, Mel Kiper hears we are taking Donald Brown, and Gil Brandt has us going LB. Yup. Things are right on schedule. No one has an F-ing clue what the Pats are actually going to do.

Banks didn't say exactly where he thought we'd take Butler :

I have it on good authority that Belichick loves Butler and will make him the second cornerback to come off the board. All you need to know is the Pats head coach attended UConn's pro day, and that's not an every-day trip for Mr. Hoodie.

 

[mayoclinic]

Banks didn't say exactly where he thought we'd take Butler :

Maybe we'll convert Butler to LB.

 

[upstater1]

Phil Loadholt sucks.

That in itself makes me doubt Brandt.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

It's not too hard to put the Patriots LB in the 1st rumor and the Barwin in the 1st comment together.

So Don Banks has us taking Darius Butler, Mel Kiper hears we are taking Donald Brown, and Gil Brandt has us going LB. Yup. Things are right on schedule. No one has an F-ing clue what the Pats are actually going to do.

LOL And no one will until possibly late Friday and into Saturday when Holley, Mayock and Lombardi will all suddenly have a prediction out of left field that Kiper, McShay and all the other pundits will be pegging a stunner and a reach. By Sunday word will leak out that 3 of the next 5 teams on the clock were all targeting this player and are now crashingly disappointed.

One year it would be interesting if the league allowed the Pats to pick for all 32 teams in the first. Kiper and a lot of draft pundits would probably be unemployed in the aftermath.

 

[Brarrell]

It's not too hard to put the Patriots LB in the 1st rumor and the Barwin in the 1st comment together.

So Don Banks has us taking Darius Butler, Mel Kiper hears we are taking Donald Brown, and Gil Brandt has us going LB. Yup. Things are right on schedule. No one has an F-ing clue what the Pats are actually going to do.

Add to this in this mornings MMQ with Peter King in his opinion the patriots drafting of drafting Darius Butler is a smoke screen.

 

[BelichickFan]

Add to this in this mornings MMQ with Peter King in his opinion the patriots drafting of drafting Darius Butler is a smoke screen.

No, he said the Patriots love Butler. He said the smokescreen is the Patriots letting on that they love him to double confuse people who think it's a smokescreen.

 

[Ungeheuer]

Phil Loadholt sucks.

That in itself makes me doubt Brandt.

I can see a run-heavy team drafting him despite his suckage though. If you're Baltimore or Tennessee, Loadholt makes a little bit of sense. I can see the Cowboys taking him too (I know, the Cowboys don't have a first-rounder). Especially if you give him some chip help on passing downs. Tackles that huge and that effective against the run aren't all that common.

 

[ctpatsfan77]

One year it would be interesting if the league allowed the Pats to pick for all 32 teams in the first. Kiper and a lot of draft pundits would probably be unemployed in the aftermath.

Now that would be funny.

 

[Rob0729]

Banks didn't say exactly where he thought we'd take Butler :

Actually, he did. That comment came from Bank's mock draft where he had the Pats taking Butler with the 23rd pick. But to build on what you are saying, just because Banks is hearing that the Pats will try to draft Butler doesn't mean that they will draft him first. They have 4 picks in the first 64 picks and they may gamble on him being available in the second round if Banks' information is true.

 

[BelichickFan]

Actually, he did. That comment came from Bank's mock draft where he had the Pats taking Butler with the 23rd pick. But to build on what you are saying, just because Banks is hearing that the Pats will try to draft Butler doesn't mean that they will draft him first. They have 4 picks in the first 64 picks and they may gamble on him being available in the second round if Banks' information is true.

I didn't see the mock draft, I just saw the comment, but, yeah, we likely will end up with two #1s in this draft so although "@23" wouldn't be accurate for both they could both be very close to correct.

 

[APatrioticVirginian]

Brandon Pettigrew is our top pick bank on it

 

[ctpatsfan77]

Brandon Pettigrew is our top pick bank on it

Me, if that happens --> :enranged:

 

[Feep50]

Phil Loadholt sucks.

That in itself makes me doubt Brandt.

I have no idea if Loadholt sucks or not.... But it's definitely a world-class, pro-bowl "name" for an NFL lineman!

Give him a cool nickname like Bubba, Nasty or insert your favorite one and you're in business!

 

[maverick4]

Maybe we'll convert Butler to LB.

Who knows. Since Butler has never played OLB, that means he doesn't have any bad habits, which is a plus =D

 

[Sean Pa Patriot]

Clint Sintim, will be our LB , I think we take the best available with the pick at 23, and if Percy Harvin is there dont be shocked..

 

[ICSB]

This has to be a joke.

No way Loadholt goes in the first.

 

[RayClay]

Brandt is good at draft time, but that stuff was pretty general. I severely doubt BB will take "a" linebacker at twenty three. If he likes one, he'll move up to get him. If he sees similar LBs, he might take a shot at a star at another position, knowing he owns round two and can even take multiple guys.

My point? BB hardly ever takes whoever is available for need, especially when he is loaded with trade ammunition.

 

[KingChre]

Me, if that happens --> :enranged:

I'm with you on that one, aside from Mayo last year, every single year I am disappointed with who they take at the time, only to be proven wrong, every single year.

Logan Mankins was the worst one, I can't remember for the life of me who I wanted them to draft that year, but whomever it was, was available when they came up to pick, and I was 100% sure they would take him. Of course Mankins turned into one of the best guards in the league, and whoever it was that I wanted them to pick, was so insignificant that I have forgotten his name.

So, this year, I expect to be no different. Somebody will be available at 23 that I love, and will get excited for, and then they will either draft someone I hadn't even considered, or they will trade out of their spot, and some other team will inevitably take Player X that I wanted on the Pats.

All that being said, :singing:I LOVE THE DRAFT!!!:singing: