Our 3 no.1 picks in the next two years

[eagle eye]

I've been thinking a lot about these three no.1s and the possibility that we use them all.

Looking down the road for a moment, in 2011 the Patriots will have three thirty four year olds that I would consider marquee players, those being Tom Brady, Randy Moss and Adalius Thomas.

With the possibility of a rookie cap coming into being in 2011 its the perfect time to be looking to bring in the next generation and develop them. I think next years draft will be the richest one for some time with a lot of younger players leaving college early to try and get a better deal than what might be available in 2011.

I'm not that well up on what an uncapped year would mean for next year's draft. And I'm just wondering if others think that its time to start looking seriously at signing top notch draft picks with Thomas, Moss and most of all Brady closing in on their mid thirties.
If an uncapped year next year means being able to spend more on rookies should they deal a no.1 pick in 2011 for something in next year's draft?
Or should they hold onto them for 2011 and take advantage of an almost certain rookie salary cap?
And do you think the Patriots need to be serously looking finding the replacements for those three players right now?

 

[ALP]

i think AD can be replaced quite easily, so i wont bother giong into specifics for that

for WR, its not just moss that needs to be replaced soon, we need young good wr's, cuz we have none......next draft we really need to draft 2-3 WR's, so they can learn, and then break out about th etime that moss will be leaving

as for QB, its interesting....after this yr, im pretty sure Brady's contract is up (or next yr) an extension would prob be for about 5 yrs....
i believe that we have this year, and next year, and then, w/ a cap, we might get the best QB coming out of the draft in 2011....

that way hell be Under Brady's wing for 3 years, and then he can start...that would give us 5 more years of Brady (including this year)

but i dont believe itll happen....i dont think BB would take someone and teach him for that long, b/c by the time he becomes good, hell be a FA, and demand a lot of money....

so i dont see brady being repalced by a high pick anytime soon, but moss yes, and i also see a pass rusher/OLB too soon (next yr)

 

[spacecrime]

I think next years draft will be the richest one for some time with a lot of younger players leaving college early to try and get a better deal than what might be available in 2011.

Maybe, but if so, then why didn't BB trade off some of this year's picks for 2010 picks like he did every other year? He drafted 12 players in 2009. He is also trading away his 2010 picks for JAG players at a rapid rate.

 

[patsfan-1982]

will i think they need a back up QB any way's i dont see the pats giveing a first round pick for one but they will draft a QB

as far as replaceing moss he is a one of a kind type of WR you cant just replace him but i think they need more dept at WR any ways so they may want to pick up a WR in the first round or 2th round


AD is a good LB but not on the same level as a marcus ware or a shawn mariman

i dont think AD is even as good as mayo so with or with out AD i think they need a up grad at LB i would like to see them pick up a LB in the first round

 

[Patspsycho]

You guys keep forgetting that BB never drafts to need. He always takes the best talent out there that fits the Patriots system and code of conduct.

With that being said, I don't even think he knows what he wants, probably a number of players on his radar, but nothing more.

 

[Jared]

At least one of those picks will be a DL.

I don't see a WR being taken in round 1, round 2 next year seems more likely.

At least one OL will be taken: stud OG, or an OT if BB thinks he can upgrade Matt Light. I've never hated on Light the way some do here, but I think BB will seriously consider an upgrade at the position if one is available, rather than resigning Light.

I hope we finally will see a LB taken high. Guyton looks like a keeper as an UDFA, but he doesn't feel like the complete package yet. We need someone who can play outside starting in 2010 and that will hopefully be a fixture for 5-6 years.

 

[Marqui]

I think we should focus on defense. We need a 3-4 DE to replace Seymour and we need OLB pass rushers.

 

[ausbacker]

It'll be interesting to see what BB thinks of Tebow.

 

[Fencer]

First-round QBs think they deserve more money than other players taken at similar slots.

What's more, even a first-round QB would be much of the way through his (supposedly cheap) rookie contract before the Pats want him on the field.

A rookie cap would address the first issue, but not the second.

I don't expect a first-round QB. I expect Brady's eventual replacement to be a later-round QB who's spent a lot of time as a pro in the weight room.

 

[ctpatsfan77]

You guys keep forgetting that BB never drafts to need. He always takes the best talent out there that fits the Patriots system and code of conduct.

With that being said, I don't even think he knows what he wants, probably a number of players on his radar, but nothing more.

Actually, that's not correct. The Patriots take the (or perhaps "a") player that, over the life of the contract, would give them the most utility (in an economic sense), and need is a factor in that decision. If that weren't the case, the Patriots would have drafted Brady long before #199; by their own admission, Brady was already the top player left on their draft board long before they did select him.

 

[patsfan-1982]

Actually, that's not correct. The Patriots take the (or perhaps "a") player that, over the life of the contract, would give them the most utility (in an economic sense), and need is a factor in that decision. If that weren't the case, the Patriots would have drafted Brady long before #199; by their own admission, Brady was already the top player left on their draft board long before they did select him.

i dont think thats a good argument because brady was not a need (drew bledsoe) was set as the starting QB and if it was not for Mo Lewis all most killing him brady would not have played in 2001

and you just said it your self brady was the best player left on there bord thats not drafting for need

but i do get what your saying they dont just draft the best player on the bord sometimes they do go for need like mayo maybe he was the best guy on the bord but he was a big need

 

[Wildo7]

The Pats most certainly drafted for need last year and the year before.

 

[ctpatsfan77]

and you just said it your self brady was the best player left on there bord thats not drafting for need

Except you're missing my point: if selecting the "best fit in the system" were the sole criterion, and need plays no role, how could they possibly pass on Brady as many times as they did? Once I could see, but over and over again?

 

[Terry Glenn is a cowgirl]

Pats drafted for need AND for the best player.

Chew on THAT for awhile...

 

[Deus Irae]

Use the 3 #1 picks and the 4 #2 picks to put together a package that nets Calvin Johnson.

 

[Patspsycho]

i dont think thats a good argument because brady was not a need (drew bledsoe) was set as the starting QB and if it was not for Mo Lewis all most killing him brady would not have played in 2001

and you just said it your self brady was the best player left on there bord thats not drafting for need

but i do get what your saying they dont just draft the best player on the bord sometimes they do go for need like mayo maybe he was the best guy on the bord but he was a big need

The Pats most certainly drafted for need last year and the year before.

I could argue that the CB situation was just as much of a need as the LB situation was when they had that #10 pick for '08, and the best talent that was out there that fit their system was Mayo who was an ILB. They could easily have gone after a CB, SS, or OLB.

 

[Big-T]

A WR like Julio Jones would be great - if the Pats can get him he could end up being the replacement for Moss, big & physical from what I've seen of him this year.

 

[StraightCashHomey81]

-I think drafting a QB in the First Round in 2011 is way too early. First, lets assume Brady plays until he's 38. That would mean this drafted QB (for argument's sake, Jimmy Clausen, Ryan Mallett, or Jake Locker) would sit behind Brady for at least 3 years. I don't know about you guys, but I don't want a Favre/Rodgers type situation (I don't means any absurd retirement issue w/ Brady, but just the strain of having an impatient guy seemingly "rushing" Brady into the sunset, or worse to a West Coast team).
More importantly, with a new rookie wage scale that most of us hope will be in place for the projected top-ten Raiders pick in 2011, there will probably be a rule that limits the length of rookie contracts, probably to 3-4 years, as the players union and agents will want some give back for the lesser dollar numbers. As a result of that, our waiting-in-the-wings QB may be a free agent or have only one year left on his deal by the time he ascends to the starting role. That's way i think we hold off for a few more years before we draft our Steve Young.
-However, if you want to find an eventual Moss replacement in 2011, I'm all in and his name is Julio Jones of Alabama. Watch their game against Ole Miss this saturday, 330 on CBS, and you will see that he is the best college WR since Calvin Johnson or Moss himself. He has the strongest hands I have ever seen.

 

[patchick]

You guys keep forgetting that BB never drafts to need.

This is getting to be like one of those urban legends that never die.

Need is a clear factor in the Patriots' drafting. How big a factor depends on makeup of the specific team and its current levels of need. In the rare cases that there's been a hole in the starting lineup the Patriots have moved aggressively to fill it, drafting a player well above where he was projected: Mankins, Gostkowski, Mayo.

 

[mayoclinic]

I've been thinking a lot about these three no.1s and the possibility that we use them all.

Looking down the road for a moment, in 2011 the Patriots will have three thirty four year olds that I would consider marquee players, those being Tom Brady, Randy Moss and Adalius Thomas.

With the possibility of a rookie cap coming into being in 2011 its the perfect time to be looking to bring in the next generation and develop them. I think next years draft will be the richest one for some time with a lot of younger players leaving college early to try and get a better deal than what might be available in 2011.

I'm not that well up on what an uncapped year would mean for next year's draft. And I'm just wondering if others think that its time to start looking seriously at signing top notch draft picks with Thomas, Moss and most of all Brady closing in on their mid thirties.
If an uncapped year next year means being able to spend more on rookies should they deal a no.1 pick in 2011 for something in next year's draft?
Or should they hold onto them for 2011 and take advantage of an almost certain rookie salary cap?
And do you think the Patriots need to be serously looking finding the replacements for those three players right now?

Those are 3 very different situations you are talking about. Let's address them one by one:

1. Adalius Thomas.

Thomas is signed through the 2011 season, at which time he will be almost 35. I certainly don't see him being a factor beyond then. He could be cut or traded earlier, but his salary cap situation will be a major factor. He is still on the books for almost $9M in signing bonus money after this season, so cutting him is costly.

Mayo and Guyton are solid at LB. Tyrone McKenzie has potential, and we will want to see what he does next year. I see us drafting 1 and possibly 2 LBs in 2010. Someone like Eric Norwood would be a terrific future replacement for Adalius Thomas, and offers a lot of the same positional versatility. Someone like Sean Weatherspoon offers the ability to play in both 3-4 and 4-3 schemes.

2. Randy Moss

Moss is signed through 2010. He has showned somes signs of not being quite the same unstoppable force that he was in 2007, but he is still one of the top WRs in the game, and very crafty. I think he's the kind of player who could be productive for a long time. I think there's a good chance he stays a Pat after 2010.

We certainly need to start grooming an eventual #1 replacement, and a #2/3 guy to go along with Moss and Welker. Brandon Tate may fill the 2nd role, and we should no a lot more by the 2011 draft. There should be some very talented junior WRs coming out in 2011 - AJ Green, Julio Jones, and Michael Floyd - and we may have a high 2011 1st from Oakland, with the possibility of a rookie salary scale to keep the cost down. I could easily see us going after a top WR to groom as Moss' successor in 2011.

3. Tom Brady

Peyton Manning will be 34 in March, and no one seems to be talking about the need to replace him at the moment. I think Brady has at least 5 good years left, especially as his arm had no wear and tear last year. He will almost certainly extend his contract beyond 2010.

I don't see us looking to draft a replacement in the next 2 years. With that said, if an opportunity presents itself, we may be open to looking at a QB. For example, if Jake Locker doesn't come out in 2010 and our Oakland 2011 1st turns out to be a high pick, that could be an option. A long shot right now, but not out of the question. Again, a 2011 rookie salary cap could make a difference.