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After watching the AFCCG several times and dissecting the main issue on defense in the second half, I would say to Coach that the team needs a coverage LB, specifically, Arthur Brown from KSU if he's there at 29. He could instantly replace Spikes/Hightower in sub packages (and potentially replace Spikes altogether if he walks next season).
Brown would look great in a Patriots uniform alongside Mayo and could fix the issue of coverage in the middle of the field and RBs slipping out the back-field. They along, with Hightower, could easily make up the best 4-3 LB trio in the NFL by a wide margin for may years to come.
He fits a specific need, coverage LB, but does he represent the best value for a 1st round pick? I mean, do you remember the Dolphins drafting Ginn at #6 because they needed a kick returner? That was not well received. And it was a poor overall choice for the value then and even looking back at it now.
WR is clearly the greatest need ad a position where there is starting space available, unlike their other big needs, but it still comes down to how the board falls on draft day, who is sitting there when they are on the clock, and what other teams are offering to move down. As much as i want a WR with 2 of their first 3 picks if a guy like Werner is still on the board they have to take a serious look at making him the choice, especially if the run on Wr's in the 20's takes place as predicted, as there isn't much sense in taking the 6th best WR when the 2nd best corner or DE/OLB is on the board. In fact Mayock now has Hayden as the best corner in the draft and he could well be there when the Patriots are picking, and i can't remember the last time that happened.
This is the strangest draft I can remember looking at leading up to it. There are numerous players that the mocks have going both in the 20's and in the 40's to 50's, like Keenan Allen and Jesse Williams. I have never seen anywhere near this kind of uncertainty heading into a draft and that makes it pretty much impossible to know where prospects may be going or available, let alone have any idea where teams actually have them rated. Ultimately it is probably going to be best player available at WR/CB/or DL, and i will be fine with a whole bunch of them as i also cannot remember when there were so many good prospects in the 20-50 range. This draft is definitely weak at the top but the 2nd and 3rd rounds may be as strong as we have ever seen.
For your second point, Ted Ginn Jr. was actually drafted at #9, not #6 by the Dolphins in 2007's draft whilst prospects that fit their needs like Patrick Willis and Darrelle Revis were still on board. But your point still stands, and I agree to some extent. The problem was, the Dolphins drafted Ginn with the legit expectation that he would develop into a deep threat WR. His speed at the time was right up there with the fastest players, he just could never catch the football consistently and suffered from a learning disability, preventing him from ever grasping a NFL playbook as complex as it is to be even an average WR. The pick itself was a reach, precisely because it wasn't their most glaring weakness that season. Their defensive backfield was in shambles that season (as Randy Moss poignantly proved in their games). At the time a prospect like Revis could have fixed that problem.He fits a specific need, coverage LB, but does he represent the best value for a 1st round pick? I mean, do you remember the Dolphins drafting Ginn at #6 because they needed a kick returner? That was not well received. And it was a poor overall choice for the value then and even looking back at it now.
For your second point, Ted Ginn Jr. was actually drafted at #9, not #6 by the Dolphins in 2007's draft whilst prospects that fit their needs like Patrick Willis and Darrelle Revis were still on board. But your point still stands, and I agree to some extent. The problem was, the Dolphins drafted Ginn with the legit expectation that he would develop into a deep threat WR. His speed at the time was right up there with the fastest players, he just could never catch the football consistently and suffered from a learning disability, preventing him from ever grasping a NFL playbook as complex as it is to be even an average WR. The pick itself was a reach, precisely because it wasn't their most glaring weakness that season. Their defensive backfield was in shambles that season (as Randy Moss poignantly proved in their games). At the time a prospect like Revis could have fix that problem instantly.
For Dolphins fans, it was.I don't think "poignantly" is quite the right word for it. . . .