Oh no, it's not being pessimistic. I do think the Patriots have a shot to get McClain. The only teams I see that want McClain are the Chiefs and Broncos. The Browns may go for Eric Berry. The Chiefs are going to want to an O-lineman to help that pressing issue and may want a Safety. The Broncos as well may want McClain but I also believe they want a FS because of Dawkins age and may go for Taylor Mays.
The Patriots could trade with Buffalo or Seattle because I really don't see why they would want to keep those picks if the top prospects are taken given their issues. Like someone else posted, they could given them the 1st, one of the 2nd round (Pats have 3 picks there) and a one of the 2 5th round picks with Buffalo or Seattle or maybe even San Francisco.
It's not a long shot, but it will be pricey.
I really wish I could agree with you, but I can't. Brian Dawkins seems to be holding up pretty well. Denver needs another corner to pair with Champ Bailey, (maybe Joe Haden), they need an inside linebacker to replace Andra Davis,(maybe McClain), and they might need a wide receiver if Brandon Marshall can't be retained, (maybe Dez Bryant).
If the season ended today, they'll probably have the 9th pick. However, they have Chicago's pick. Most likely Chicago is going to lose to Minnesota. That means their pick could be even higher. Barring some kind of injury, I don't see how they can walk away from McClain.
If McClain goes to Denver, Haden will definitely go by 15, (barring injury). The same should be true for Dez Bryant.
Check the first eight picks:
# St. Louis (1-13) DL/QB
# Detroit (2-12) DL/ OL
# Tampa Bay (2-12) DL
# Cleveland (3-11) DL/QB
# Kansas City (3-11) OL
# Washington (4-10) OL
# Buffalo (5-9) OL
# Seattle (5-9) OL/QB
They all need help in the trenches or at QB. The surprising thing is that I don't see one of the tweener pass rushers going that high. It's possible that St. Louis, Cleveland, and Seattle could all pick QB's.
If that happens, then Detroit and Tampa could definitely pick up the premier defensive tackles. This would leave Kansas City, Washington, and Buffalo to have their pick of offensive linemen.
It may not be possible, but the pass rushers in this class could slide a little. I'm not saying that we could have only one or two selected in the first round, but there could be a bunch of quality players available in the 20's.