Pats draft QB Jimmy Garropolo from Eastern Illinois in the 2nd round

VJCPatriot said:

jimmy highlights

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Is that tight end (#9) available? He looked good in a few of those highlights.

Triumph said:

BB the GM hates BB the HC.

Of all the needs and he does this.

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I've been waiting to get back from a trip to post a reply to this....And BB the Coach is always saving BB the GMs Bacon. I like building for the future, but evey once in a while the team needs to take a shot at filling holes of immediate need like a Center for example. And i don't mean a fourth round coach em up Center, i mean a highly regarded first or second round Center

Christopher Price ‏@cpriceNFL 1m
Garoppolo on any off. similarities to EIU: "Not many. It's a completely different offense...It's like learning Spanish compared to English."

Christopher Price ‏@cpriceNFL 4m
Garoppolo on TB12: "Just the way Tom has poise in the pocket & just the way he throws the ball. It's pretty picture perfect, if you ask me."

Christopher Price ‏@cpriceNFL 4m
Looks like Garoppolo will wear No. 10. "Just what they gave me. Not complaining about it at all."

Christopher Price ‏@cpriceNFL 5m
JG: The under center stuff, we didn't do much at Eastern. Getting adjusted to that will be a bit of an adjustment, but I'll get used to it.

reflexblue said:

I've been waiting to get back from a trip to post a reply to this....And BB the Coach is always saving BB the GMs Bacon. I like building for the future, but evey once in a while the team needs to take a shot at filling holes of immediate need like a Center for example. And i don't mean a fourth round coach em up Center, i mean a highly regarded first or second round Center

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A highly regarded first or second round center? Who? The only one I can think of is Richburg and picking him over Easley in the first would have been a terrible idea. I wouldn't have minded Swanson instead of Garoppolo, and I didn't like Marcus Martin, but maybe BB didn't like either of them.

reflexblue said:

And i don't mean a fourth round coach em up Center, i mean a highly regarded first or second round Center

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Good grief. They drafted the guy who won award for best center in college football last year. What? He's gotta be #1 on Mel Kiper's draft board, too?

hwc said:

Good grief. They drafted the guy who won award for best center in college football last year. What? He's gotta be #1 on Mel Kiper's draft board, too?

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I doen't pay attention to mel kiper, its more of a consensus thing. From what i understand Stork has injury problems thats why he fell to the fourth round. You can't seriously tell me that the 'best' center prospect would fall that far. Besides that i could have said tight end, or line backer or pass rusher or maybe guard. This team has been on the verge of winning it all that last couple of years. The interior offensive line has been getting TB killed in playoff games. If they could have held their blocks a little longer maybe TB could have connected on a TD to beat the Giants, or if we had a better pass rush he wouldn't have had to. Its great that this team is permanently building for the future, but there are holes more important at the moment than taking a QB maybe in three years replace Brady. These fourth and fifth round picks are ok on any given Sunday, but in the playoffs their average ability shows through against top flight defensive players.

I read in a lot of places this was a weak draft for TE's. Apparently, all the TE's they had targeted were UDFA's. We'll see if any of them stick or if Harrison catches on. Keller would be a nice safety blanket, just in case, for however long. If they drafted 3 eventual starters on the OL - or even reliable subs as rookies - this was a pretty good draft. It will be years before we see how the draft pays off, but it makes preseason games more interesting. I hope this Garoppolo kid works out - he looked good on film - nice accuracy - even deep. A lot more mobile than what we are used to, but I will be ready for that one day. Mallett should have stayed for his senior year - especially since he made little improvement during his 2 yrs at Arkansas and the same problem he had in college still haunts him today - accuracy. He could throw the ball far so easily, but he consistently overthrew wide open guys or throw it 80mph at a guy 12 yds away. He fixed some of that, but in all the preseason games I saw - little improvement. I certainly would not give up much to trade for the guy - especially now since everyone knows this is his last year with the Pats - unless some team gets desperate.

Not sure if this was linked here but: Jimmy Garoppolo on Jon Gruden's QB Camp

The more I read and watch the more I like this pick

reflexblue said:

I doen't pay attention to mel kiper, its more of a consensus thing. From what i understand Stork has injury problems thats why he fell to the fourth round. You can't seriously tell me that the 'best' center prospect would fall that far. Besides that i could have said tight end, or line backer or pass rusher or maybe guard. This team has been on the verge of winning it all that last couple of years. The interior offensive line has been getting TB killed in playoff games. If they could have held their blocks a little longer maybe TB could have connected on a TD to beat the Giants, or if we had a better pass rush he wouldn't have had to. Its great that this team is permanently building for the future, but there are holes more important at the moment than taking a QB maybe in three years replace Brady. These fourth and fifth round picks are ok on any given Sunday, but in the playoffs their average ability shows through against top flight defensive players.

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Hasn't it been said that centers and guards do not get drafted high? Usually mid round pics?

reflexblue said:

I doen't pay attention to mel kiper, its more of a consensus thing. From what i understand Stork has injury problems thats why he fell to the fourth round. You can't seriously tell me that the 'best' center prospect would fall that far. Besides that i could have said tight end, or line backer or pass rusher or maybe guard. This team has been on the verge of winning it all that last couple of years. The interior offensive line has been getting TB killed in playoff games. If they could have held their blocks a little longer maybe TB could have connected on a TD to beat the Giants, or if we had a better pass rush he wouldn't have had to. Its great that this team is permanently building for the future, but there are holes more important at the moment than taking a QB maybe in three years replace Brady. These fourth and fifth round picks are ok on any given Sunday, but in the playoffs their average ability shows through against top flight defensive players.

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So your complaint is that the Patriots need a pass rusher and help in the interior of the offensive line.

They took a pass rusher in the first round.

They took two offensive linemen in the fourth round and one in the sixth. Then they drafted a pass-rusher in the sixth as well.

Your complaint then is that they didn't spend ALL of their picks addressing the problems you're most worried about -- only most of them?

And if your reply is that fourth and fifth rounders are meaningless, then why do we even bother drafting at all after the top two rounds? This despite the fact that we just made a Super Bowl run with a roster that was nearly one third undrafted, and quarter backed by a sixth-rounder, throwing primarily to a seventh rounder and an UDFA, with an UDFA and a street free agent starting on the offensive line, etc etc...

reflexblue said:

I've been waiting to get back from a trip to post a reply to this....And BB the Coach is always saving BB the GMs Bacon. I like building for the future, but evey once in a while the team needs to take a shot at filling holes of immediate need like a Center for example. And i don't mean a fourth round coach em up Center, i mean a highly regarded first or second round Center

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Unless I'm mistaken (yes, it really does happen) at the time the Pats picked in the 2nd round, one center was gone and only two more were selected before they grabbed Stork. As far as we can tell right now, they didn't lose much by waiting and managed to pick up a chance at a QB for the future as well. They also went on to potentially add more OL help later with a couple more picks.

I think it's a mistake to think that the Pats are thinking too much about building for the future. I think what they're doing is obviously working, and is more about putting together a team to win every year. Piece by piece is the way Chuck Noll did it for the Steeelers in the 70's and it looks like Belichick has been taking the same approach with the Pats.

Doesn't that just look like a franchise qb?

reflexblue said:

I doen't pay attention to mel kiper, its more of a consensus thing. From what i understand Stork has injury problems thats why he fell to the fourth round. You can't seriously tell me that the 'best' center prospect would fall that far. Besides that i could have said tight end, or line backer or pass rusher or maybe guard. This team has been on the verge of winning it all that last couple of years. The interior offensive line has been getting TB killed in playoff games. If they could have held their blocks a little longer maybe TB could have connected on a TD to beat the Giants, or if we had a better pass rush he wouldn't have had to. Its great that this team is permanently building for the future, but there are holes more important at the moment than taking a QB maybe in three years replace Brady. These fourth and fifth round picks are ok on any given Sunday, but in the playoffs their average ability shows through against top flight defensive players.

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If the Pats ran the ball more it would help the most. I hate it when they go pass-happy.

They call it balance.

PatsFanSince74 said:

I can't disagree with either statement.
My view is that if the Pats draft a QB in Round Two after they've had three years to look at Mallett then they have decided to go in another direction. I wouldn't be surprised if they trade him now so they can get something for him before he becomes a FA; his trade value declines with every month and will be negligible in a few months.

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I wasn't trying to claim that the Patriots don't feel Mallett could eventually replace Brady, merely that he probably won't, simply because he'll have a better chance of winning a starting job almost anywhere else. It's hard to envision how the front office could ever craft a deal acceptable to both sides.

1960Pats said:

Unless I'm mistaken (yes, it really does happen) at the time the Pats picked in the 2nd round, one center was gone and only two more were selected before they grabbed Stork. As far as we can tell right now, they didn't lose much by waiting and managed to pick up a chance at a QB for the future as well. They also went on to potentially add more OL help later with a couple more picks.

I think it's a mistake to think that the Pats are thinking too much about building for the future. I think what they're doing is obviously working, and is more about putting together a team to win every year. Piece by piece is the way Chuck Noll did it for the Steeelers in the 70's and it looks like Belichick has been taking the same approach with the Pats.

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While it's understandable on some level for those to be frustrated or at least question some of the choices, you're statement is a reminder that Belichick's approach on both the current + future has been working very well, so we all have to keep that in mind.

It all depends on how much one saw "needs" for the 2014 team, but prior to the draft, Deus Irae posted all of the starters at each position, and proved that there really weren't many holes aside from backup positions, which could be said for ANY team. In other words, aside from maybe TE and S (those are what stick out to me personally), we were in pretty decent shape for the 2014 season as it was.

After all, our team came up a bit short last year mainly due to injury situations. There's not much you can do for that, aside from hope that it isn't as bad, while attempting to add some depth/competition. We've added some defensive pieces, and even make a big splash or two with new CBs. Personally, I think the 2014 situation should be looking pretty good once the final coat is applied from now until the end of August.

Some of the apprehension and worry comes from not knowing what Belichick's plan is, but we have to assume that there is certainly a plan in place for the couple of positions that remain. I also believe that we'll still be adding players from now until camp as well, so that may go a long way towards helping things.

reflexblue said:

I doen't pay attention to mel kiper, its more of a consensus thing. From what i understand Stork has injury problems thats why he fell to the fourth round. You can't seriously tell me that the 'best' center prospect would fall that far. Besides that i could have said tight end, or line backer or pass rusher or maybe guard. This team has been on the verge of winning it all that last couple of years. The interior offensive line has been getting TB killed in playoff games. If they could have held their blocks a little longer maybe TB could have connected on a TD to beat the Giants, or if we had a better pass rush he wouldn't have had to. Its great that this team is permanently building for the future, but there are holes more important at the moment than taking a QB maybe in three years replace Brady. These fourth and fifth round picks are ok on any given Sunday, but in the playoffs their average ability shows through against top flight defensive players.

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I don't think there's anything "wrong" per se with your concerns, but attempting to see it in a different light may help to ease your mind.

It seems as though we've certainly added some depth/competition at the position of OL, even if they didn't address it as highly as you'd have liked. The top 6-7 guys look pretty good and have some experience in our system. Hopefully, we can break up the duo of Wendell/Connelly, which may go a long way in helping to bring that sack total from 40 all the way down to 25 or so. The improvement of a rapport with the receiving options may also help in lowering that total as well.

Stork, Halapio (BB claimed that he was surprised that he was still there, was a captain and proved to be tough by playing through a pectoral tear. Scouts claim that he's "tough to beat in one on one matchups"), and Fleming should definitely bring some competition to the mix, and we already had a pretty nice prospect in Josh Kline who started and looked okay last season.

Vollmer is coming back from injury, and Cannon offers versatility both inside/outside.

Personally, I'm feeling rather optimistic about our OL due to the reasoning listed above.

reflexblue said:

I doen't pay attention to mel kiper, its more of a consensus thing. From what i understand Stork has injury problems thats why he fell to the fourth round. You can't seriously tell me that the 'best' center prospect would fall that far. Besides that i could have said tight end, or line backer or pass rusher or maybe guard. This team has been on the verge of winning it all that last couple of years. The interior offensive line has been getting TB killed in playoff games. If they could have held their blocks a little longer maybe TB could have connected on a TD to beat the Giants, or if we had a better pass rush he wouldn't have had to. Its great that this team is permanently building for the future, but there are holes more important at the moment than taking a QB maybe in three years replace Brady. These fourth and fifth round picks are ok on any given Sunday, but in the playoffs their average ability shows through against top flight defensive players.

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Dan Koppen was a 6th round pick, and he pretty much started from day 1 and never gave the job back for a good 7-8 seasons...

JoeSixPat said:

I completely called this.

"Garoppolo in the 2nd"

And you all laughed at me. Told you so.

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Don Kipines said:

So your complaint is that the Patriots need a pass rusher and help in the interior of the offensive line.

They took a pass rusher in the first round.

They took two offensive linemen in the fourth round and one in the sixth. Then they drafted a pass-rusher in the sixth as well.

Your complaint then is that they didn't spend ALL of their picks addressing the problems you're most worried about -- only most of them?

And if your reply is that fourth and fifth rounders are meaningless, then why do we even bother drafting at all after the top two rounds? This despite the fact that we just made a Super Bowl run with a roster that was nearly one third undrafted, and quarter backed by a sixth-rounder, throwing primarily to a seventh rounder and an UDFA, with an UDFA and a street free agent starting on the offensive line, etc etc...

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Heres my answer to multiple replies like yours....If the pats continually draft for the future they will remain a very good to excellent team that will win 12+ games a year and continue to go to the playoffs just like they have been for the last Ten years. But just like the last ten years they'll make it deep into the playoffs but won't have quite enough to get a ring. Its great fun watching the team win that many games a year, but i want what the players want...more Rings.

BTW, on my complaint. Are you purposely being obtuse? I said in my post that IF the team had a decent pass rush and put pressure on manning Maybe just Maybe TB won't have been put in the position of trying to throw a TD with a revolving doors playing center and guard to win the SB. I mean thats the way its suppose to work.

I used to post a lot here, but posters here won't even consider the possibility that of looking at the FO moves with some objectivity. Its all Pom Poms, candy canes, and unicorns. Any questioning of the FO brings the knives out.