Four Downs: AFC East
 

http://www.footballoutsiders.com/200...ur-downs/3970/

The question was asked who was available when we drafted different players well this article goes over that somewhat I thought it was interesting.

Verry interesting. The Jets seemed to defy the pundits, while everyone else was pretty much in line with the value stated.

Looks like Winston Justice and Jimmy Williams took the big nose dives.

Excellent find, lots to chew over here.:cool:

I thought we would take a LB early, but why do they not understand that we were a lot older on the O side and we were trying to get younger on that side of the ball, is beyong me. We also drafted for need at the WR spot.

Getting the best WR in the draft in the second round? And you're the Pats in 06? Are you KIDDIN me???

There is no shuffling of the draft deck that makes this look bad. It works from a need point of view, it works from a value point of view. Didn't get a linebacker of course, now that would have been really drafting to need.

PFnV

As far as we know LB would have been drafting for need. Either the Pats didn't like what was available in the draft for LB (in the slots they drafted) or they think someone on the roster will step up. Claridge, Beisel? They did sign Roach who was an outstanding ILB in college. I think the WR position was/is a lot thinner than the LB position.

Well....something funny I found in this part about the Pats was...

What? No webslingers from Miami have responded to this thread to beg our respect?

Yes I thought that was funny also along with Bethel being so far in BB's doghouse that kibbles and bits was coming out of his ears. But the good value that the Patriots received throughout the draft was very good and we did need a kicker but thank goodness he was not selected in the first round like some franchise has done before. Time will tell how much of a reach that pick will turn out to be.

I am in the minority opinion here, but I have no problem with the Pats drafting the kicker. If they felt that he was not going to last into the later rounds, OR if they simply believed he was the best player available based on his inherent skills, than so what?

I realize that it can be argued that he was not the BPA and that he would be available later in the draft, but we are trying to replace a Legend with a Ghost, and the Pats felt it was the right move.

Let's reserve our skepticism for some of the guys that don't end up working out. The Pats have a history of some big hits and big whiffs in the draft, with more of the hits coming recently.

I feel like they only gave up value on the kicker as the sum difference between where he was drafted, end of round 4, and where he actually might have been taken, i.e. perhaps round five, and that the Pats were comfortable to give a small premium for him. Looking at the rest of the picks, they got great value at almost every spot. Add up the value picks they got and then subtract the difference in value given up by the kicker, and get back to me! Then we'll know something. Or at least we will have something to debate further about said kicker.

Let's hope Ghost is the real thing!

It was a risk-reward decision to use the 4th pick for a kicker. BB obviously felt that the risk of NOT having available in round 5 or 6 or 7 what he regarded as a promising prospect with demonstrated ability to deal with one on one clutch situations (as a baseball pitcher) outweighed the value of a 4th round pick. Look at it this way, most 4th rounders never contribute in the NFL so how much was 'given up' by spending a 4th?