Best Prospect in 2010

[RxJock1120]

There is no question, no doubt, no ambiguity in what would be the best draft scenario for the Pats this year. Rolando McClain is the best fit for BB style defense that has ever or will ever come out of college. Every single thing this kid excells at is exactly what this team is looking for. Big (6'4 256 at only 20 years old), Fast (4.47 forty time), Smart (considered by most analyst as the smartest playerin college football) and played ILB in a Nick Saban defense for the last 2 years. Any other year, this guy is a sure top 5 pick, however as of today he is projected to be drafted around #10 pick because of an abundance of talented underclassmen in this years draft. The way I see it: Top 10 - Suh, McCoy, Okung, Claussen, Haden, Bradford, Barry, Davis, Morgan and Bryant. All these guys will probably go ahead of McClain, especially that there almost always is a surprise draft riser that is taken in the top 10. This leave the Pats needing to move up 10 spots to grab Rolando. With an abundance of draft picks in this years draft we definitly have the amunition to make the move. McClain is once in a generation ILB that will be the hammer to Mayo's lightning for years to come. Any thoughts guys??????
Some analysis of Rolando McClain:

Rolando McClain, Alabama, NFL Draft - CBSSports.com - NFLDraftScout.com

WalterFootball.com: 2010 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Rolando McClain

Rolando McClain | Rolando McClain Draft Profile | Rolando McClain Draft

 

[Metaphors]

So play out the scenario for us. Say that the Pats have to move up 11 spots to #11 (ahead of the Fins) to get McClain. That will cost them their first pick in the 2nd round. So assuming McClain slips to #11 and the Broncos do the deal, the choice is to draft McClain or stay put and get which two players?

Then you looks at what the roster would be with either of those choices...taking into account where this draft is deep or shallow. So adding McClain to the equation means your ILB depth chart would be Mayo, McClain, Guyton and McKenzie. Without McClain, you have Mayo, Guyton and McKenzie.

My opinion, I like the lineup better with the existing ILBs (I think McKenzie has potential and Guyton will excel in a sub role) and the players available at #22 and #44. The Pats should be able to exit the 2nd round with a 3-4 DE, a rush LB, a slipping CB with 1st round potential and an offensive playmaker at either WR or (my preference) scatback. That is quite a haul in the areas that are problematic for the Pats.

If you draft McClain at #11, he better stay on the field most of the time. That boxes out Guyton and practically eliminates McKenzie. You would only have 2 more picks until the 4th round and far more than 2 areas to be addressed. Hard to hate getting an elite talent like McClain, but I'm not sold that it is the best move this year, with this draft class and this Pats team.

 

[TealSox]

So staying at 22 and drafting a Brandon Spikes and keeping the rest of their picks (rather than trade them away for the 11th pick overall), is a significant downgrade from having McClain and losing a pick or two? I've read some great stuff on McClain and I would welcome him to the team, but I'm not under the illusion he is the next Ray Lewis or anything. He isn't even the next Patrick Willis in my opinion.

Frankly, I don't think this team is one player away from their next Super Bowl... albeit McClain or any other player. So why run the risk of hitting big on one pick rather than take your chances with two picks?

 

[BillBelichickFan79]

So staying at 22 and drafting a Brandon Spikes and keeping the rest of their picks (rather than trade them away for the 11th pick overall), is a significant downgrade from having McClain and losing a pick or two? I've read some great stuff on McClain and I would welcome him to the team, but I'm not under the illusion he is the next Ray Lewis or anything. He isn't even the next Patrick Willis in my opinion.

Frankly, I don't think this team is one player away from their next Super Bowl... albeit McClain or any other player. So why run the risk of hitting big on one pick rather than take your chances with two picks?

McClain is the leader who makes the calls/audibles for Saban's defense which is very similar to ours. He would come in right away and be at an advantage from having played under Saban, needing less time to learn the Pats "complex" defensive scheme. McClain is also a 3 down player, while Spikes is viewed more as a two down player. McClain isn't going to be Ray Lewis or Patrick Willis, but he would help this defense a lot more than Spikes, who I don't even want to really see drafted by NE due tot the issues I noticed when I saw him play: his limited speed, limited range, poor tackling angles, and inability (at times) to shed blocks.

While McClain would be a nice add at ILB, I believe Bruschi recently stated in Reiss' blog that he didn't think ILB would be a high priority for NE b/c of Mayo, Guyton, and McKenzie. He felt Guyton and McKenzie have the potential to be good contributors on defense as the develop.

Personally, I can't see BB trading up to get McClain. I think he feels we have our defensive leader in Mayo with two good propsects (Guyton, McKenzie) developing. If we didn't have Mayo, I could see him possibly jumping up to grab McClain to be our leader on D.

 

[DocE]

I think a lot of good points are made in this thread. If McClain runs a 4.47 at the combine/pro day and the Patriots believe he can be a Ray Lewis/Patrick Willis type impact ILB, then I give up the first 2nd round pick to get him. I believe elite players are necessary to build dominate offenses/defenses. The Patriots lack elite players on defense, and if they believe McClain can be that type of guy...give up the pick.

BBFan79 doesn't see McClain on that level, so he doesn't see the Pats making that hypothetical deal. I completely agree with his line of thinking if McClain is closer to good than great...especially at a position like ILB.

I am on the fence as it seems like getting adequate performance at the SILB slot and elite performance at OLB or DE would be more beneficial to the team than elite performance at SILB and adequate performance at OLB or DE. If (big if) there is an elite 3-4 OLB or DE, it would be easier to justify the trade up.

The best thing for the Patriots might be for McClain to run in the high 4.6's and be available at 22 or with a small (4th round) trade up. This is a deep draft and inside linebackers tend to go later on draft day. There's always one or two players who are thought of as top 10 picks (Alan Branch, Aaron Rodgers, Dwayne Rudd) who end up going much later for one reason or another.