Have to disagree. The 2007 Pats Team was the best and most fun season I have ever seen here. We lost by a fluke. Many strong trades and FAs on that Team as the 09 Saints. I believe you might say the Saints are pretty stout? I am not buying the Draft game as the only way. Not close. Take away last years Draft and dissect what you have the last five or six years and the Pats are way below 17%. You have to have a mix Cousin.
Those above you mentioned were many starters not just role players. Harrison, Vrabel, Moss, Dillion are all examples of good trades and FA pick ups. Woody wasn't too bad this year.
If you have an NFL ready player that is a proven commodity it makes sense you have to pay more. That is the trade off. What makes you think the percentage is as high for a 21 year old kid to come in and become a top NFL player instantly? One or two per year on any top NFL club maybe. How many rookies start for the Steelers? It's a multi-year process with no guarantee of success. I ask you this...Do you want to wait the NFL average of three years to see if we have a top tier OLB from the Draft and now TB is three years older? That happens most of the time. We lucked out with Mayo, McCourty and a few more. We missed a bunch too like Maroney, Jackson, O'Connell etc. etc. IT IS LUCK. I will say this, there are many on this forum who could have out Drafted the Pats in say 06.
The Redskins and Raiders have idiots for owners. You can't change stupid sometime.
DW Toys
I understand what you are saying as the Saints had many bigtime contributors who they traded for or signed like Brees, Shockey, Vilma, and Sharper. I understand that you do need a combination of signings, trades, and draft picks to sustain success. However, the Steelers and Colts have 3 super bowls between them and 5 super bowl appearances in the last 10 years without doing anything but drafting well. The Pats 3 superbowls were a combination of mostly draft picks and cheap FA signings. The only players we have traded for are Dillon, Moss, Welker, and Derrick Burgess. If you look back all the players we discussed in free agency they were signed very cheaply except Colvin and Thomas who were both mediocre to bad here.
I really don't think GB, NE, PITT and INDY are getting lucky every year with these great draft picks they continually make. I also think thats 17% ratio is pure BS. Are you counting 7th, 6th, 5th, and 4th rounders in there? Players drafted in these rounds are developmental prospects and most of these guys aren't even expected to make an NFL roster. I also think organizations like St. Louis, Detroit, and Buffalo bring that number way down and those late rounds bring that number down as well. Mel Kiper ansd Mike Mayock have generally agreed that the likelihood a first round pick lives up to their draft grade is 50% in the first round and the percentage drops after every round. Look back at the Patriots, Colts, and Steelers recent first round drafting history. You won't see many misses. Since 2001 I think the only first round pick that Pats missed on was Maroney who clearly sucks. Watson and Graham are not busts and are still starting TEs in this league. Thats 9 picks and 8 hits (Seymour, Warren, Wilkfork, Graham, Watson, Mccourty, Mankins, and Mayo) which is a 88.9% rate. Since 1996 the Colts have drafted Manning, Edge, Harrison, Tarik Glenn, Rob Morris, Wayne, Freeney, Clark, Marlin Jackson, Addai, Anthony Gonzalez, Donald Brown, Jerry Hughes. Thats 13 draft picks and at a minimum 11 hits so far. I would say only Marlin Jackson and Jerry Hughes have been disappointments so far and Jackson still picked Tom Brady to go to the SB in 06. Eleven out of thirteen is a 84.6% hit rate. Starting in 1998 with Pittsburgh they have drafted in the first round: Faneca, Troy Edwards, Plaxico, Hampton, Kendall Simmons, Polamalu, Big Ben, Heath Miller, Holmes, Timmons, Mendenhall, Hood, and Pouncey. Thats 13 draft picks and 12 of those picks worked out with Troy Edwards being the only bust. Thats a 92.3% success rate.
As you can see the top franchises know how to draft in the first and second rounds. After that everything is a crapshoot. I truly think building through the draft is the best way to build a team and its been proven through history as well. Look at that Cowboys team in the 90s. Everyone was a draft pick except Deion Sanders. The 49ers in the 80s and Steelers teams in the 70s were all built through the draft.