Draft Weekend thoughts

[Kdo5]

I dont think the Steelers are the best at all. They had a brilliant end to their season, no doubt about that. They knocked out, Cincinatti, Indy and Denver without more than a few days of rest. But I do not by any means see them as the best team. Experts dont even see them as it, once again.......Colts are favorites. The Patriots have not fell victim recently to Pittsburgh since the disaster in the 04 regular season game. No they arent the best by any means.

The Defensive Backfield is pretty decent at the moment, though that may have been said last year, yet I do not expect Harrison, Chad Scott, and Randall Gay to go down injured again for most of the season. There will always be one or two players who suffer nagging injuries in the backfield but we've got a good group of veterans, and some good younger guys. Ofcourse theres all the speculation of Law coming back, if he comes back...without us paying tons of money, filling our cap then it'll be a great move. As for linebacker, I expect a free agent vet. to be picked up before Training camp.

Bellichick said he choose the best players he thought were avalible, that they wanted. He took a tight end, a kicker in the fourth round, and DE who will problably end up being Linebacker. I wont doubt him on those decisions as they could turn out to be very positive choices. Jackson and Maroney picks were brilliant, and it almost immideatly filled two of our holes in the offensive positions.

 

[Miguel]

Jeremy Mincey, OLB. Belichick even said so - with a degree of certainty that he seems NEVER to use when it comes to draft picks. "Mincey will be a OLB for us."

I stand corrected.

 

[ilduce06410]

espn-quality pats issues

3. the chad jckson acquisition looks like a remarkable move. almost too remarkable. what is he, a secret member of al-quaeda, or a chainsaw murderer, or what?
6. are we talking about mario williams to texans? they must be lead-pipe cinch certain about david carr. lotta jobs on the line on that pick.
8. if you were graham's dad, a veteran player, what would you tell him? what is he gonna chase, money or glory?
9. will beth-el make the squad? will the braintrust actually let it go that far?will BB/SP cut a 2nd round draft choice loose without trying to get something for him? i mean, i don't think of him as a reliable, let alone good, player. but what's he ever done wrong?

1.)
3.) I love the trade up for Chad Jackson.
6.) In a conference with Brady, Manning, Palmer, and Big Ben, the Mario Williams selection makes a lot of sense to me.
8.) If Graham wants to be the #1 TE in a team's offense, then this year will be his last as a Patriot.
9.) Bethel Johnson is my choice for the player that will create the most posts in a "Will he make the team" thread.
10.) I am surprised that the secondary was not addressed until the 7th round.
11.) I was very surprised that the Patriots did not select a linebacker.
12.) I am disappointed that I now have to tell my wife that her Greek God, Fauria, was replaced by a Day 1 pick
13.) I think that my wife will say that David Thomas is a downgrade in the looks department.

 

[Miguel]

8. if you were graham's dad, a veteran player, what would you tell him? what is he gonna chase, money or glory?

I would tell him to go to the best team in need of a #1 tight end.

 

[VJCPatriot]

No. I've seen enough of Graham and I don't think he will ever be a #1 receiving tight end. He is what he is. A well rounded TE with very good blocking skills that will occasionally catch a few outlet passes for you.

Ben Watson is going to be the Pats #1 receiving tight end. He has the freakish athleticism to stretch defenses with his speed and provide serious mismatches against covering linebackers. He already made an impact last season and I expect him to progress even more this year.

I like Jackson a LOT. That said if he can even provide around 500 yards receiving that's a successful rookie campaign in my book. I think he will probably break out his second year.

Indeed, Gosselin is a real font of information. I agree with the posters who have suggested that the Meyer-regime has struck Belichick as different enough from previous ones at UF to take a chance on this kid, despite the very poor record of the receivers from UF in the past. The fact that he has shown versatility in his position is very encouraging. And the timeline sounds pretty good, although I hallucinate that he will show real flashes this year, and be #2 in training camp next year...a bit ahead of schedule.

Does anyone think that Graham has the ability to be a #1 receiving tight end, a la Sharpe, Gates, or even Shockey? He seems to bring numerous skills but has yet to shine...I wonder if anyone would see him as the answer. Interesting line of thought, though.

 

[JJDChE]

Just to be accurate, I think you mean Hawkins when you talk about Warfield, who wasn't on the Pats last year.

Also, you omitted Hawkins from your DB list.

Huh, yeah, that's really weird. I distinctly remember thinking "Hawkins" when I was writing that.

 

[PatsSteve1]

I agree with this. The Flordia WR reputation came from the idea that Spurrier's offense inflated wideouts' numbers, but Meyer's offense had the opposite effect on Jackson's numbers -- his YPC were reduced by running inside routes in a short-passing scheme.

That being said, a rookie is a rookie. Significant 2006 production would be a pleasant surprise.

* It's not just the Florida WR thing. ESPN's Lenny P had a piece about 10 days ago on early draft pick WR's from all schools and it wasn't encouraging. I'm making no prediction on Jackson either way, just saying early pick WR's have a very spotty record.

The Steeler's are SB Champs and I have no problem saying that makes everyone else looking up at them. They beat the Colts in Indy, the team that beat the Patriots and won the SB. If the Patriots had won the SB last year and anyone said they weren't the best team they'd be ridiculed. I don't care about injuries or other excuses.

The way BB has an obvious fetish for TE's, it may be one position he pays 2 of them fairly well. Although as Miguel says, it'll likely depend on if he wants to be THE guy or not.

I also was surprised the Pats didn't draft a DB or DE/OLB/LB. There'll be 4, maybe 5 guys, as of now anyway, competing for that 4th LB spot. Maybe the best option would be if UDFA da Roach could be a tackling machine on run downs as the Patriots mostly go to a 5th DB on pass downs anyway.
I'd like to see Vrabel back outside.
IMO, the Patriots DB's are just an average group that really needs a dominant front 7 to be successful. I have a lot of doubt Harrison will be the same player pre-injury at least early in the season. We really need a big time/impact player back there.

And last, Miguel, tell your wife she still has you, right?

 

[shakadave]

If your point was that compensatory picks do not really make up for losing a good player, then I agree.

We can all agree with this, I think. Still, a compensatory pick is a nice bone that the NFL throws you to help ease the sting of losing a FA. For sure it's better than nothing. Of course I prefer the 4th round compensatories to the 6th!