Kirwan's Mock 4.0 - Still talking about Peppers

[JSn]

I realize this was mentioned briefly in the "Pat's Nugget" thread, but thought it warranted specific discussion, without any elephants. He's sticking with the Veteran OLB idea, though he's softened it to include Jason Taylor. So his pick here is Sean Smith (CB).

Players under consideration include Clay Matthews and Larry English. The Patriots are going to wind up with a veteran outside linebacker (Julius Peppers or Jason Taylor) and that shifts the interest to the secondary. Smith has been viewed as a second-round player all year, but his unique size (6-4, 214 pounds) and athletic ability make him a hybrid safety/corner that Bill Belichick will be able to utilize. Rodney Harrison can't play forever, and the secondary isn't the team's strong point. When I was with Belichick, he always liked the three-cone drill, and Smith's 6.92 time was faster than D.J. Moore or Alphonso Smith.

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

Reportedly Smitty isn't that physical... :confused2:

 

[JSn]

Reportedly Smitty isn't that physical... :confused2:

Maybe he should play Tennis...
Seems like a good bet to fill a safety hole whilst adding depth at CB. Not being physical is a definite knock.

 

[BelichickFan]

Reportedly Smitty isn't that physical... :confused2:

But is he physical enough ? Law was very physical but Samuel wasn't very physical at all; however he did manage to get his guy down so I think below average physicality from a CB who still gets the guy down isn't a showstopper - as a Safety it would be more of an issue.

Regarding the point of the thread, yeah, I would imagine Peppers and Taylor are hot and heavy for the Patriots right now. One of them with Thomas at OLB with Woods, Crable, Redd and TBC as backups is a nice group. When they moved Vrabel I imagine the plan was to replace him with a veteran.