The Official Patriots Day 2 draft thread.

[Ring 6]

Belichick doesn't draft lb in 1st round never have never will(mayo). Belichick doesn't value guards enough to draft one early(mankins). Belichick doesn't deal with divas(dillon,moss). Belichick won't draft pass rushers early(chandler). Patriots don't spend big money on FA won't happen(Thomas). Your reasoning is bad, bb wants to give ocho another chance but doesn't want to pay him big again. That doesn't make him a lock. Branch vastly out performed him but people act like he's a scrub. again I would love to see ocho succeed here. But your reasoning is severely flawed. Just because he hasn't done it before doesn't mean he wont. It's belichick, anything is possible.

Not to mention the argument is a strawman.
Players who restructure their contracts, get money shifted to bonus to lower the salary, and the cap hit, and make the cap impact of cutting them higher.
You don't do that with someone who may not make the team, so sure, we probably never have restructured a player in the off-season and then cut him. Not because of some silly idea that you want to send a message, but because it was done strategically, and intelligently.

85 is not an example of this. 85 had his pay cut. It was take a pay cut(not a restructure) or be cut. We were willing to let him go.

There are no examples of the past to base this on, because it is uncommon that we give a player a take a cut or be cut ultimatum.
Any past examples being referenced do not apply because they are simply not the same thing.
The contrived reading of tea leaves to create an explanantion of why they weren't cut, while wrong, wouldn't even apply here, because the circumstances are entirely different.

 

[Triumph]

BB has never sold a roster spot. On cinko

Bill Belichick touches on Patriots topics - Boston.com

One of those receivers is Chad Ochocinco, who recently redid his contract and took a pay cut but has the same expected of him as any Patriots player.

“I think I have the same expectations for all our players, doesn’t matter who they are, doesn’t matter what year they’re in,’’ said Belichick. “Come in, work hard, be prepared, go out there and compete on the field. No difference for any player.’’


IE: know where to line up and be where youre supposed to be. Produce more than 1 TD and 16 receptions for the entire season.

 

[Patriot Missile]

Listen, you, Froob, triumph and Boomer can spew all the BS you want, but you are ignoring reality. There have been players, in the past, whom clearly weren't the best and were just taking up a roster spot, yet BB didn't cut them. I mentioned some already and I find it amusing that you 4 ignored that.

I had this same argument some 6 years. I was proven right by BB then and he'll prove me right again.

You don't cut a veteran who has restructured his contract (saving the team cap space). Why? Because, if you do, then veterans down the line will be less likely to do so. In fact, it's more likely that they'd rather be cut, sticking the team with a higher cap hit, than restructure. That is not an assertion. That is truth. It's why BB has never done so and will continue not to do so.

You see, BB already made the decision whether or not to cut Johnson prior to the restructuring. There was no point in restructuring Johnson's deal if there was even an inkling that BB would cut him. And it's not like the Pats needed the money for the cap at the time. They had plenty.

But those are all things you all want to ignore.

If they cut a player that took a pay cut what does that say about the way you do business? It looks bad in the eyes of the employees and makes free agents more likely to go to another team and less likely to draw free agents to your team. All these players talk to each other and word gets around. I all but guarantee that Chad Johnson will be in a Pats uniform unless he does something completely stupid before then.

 

[upstater1]

Dude the draft is a crapshoot past the first round... Heck even in the first round. We won't know about any of these players until 2014. The pats team was set after Round 1.

I agree with this but I still don't like the pick and the trade down.

 

[Snake Eyes]

If they cut a player that took a pay cut what does that say about the way you do business? It looks bad in the eyes of the employees and makes free agents more likely to go to another team and less likely to draw free agents to your team. All these players talk to each other and word gets around. I all but guarantee that Chad Johnson will be in a Pats uniform unless he does something completely stupid before then.

What does it say to the players on your team, who want to win, that a roster spot is being given to a guy because he restructured his contract as opposed to earning it by being better than his competition and by being the best use of that roster spot?

 

[VJCPatriot]

The same way that the Vollmer pick haunts you? Or how about Stevan Ridley? The draft is a gamble. The chances of a 2nd round pick making it are 50/50. Those names all look nice because we've actually read about them, but have we done the film work and in person scouting that the Patriots have done? Of course not. Half the names on your list will bust. I can guarantee that by virtue of the odds. Whether Wilson works out or not, we don't know. 50/50 he doesn't. But I'm not going to stress over it. Safety/CB needed to be addressed and it was in the second round.

The Pats also got blue chip talent in round 1 with Jones and Hightower then picked up an intriguing prospect in Bequette who has the size 6'5 274 and the passrushing pedigree to play a role for the Pats as either a 4-3 rush end or rush backer. A lot to be excited about this year's draft. 1 pick won't make or break it. Because news flash, they don't all pan out!

The Tavon Wilson pick ruined this draft for me. BB outsmarted himself again. Forgive me in the years to come if I obsess about the other players we could have had in the 2012 draft:

Kendall Reyes
Jerel Worthy
Devon Still
Peter Konz
Lavonte David
Vinny Curry
Casey Hayward
Trumaine Johnson
Josh Robinson
Brandon Taylor
Brandon Brooks
Mohammed Sanu
etc.

 

[Ring 6]

If they cut a player that took a pay cut what does that say about the way you do business? It looks bad in the eyes of the employees and makes free agents more likely to go to another team and less likely to draw free agents to your team. All these players talk to each other and word gets around. I all but guarantee that Chad Johnson will be in a Pats uniform unless he does something completely stupid before then.

What does it say to the other 52 players that you care more about some stupid slieght than winning?
I don't understand how any FA would be troubled by knowing that if the team thinks you suck, they will offer you a chance to take a paycut and compete for a job. Would it be more honorable to not let him try to make the team at a fair price and fire him?

 

[Ring 6]

I agree with this but I still don't like the pick and the trade down.

I don't like it either but that doesn't mean it will turn out bad.
On draft day, according to this board:
Chad Jackson was a steal and the best WR in the draft
McCoiurty was a special teamer
Ridley was a 3rd down back
Tate was a first round pick if he was healthy
Klecko was a steal
and on and on and on

The initial reaction on this board is no more likely to be right than a dart, a coin flip or the lady would picks horse based on the color they are wearing.