Thoughts on Day One

[Box_O_Rocks]

Very interesting how a perceived, defensively deep draft went all offense for New England. After looking closely at defensive players, I'm a bit underwhelmed with the offensive selections vs. last year, Mankins and Kaczur had me psyched up (Hobbs was a complete unknown).

I felt somewhat better about Maroney when the NFL Network showed him on blitz pick-up, that just seems important to me as a Pats' Fan. I felt Chad Jackson was a project pick after the Combine and as such is a much better value in round two. Dave Thomas is an interesting TE, one I'd have been looking for on day two.

Day one ends with some anticipation for those 2 4th round picks.

AFCE Thoughts:

Buffalo, with 3 defensive players, leaves me shaking my head at Levy and Jauron - you go boys!

Miami, got some decent talent.

Jets, kicked butt with a LT, C, and good looking QB for the offense. Schlegel is a solid run stopping ILB to pair with the lighter Vilma, and Mangini took a Michigan State CB whom I know nothing about, but EM knows a thing or two about DBs. Add in the 2007 2nd round pick from the Redskins and you have to say Tangini had a great first day.

 

[PonyExpress]

My quick take on the draft
1. Maroney.
Upside: Edgerrin James before the knee injury. A 1500 yard back. Hits the hole fast, which Dillon couldn’t do last year.
Downside: BBs blindspot has been Rbs. Vardell, Redmond, Womack, Cobbs. Not a good track record (although Redmond was an integral member of a championship team). My confidence is not high in this pick. Maroney has been tagged with some character concerns, and we know the other possible knocks on him…
2. Jackson.
Upside: Game breaking #1 receiver.
Downside: Idolizes TO. Comes off as a bit of a prima donna. His toughness has been questioned, as has his ability to pick up a complex playbook. Is not close with Urban Meyer. Could be another Florida bust.
3. Thomas. No complaints. Should play HB, protect roster when Graham leaves. Hopefully another Daryl Johnston to Watson’s Novacek.

 

[DaBruinz]

My take on the draft:

1) Maroney - Big questions on whether he can run between the tackles. I felt that Lawson was a much better value pick here and felt that he fit the Patriots mold. Especially after hearing that the kid scored a 43 on the Wonderlic. The 49ers RAN to the podium to get their pick in immediately after they heard Maroney's 1st name called. This pick seems to totally fly in the face of everything BB has said about building from the trenches. Especially with Lawson on the board and a huge hole at OLB.

2) Chad Jackson - I was very surprised to hear that Jackson met with the Pats 4-5 times. I was even more surprised to find out that the Pats tried to draft Mark Clayton last year by trying to trade up for him with Baltimore. When that came out, I knew that WR could be a possibility though it does seem to fly in the face of how BB has built this team. The fact that BB met with the kid face to face AND the Patriots game him several plays to break down when he came to visit shows how high they are on this kid.


3) David Thomas - Had him on my draft board for the 4th round. Felt that he fits into the mold of how the Pats have drafted TEs. Coachable players who accel at catching the ball and have adequate blocking skills. The Pats have shown the can teach a TE to block. As they did with Graham and are doing with Watson. The fact that Thomas LIKES to play special teams will probably assure him of NOT being inactive. The Pats need some new blood in the special teams. Especially on their kicking units.

 

[mgteich]

The NFL channel has been calling Jackson the steal of the day. Agree or not, I think we were extremely lucky not to be depending on the talent of a 3rd rounder to contribute. Jackson has a tremendous upside.

I see Maroney as a short yard back this year (an immediate contributer) and perhaps next, while we see whether he is Dillon's relacement.

We needed a third TE, who could possibly step up to replace Graham should he not re-sign.

 

[PatsFan37]

Maroney -- smart and coachable. BB had trouble with RB's taken too late who were neither, or who lacked the elusiveness to get yards on their own. Last year, when the team lacked a feature back, it really hurt.

Jackson -- smart, big (well, bigger) and fast. BB's been trying to get a solid #2 WR for a while. All those quiz questions to make sure he didn't washout in the toughest area, the ability to read coverages in synch with Brady. Jackson has the talent and he can apparently learn the offense. Caldwell has a battle on his hands even this year.

Thomas. We will re-sign Graham and Thomas is strictly a backup. Thomas is smart, coachable and good at ST's, but he needs a year in the weight room, and even then, he'll never have Graham's size, speed or playing strength. Who do you want standing by the LT to pick up Freeney? I know we needed a TE, but I'd rather have seen a defensive pick and take Jed Weaver as a backup.

Once again, the Pats draft for what's between the shoulder pads. I can't argue with that.

 

[bosfan]

Certainly not what most of us thought, but after reviewing comments and such you have to think these are highly rated players that are desperately needed by our offense. I also defer to BB/SP in these matters since they know much more than me. It was just a complete surprise - once you get over that, it looks pretty good.

 

[marty]

Certainly not what most of us thought, but after reviewing comments and such you have to think these are highly rated players that are desperately needed by our offense. I also defer to BB/SP in these matters since they know much more than me. It was just a complete surprise - once you get over that, it looks pretty good.

:yeahthat: I was surprised at the concentration of offense, but that may be because the defense is deep enough for the late rds?

 

[rookBoston]

Offense... shocking

Of course, I know there is a method to this madness.

1) Maroney
Looks like a high priced PR/KR to me, who can compete for 3rd down duties. Can he ever be the premier RB for this team... I'll need to see more.

2) Jackson
Undoubtedly, the value is there. I felt better when BB gave details on all the mental reps that they gave him: they sent him some pages from the playbook and had him recite the formations back. They had a lot of face to face time with him, and must have gotten a read on his character. Interesting that they stole him away from Denver, and maybe forced the Broncos hand in trading for Walker. There's an untold story there.

3) Thomas
I actually like this pick, alot. I would have liked it better if we had already put a LB on the Draft Tracker, tho.

 

[mcbee]

Of course, I know there is a method to this madness.

1) Maroney
Looks like a high priced PR/KR to me, who can compete for 3rd down duties. Can he ever be the premier RB for this team... I'll need to see more.

2) Jackson
Undoubtedly, the value is there. I felt better when BB gave details on all the mental reps that they gave him: they sent him some pages from the playbook and had him recite the formations back. They had a lot of face to face time with him, and must have gotten a read on his character. Interesting that they stole him away from Denver, and maybe forced the Broncos hand in trading for Walker. There's an untold story there.

3) Thomas
I actually like this pick, alot. I would have liked it better if we had already put a LB on the Draft Tracker, tho.

How is Maroney only a KR? He got 1500 tough yard playing for run all the time almost every down Minnesota. Including 150 or so at Ohio State when they were 7 men in the box the whole game. He's a one cut and he's gone type of RB. Don't know if he has the elusiveness of Porter but he's good.

 

[lostjumper]

Hye, new to the boards. I was cruising around looking for a good pats message board, and it looks like I found one. Anyways, on to my thoughts.

1.) Maroney- Wasn't really happy with this pick. I would have rather had DeAngelo Williams at this pick since I thought he was the better back. Then I saw some highlights of the Min-Ohio ST game and changed my mind. Against a defense that features a ton of high round draft picks this year he ran hard and pretty much over them most of the time. If you are unhappy with the pick, just watch that game and maybe you will change your mind like I did. I'm happy with the pick now.

2.) Jackson- Very happy with this pick as well. He was the tallest of the top 3 wide receivers this year, and is just as fast as the other two. In my mind, the best receiver in the draft and we got him at #36. A steal.

3.) Thomas- While I was hoping for linebacker like alot of people, this is a good pick as well. B.B. likes to run 2 tight-end sets alot, and to do that, you need 3 quality tight ends. While he will never be a superstay, Thomas appears to be a steady, reliable option at tight end. Reminds me alot of troy Brown. Not flashy at all, but gets the job done.

I was very surprised to see us go all offense on day 1, but Brady needed some help on offense, and he's definitely got it now.

 

[Seneschal2]

1) Maroney
Looks like a high priced PR/KR to me, who can compete for 3rd down duties. Can he ever be the premier RB for this team... I'll need to see more.

I'm really surprised at this comment. Are we to assume that if you have seen him play, that your time spent watching was of a short clip or two and not an entire game? Just curious as to why Maroney would even be considered as the Pats returner, and why he would compete with Faulk and not Dillon.

 

[shakadave]

My quick take on the draft
1. Maroney.
Upside: Edgerrin James before the knee injury. A 1500 yard back. Hits the hole fast, which Dillon couldn’t do last year.
2. Jackson.
Upside: Game breaking #1 receiver.

3. Thomas. No complaints. Should play HB, protect roster when Graham leaves. Hopefully another Daryl Johnston to Watson’s Novacek.

My quick take on Day One:

1. Maroney. Ensures a winning year at RB. If Dillon's healthy and effective, great, we win a Super Bowl. Maroney can play a few downs to help Dillon stay healthy. If Dillon's not healthy or not effective, we'll be mighty glad we made this Round One pick! RB is not a bad position to plug in for rookie-year production. I sat near a Minnesota alum in a bar Saturday, and he assured me Maroney gains the tough 2 yards on 3rd and 1, picks up blitzers, etc.

2. Jackson. Takes over from Caldwell as our starter around the Bye Week. Produces less than Givens this year. Produces more than Givens each of the next 4 years. Scares the fans in Denver and Pittsburgh!!!

3. Thomas. Nice pick --- just what I was hoping for at that point. We need a 3rd TE even if Graham stays. Only the 2nd TE we picked hints that Graham is endangered, but if he plays FB then Graham might still be OK.

 

[Irish Hooligan]

Hye, new to the boards. I was cruising around looking for a good pats message board, and it looks like I found one. Anyways, on to my thoughts.

1.) Maroney- Wasn't really happy with this pick. I would have rather had DeAngelo Williams at this pick since I thought he was the better back. Then I saw some highlights of the Min-Ohio ST game and changed my mind. Against a defense that features a ton of high round draft picks this year he ran hard and pretty much over them most of the time. If you are unhappy with the pick, just watch that game and maybe you will change your mind like I did. I'm happy with the pick now.

2.) Jackson- Very happy with this pick as well. He was the tallest of the top 3 wide receivers this year, and is just as fast as the other two. In my mind, the best receiver in the draft and we got him at #36. A steal.

3.) Thomas- While I was hoping for linebacker like alot of people, this is a good pick as well. B.B. likes to run 2 tight-end sets alot, and to do that, you need 3 quality tight ends. While he will never be a superstay, Thomas appears to be a steady, reliable option at tight end. Reminds me alot of troy Brown. Not flashy at all, but gets the job done.

I was very surprised to see us go all offense on day 1, but Brady needed some help on offense, and he's definitely got it now.

Welcome LJ, quality post, you make some really solid points. I remember that OSU game now that you have called attention to it....nice work!:rocker: