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The Pats should be drafting a Left Tackle in the first round of the draft this year... There is a lot of push back about using the fourth spot in the draft on a LT... the two best candidates are Will Campbell and Josh Simmons... We've all see the combine measurables for Campbell and his arm length has given a lot of people pause... 32 5/8 arms... the best guy in the draft at LT, Josh Simmons, unfortunately, is rehabbing a patellar tendon injury after having surgery last season...
The ideal scenario would be to trade back, amass extra picks/future picks for the 4... The best value in that scenario will happen if one of the two QBs (Ward/Sanders) is still available at 4... the 4 position gives teams looking for a signal caller the opportunity to jump in front of the Braiders & Jete... Or the best best case scenario, the Braiders move up from 6 to prevent getting jumped by the jete... well the what ifs can go on for days, so enough of that...
If that the case, and we are able to move back, does taking Will Campbell become more palatable? I'm sure it does... and if you are really willing to gamble, wait to 38? and take Simmons if(?) hes still available... I question the 38th selection because its possible that we garner an additional late round first in the trade back... using a pick like that on Simmons is a no brainer to me...
So If its Simmons or Campbell. do we need a vet to start the season at LT? If so the best two candidates are:
Cam Robinson, Minnesota...6'6", 335, 29 years old, will be 30 in October... 10 year vet who has played a full season twice in his NFL career... Greg Bedard theorizes he has not been signed because he is asking too much... Has played for the Jaguars and the Vikings... in 2024 he was traded from the Jags to the Vikings... Thats got to be a low point for him, considering just two years prior he was franchise tagged by the Jags... Doug Marrone, our new OL coach knows this guy, and it gives me pause that considering that relationship, we have not brought him in... nflpenalties.com says he committed 9 penalties last year in 10 games in Minnesota, and 13 total ... The 9 in Minny - 2 holding, 5 false starts, 2 Illegal formation ... so, the majority of the false start penalties came in Minnesota, so it looks like he had a bit of trouble adjusting to the change... not much of a fan, but PFF grades him out as 56/141 at the tackle position... is a better pass blocker than run blocker per them...
Jedrick Wills, Cleveland... 6'4", 307, 25 years old, will be 26 in May... 5 year veteran, has played one full season in his career... has played for the Browns, so Vrabel should at least have a passing familiarity with him... has not played a ton of games recently due to injury concerns... has had issues with the Browns management, leading him the make "a business decision" regarding his return to action last year... not sure if that is contract related or not... but it does give me pause... is this dude a malcontent? He played 5 games in 2024... had 5 penalties per nflpenalties.com, with three false starts accepted... pff grades him out 109/141 and like robinson, is better at pass pro vs run blocking per them... Here's the thing about Wills - he has experience at RT as well... If we get a rookie LT who eventually takes over that spot in the year, we might be able to slide him into the RT position moving forward... Moses did sign a three year deal, but at 34 years old, him finishing out that deal is iffy at best... Wills might be a smart play here...
Other Guys to consider, or at least think about/kick the tires on:
Joe Noteboom: former LT of the Rams... replaced by Alaric Jackson... remember that name? ... had been hurt the past few years... knee & ankle injuries... lost his job to an udfa... of the three guys listed here, I would consider this move... send a scout team to run him through his paces...
David Bakhtiari: has been an all pro tackle, but that was a long time ago... Has not played in a few years due to knee surgeries/clean ups... this would be a very high risk signing, and I think we'd see Lowe back in the starting role by week 3 at the very latest... Recommendation? Stay away.
Tyron Smith: add him, and we have the jete's bookends from last year... he is 35 years old, has had better days... Ostensibly he is the most well rounded blocker available in free agency... but, he only played 10 games last year... wound up on the IR with a neck injury... sign him and you are just throwing your money away with a future injury settlement...
The ideal scenario would be to trade back, amass extra picks/future picks for the 4... The best value in that scenario will happen if one of the two QBs (Ward/Sanders) is still available at 4... the 4 position gives teams looking for a signal caller the opportunity to jump in front of the Braiders & Jete... Or the best best case scenario, the Braiders move up from 6 to prevent getting jumped by the jete... well the what ifs can go on for days, so enough of that...
If that the case, and we are able to move back, does taking Will Campbell become more palatable? I'm sure it does... and if you are really willing to gamble, wait to 38? and take Simmons if(?) hes still available... I question the 38th selection because its possible that we garner an additional late round first in the trade back... using a pick like that on Simmons is a no brainer to me...
So If its Simmons or Campbell. do we need a vet to start the season at LT? If so the best two candidates are:
Cam Robinson, Minnesota...6'6", 335, 29 years old, will be 30 in October... 10 year vet who has played a full season twice in his NFL career... Greg Bedard theorizes he has not been signed because he is asking too much... Has played for the Jaguars and the Vikings... in 2024 he was traded from the Jags to the Vikings... Thats got to be a low point for him, considering just two years prior he was franchise tagged by the Jags... Doug Marrone, our new OL coach knows this guy, and it gives me pause that considering that relationship, we have not brought him in... nflpenalties.com says he committed 9 penalties last year in 10 games in Minnesota, and 13 total ... The 9 in Minny - 2 holding, 5 false starts, 2 Illegal formation ... so, the majority of the false start penalties came in Minnesota, so it looks like he had a bit of trouble adjusting to the change... not much of a fan, but PFF grades him out as 56/141 at the tackle position... is a better pass blocker than run blocker per them...
Jedrick Wills, Cleveland... 6'4", 307, 25 years old, will be 26 in May... 5 year veteran, has played one full season in his career... has played for the Browns, so Vrabel should at least have a passing familiarity with him... has not played a ton of games recently due to injury concerns... has had issues with the Browns management, leading him the make "a business decision" regarding his return to action last year... not sure if that is contract related or not... but it does give me pause... is this dude a malcontent? He played 5 games in 2024... had 5 penalties per nflpenalties.com, with three false starts accepted... pff grades him out 109/141 and like robinson, is better at pass pro vs run blocking per them... Here's the thing about Wills - he has experience at RT as well... If we get a rookie LT who eventually takes over that spot in the year, we might be able to slide him into the RT position moving forward... Moses did sign a three year deal, but at 34 years old, him finishing out that deal is iffy at best... Wills might be a smart play here...
Other Guys to consider, or at least think about/kick the tires on:
Joe Noteboom: former LT of the Rams... replaced by Alaric Jackson... remember that name? ... had been hurt the past few years... knee & ankle injuries... lost his job to an udfa... of the three guys listed here, I would consider this move... send a scout team to run him through his paces...
David Bakhtiari: has been an all pro tackle, but that was a long time ago... Has not played in a few years due to knee surgeries/clean ups... this would be a very high risk signing, and I think we'd see Lowe back in the starting role by week 3 at the very latest... Recommendation? Stay away.
Tyron Smith: add him, and we have the jete's bookends from last year... he is 35 years old, has had better days... Ostensibly he is the most well rounded blocker available in free agency... but, he only played 10 games last year... wound up on the IR with a neck injury... sign him and you are just throwing your money away with a future injury settlement...
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