How would you rate the 2018 draft for Pats?!

Really not sold on this one at all.

Wynn: First, where's he play? If they used a 1st round pick on a guard with the other needs this team has, even if he's an all pro, this gets a B at best out of me. If he's a tackle, why make the trade for Brown? He seems like a talented player but really needed defensive help here. I'm willing to give BB the benefit of the doubt that he knows this better than anyone, but it just doesn't make much sense.

Michel: So I love the chemistry between he and Wynn, and think he's talented too. But it's kind of the same thing, did we really need a RB? Has any RB in recent history since maybe Ridley got more than 40% of the touches? Unless the offense is being modified, it seems like we just used a 1st round pick on a guy that is going to be the 4th most important guy on offense at best.

Disclaimer: Both of these guys seem like they're incredible players. I question the position more than the player.

Dawson: I really, really don't like this pick at all. First, his best possibility is as a nickleback. Second, by just about any evaluation, they could have drafted this guy 10-20 picks later. Hubbard Reid Carter Goedert Kirk and a few others all seemed like better picks. Belichicks history of 2nd round DBs hasn't been good either, leaving lasting memories of Cyrus Jones, Jordan Richards, Tavon Wilson, Ras I Dowling, Darius Butler, Terrance Wheatley....

Not going to comment much about the rest. They went in with two firsts and two seconds and walked away with a guy without a position, a guy who if we're lucky is a nickle or dime back, and another guy who might see 20-25 snaps a game.

C+ / B-

Nfl.com
Has us tied with the highest graded draft
Has Us Eagles Titans with a A overall.

Using the big picture perspective I'd give them an A.

Defense:

Danny Shelton (former first rounder)
Vincent Valentine (Coming off of IR)
Rivers (Coming off of IR)
Hightower (Coming off of IR)
Langi (Coming off of IR)

Plus a CB and 2 LB's from this year's draft.

Plus a second year jump for last year's rookies/mid year signees.

Having both Shelton and VV is huge to me. Fills the vacuum at NT that Branch could no longer maintain last season.

Offense:

Mitchell (Coming off of IR)
Edelman (Coming off of IR)

Looks like Scar finally put his foot down. He's got plenty of ingredients in the cupboard to put together possibly one of the best O lines we've seen.

"BB if you want me to cook the dinner at least get me some damn groceries"

Wynn
Brown
A couple of FA's

A first round picked RB?? Never thought I'd see that.

A couple of possible next Edelmans or Amendolas?


Etling is an interesting pick. I see it as an investment. I predict he'll flash during the next couple of preseasons, posters will get their hopes up and BB will trade their binky for a fourth. "First JG and now the Etling gun?" (Great nickname @Joker )

Additional picks in next year's draft is a nice bonus. C'mon Chicago. 0-16.

A+ (That's a grade for their approach. As others have mentioned we can grade the picks later.)

Here is are my first impressions so far, just based on highlight reels:

1st Round, 23rd Overall: Isaiah Wynn, LT/G, Georgia
At first glance he looks like a big galoot: clumsy and slow and grabby, really grabby. But on closer inspection, I like a lot of things he does. He has a lot of power, moves well, and does something that Hannah used to preach; after you hit the first guy look around for other guys to hit. If he can make his grabby move less obvious, he will be great. BTW, he looked really good at tackle also.

1st Round, 31st Overall: Sony Michel, RB, Georgia
Explosive player but fumble prone. He has a slight frame and might get banged up pretty good in the NFL. This guy will be fantastic, when he not riding the pines because of an injury or a fumble.

2nd Round, 56th Overall: Duke Dawson, CB, Florida
Love this pick. Tough and feisty and quick.

5th Round, 143rd Overall: Ja’Whaun Bentley, LB, Purdue
He is a thumper, but a slow. Hopefully he is a Brandon Spikes type, but I don't see it so far.

6th Round, 178th Overall: Christian Sam, LB, Arizona State
Quick and good tackler, but not heavily built.

6th Round, 210th Overall: Braxton Berrios, WR/PR, Miami
Explosive and quick.

7th Round, 243rd Overall: Keion Crossen, CB, Western Carolina
I love this pick. This guy can play.

They say if you get 2 or 3 starters out of a draft, it’s a good draft. You’d have to think Wynn and Dawson will be starters (eventually), and Michel will eventually be the top dog as far as carries eventually (RB by committee in 2018 I’d guess), so that’s pretty solid. Can’t wait to see these guys on the field.

By not taking a QB until the 7th round it appears to me that the Pats are more confident in Brady playing several more years than what the recent speculation has been indicating. Brady's last actual comment on his expected time frame was mid 40's and if that stays true then the Pats draft and other moves made a ton of sense.

2018 Expectations

QB - even to slightly worse - hard to expect Brady to be quite as good in 2018 but it is certainly possible

OL appears to be a even to a slight upgrade from last year with Wynn, Brown and Cannon in the mix to replace Solder and Fleming - better depth

RB - even to slight improvement with Mitchel getting most of what was lost with Lewis

TE - even to slightly down - Gronk stayed healthy most of 2017 and expecting it again is a risk

WR - even to slightly better with Edelman, Mitchell, Mathews and likely one of Britt or Patterson replacing Cooks and Amendola

DL - appears slightly improved with Shelton and Clayton aboard and Valentine coming back

LB - still area of concern from both a talent and health perspective - hopefully one of rookies can make an impact

DB - even to slightly worse mainly due to age potentially impacting quality of play - hopeful that one of the Jones's becomes a major contributor and Dawson gets on the field

If you're looking for real excitement around draft time, you might want to root for a different team.

Other teams draft great players who turn out to be mediocre. Bill drafts undraftables - goofball Pollack tight ends with bad backs, quasi-failed QB's with the physique of a dentist: you know the types - who turn out to be great. It's some kinda Croatian voodoo, apparently.

Seels said:

Michel: So I love the chemistry between he and Wynn, and think he's talented too. But it's kind of the same thing, did we really need a RB? Has any RB in recent history since maybe Ridley got more than 40% of the touches? Unless the offense is being modified, it seems like we just used a 1st round pick on a guy that is going to be the 4th most important guy on offense at best.

Disclaimer: Both of these guys seem like they're incredible players. I question the position more than the player.

Dawson: I really, really don't like this pick at all. First, his best possibility is as a nickleback. Second, by just about any evaluation, they could have drafted this guy 10-20 picks later. Hubbard Reid Carter Goedert Kirk and a few others all seemed like better picks. Belichicks history of 2nd round DBs hasn't been good either, leaving lasting memories of Cyrus Jones, Jordan Richards, Tavon Wilson, Ras I Dowling, Darius Butler, Terrance Wheatley...

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Regarding Michel, which RB since Ridley had the body to withstand more than 40% of the touches, but also the natural ability to deserve them?

Look at the TE production in 2009, and the years before that. It was almost an afterthought. Look at it by 2011. The offense revolved around a 2 TE set. Did we make a decision before that 2010 draft to modify the offense at all costs, or did we simply acquire two great players and realize they needed to be on the field? Michel is a stud, and great in pass protection. No, he won't break an NFL record for carries in a season but he's our lead back for sure.

As for Dawson, if his ceiling is nickelback, that makes him a starter in today's NFL. There's absolutely nothing wrong with that. And by just about any evaluation, half the players in the draft could have been had 10-20 picks later. And especially once you get past the 1st round, those evaluations aren't even close. Similar players had started coming off the board, and it's very common to see a run on positions before it dries up. So I have no issue with the trade up. And yes, our history with 2nd round DBs is poor. But just like the Steelers positive history at WR doesn't guarantee James Washington anything, neither does our history hurt Dawson.

zipster9 said:

Defense still suspect. Weak pass rush (aka: SB against Eagles) will be the failure for 2018 season, if not addressed via trades & FA.

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I want to jump up and down on these meme a little bit - vociferously. So we've had BB here for a loooooong time. When measuring defensive capability what's his more usual mode of operation in building out the defense - to be stout against the run or emphasizing rushing the passer?

The draft and free agency this year has been much more about the fact that Blount, a guy we KNOW can be bottled up to short YPC, had 14 for 90 (6.4 ypc); a field day against the Pats defense. THAT way more than sacks is what this free agency and draft have been about - shoring up the run defense to once again hopefully make teams one dimensional.

Getting Shelton, Clayborn (who can set the edge and provide some push), McCourty (another good run support CB) and drafting the two tackling machine LBs outlines this.

Sacks and pressure comparatively can be schemed more easily across just the front four without dedicating additional resources. Base alignment run defense, if allowing long gains, requires putting more people in the box or doing EVERYONE'S favorite run blitzing Roberts. Not to mention the carry over effect where DE/DTs have to play run technique FIRST because they are getting gashed on the ground slowing their ability to even get to the QB.

But keep bashing the draft of what you want instead of looking at it from what the head Coach wants.

I would have felt better about this draft had we grabbed Evans. I gave it a D.

How would you rate the 2018 draft for Pats?

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Underwhelming and suspect, but with a couple of potential high upside players

Seels said:

Dawson: I really, really don't like this pick at all. First, his best possibility is as a nickleback. Second, by just about any evaluation, they could have drafted this guy 10-20 picks later.

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This is wrong - twice. He's played safety. This will be the guy who keeps Richards off the field by getting rid of the "big nickel."

And no, it was likely, and they believed (was it Reiss who reported this?), that someone else was going to take him after the CB run right before the pick.

Well, what's the point in discussing anything if you can't go with based on knowledge you have now? Just about anything can be said to be best evaluated at a later point. Of course an accurate grade can't be made right now. Because the future hasn't happened yet. If we had that guiding principle for everything, we'd have no discussions about anything.

For those of you who are confused about the draft, Bill came out in his pre-draft press conference and said he drafts best player available. no one should be surprised at some of these picks.

fxmallon said:

We traded up to #56 in the second to get a fourth/fifth round rated DB (who plays Safety! whoa......) whom we could have had at #63 anyway. DW-Toys

Yup. I think this was the worse move. Giving up a 4th round pick to move up seven spots for someone I doubt any other team had interest in.

For the rest, it was mighty boring until maybe the last hour or so, when we actually made picks (of course, by this time all interest had faded). It may have been a fairly effective draft, but it held little excitement for the Pats fans (day one a partial exception, I guess)

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But you are aware of that run at CBs that happened between pick 53 and 55 right ? That is the reason BB traded up. Reiss even alluded to that.

AzorianPats said:

The position I wanted the Pats to address the most was off the line LB. I wanted the team to get faster there, but besides that and maybe safety, I felt this should have been a draft more focused on the offensive side of the ball.

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I kinda expect the team to still address this with a trade either before the season starts or even midseason. We have so many picks next year that there is some flexibility to still fill some holes for 2018.

Trades and FA are a considerably better way to handle specific needs than the draft.

QuantumMechanic said:

Wonder if accumulating so many 2019 picks was done with an eye to making a big move up to get the successor QB. They really need to get one next year so he’ll have a chance for a year or two of bench seasoning before he’s going to have to start.

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sounds good

However, the reality is that we had more draft value this year, than we'll have next. With our 3 top picks we likely could have moved up to #4, and that doesn't even count 63 and 95.

luuked said:

But you are aware of that run at CBs that happened between pick 53 and 55 right ? That is the reason BB traded up. Reiss even alluded to that.

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A starting nickel back is well worth the pick.

Doctor DDS said:

By not taking a QB until the 7th round it appears to me that the Pats are more confident in Brady playing several more years than what the recent speculation has been indicating. Brady's last actual comment on his expected time frame was mid 40's and if that stays true then the Pats draft and other moves made a ton of sense.

2018 Expectations

QB - even to slightly worse - hard to expect Brady to be quite as good in 2018 but it is certainly possible

Click to expand...

Brady's "Replacement" if you can call anyone that, will be a veteran. Bad teams can mask the abilities of a good QB and BB is a master at picking up such rejects. Expect BB to pick up a veteran QB that some other team thought was washed up.

Seels said:

Michel: So I love the chemistry between he and Wynn, and think he's talented too. But it's kind of the same thing, did we really need a RB? Has any RB in recent history since maybe Ridley got more than 40% of the touches? Unless the offense is being modified, it seems like we just used a 1st round pick on a guy that is going to be the 4th most important guy on offense at best.

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Your mistake is thinking that him being on the field only matters if he gets the ball in his hands on a play. He will be a chess piece for Josh the same way Gronk is one. You will be able to force teams into certain formation and mismatches and doing that will make the game easier for Brady.