Ok…go on record with your draft grade.

[Sect140]

Thanks Sam, I feel better already.

I forgot it was Sam, that explains it.

 

[Sect140]

B, however if the top three picks contribute this season like I think they will, then it could be an A at the end of the season.

 

[Huckleberry1]

Ok, I'll go on record calling this the "A Tale of Two Cities Draft".
The Vrabel draft (It was the best of times)
The Wolf draft (It was the worst of times)
I loved the first 3 picks. I gave them a solid A.
I didn't love the day 3 picks, except for Crownover. I gave it a C-minus.
I hope I am wrong about the day 3 picks but I already had a feeling this draft was very weak after round 3. But I thought we had a chance to get some better players. Of course we shall see but overall this was a little disappointing in the 5-7 range. Moving up for Charles Demmings would have made a difference in my opinion.
My preferences would have been:
5th Round: Domani Jackson or Cyrus Allen (or Kaytron Allen). I only mentioned Jackson since we are in desperate need of CB4 (not sure about Vildor as a UFA signing). It's why I wanted Demmings.
6th Round: Crownover was great
6th Round: Harold Perkins or VJ Payne
7th Round: Nussmeier over Morton
So like I said I thought the draft was weak after the 3rd so I'm not overly disappointed as I figured we'd get players who will be only depth pieces.

I agree and disagree. I really liked the first 2 days and didn't like day 3 as much. What I disagree with is putting iton on Wolf . Wolf is in charge of putting the board together once the scouts have done all their work, but Vrabel, Cowden, and Streicher all play a role in that, and Cowden and Streicher were atill their and had input on day .3 in the same way they had on the first 2 days. The other piece s that everyone knew that Day 3 was going to be much weaker this year, and that the guys taken in those rounds, as well as the UDFA were going to have much tougher time making this roster than they did last season.

 

[DoubleDeluxe]

I agree and disagree. I really liked the first 2 days and didn't like day 3 as much. What I disagree with is putting iton on Wolf . Wolf is in charge of putting the board together once the scouts have done all their work, but Vrabel, Cowden, and Streicher all play a role in that, and Cowden and Streicher were atill their and had input on day .3 in the same way they had on the first 2 days. The other piece s that everyone knew that Day 3 was going to be much weaker this year, and that the guys taken in those rounds, as well as the UDFA were going to have much tougher time making this roster than they did last season.

Was Day 3 really weaker?
Agreed it was weak at the top of the draft, but I think there was plenty of depth in the later rds.
I will defer on whether we made good picks or not, but there was plenty of good prospects available when we picked on Day 3 imo.

 

[DaBruinz]

I think that Crownover, Miller and Prunty offset the picks of Obiazor, Morton, and Hutchins. The first 3 have a very good chance of being contributors.

I agree with @DoubleDeluxe that there were plenty of good prospects available, even late, that the Patriots could have added instead of those 3. Guys who fit the mold of "violent players" and would likely have a better chance of sticking around on the PS.

 

[mgteich]

Was Day 3 really weaker?
Agreed it was weak at the top of the draft, but I think there was plenty of depth in the later rds.
I will defer on whether we made good picks or not, but there was plenty of good prospects available when we picked on Day 3 imo.

There are always plenty of good prospects, especially in the eyes of fans.

The open question is whether the later rounds were worse than the norm.

 

[DoubleDeluxe]

There are always plenty of good prospects, especially in the eyes of fans.

The open question is whether the later rounds were worse than the norm.

Right.
I don’t think it was.
First rd was weaker, but overall I thought the depth, especially in the later rds was actually good.
However I don’t evaluate college players for living, unfortunately.

 

[rochrist]

Also by the way, "crownover" sounds like either a pastry or a childbirth complication

Or a whisky.

 

[Huckleberry1]

Was Day 3 really weaker?
Agreed it was weak at the top of the draft, but I think there was plenty of depth in the later rds.
I will defer on whether we made good picks or not, but there was plenty of good prospects available when we picked on Day 3 imo.

Actually I shouldn't have said that because I can't back it up. Last year I paid a great deal of attention to the whole of the draft, so I knew what was going on in later rounds. This year I have been way to busy to do much more than look at the top 100 or so prospects, and didn't know **** about the rest of the draft. I conflated poor draft depth with poor knowledge of the prospects. So that's on me.

 

[DoubleDeluxe]

Actually I shouldn't have said that because I can't back it up. Last year I paid a great deal of attention to the whole of the draft, so I knew what was going on in later rounds. This year I have been way to busy to do much more than look at the top 100 or so prospects, and didn't know **** about the rest of the draft. I conflated poor draft depth with poor knowledge of the prospects. So that's on me.

All good. All the pre-draft talk was how it was a weak draft class, and it was at the top.
Middle and late rds seemed to have a lot of good players still available every time we were on the clock.

 

[Uptown]

Solid B+

One player I would’ve liked in the later rounds was South Carolina DB Jalon Kilgore. Ideal modern nickel player; athletic…very good ball skills. He was projected as a 2nd-3rd round prospect, but went in the 5th. Buffalo potentially got a steal. LB/NB Kyle Louis as well. Love these 2 guys for our defense.

 

[TheRazorsEdge]

I was happy they traded up in the first few rounds in a notoriously weaker draft class. In my mind that's how you should operate given the situation, pick your guys and get em'.

Intrigued by the first 4 picks especially... Crownover also has caught my attention.

They addressed needs and brought in competition...most importantly to the tackle room.

Hard to grade so soon but I'd give it a solid B. A little better than I expected.

 

[PYPER]

Pick 28: Caleb Lomu (OT) - I was on record predicting that none of the OT prospects with 1st round grades would be available at pick #31. If that had been the case, I was hoping to trade down and land more picks. If the consensus opinion is correct and gap between the first seven and the next tier is extremely large, I think moving up to #28 and landing Lomu was a tremendous pick. I also like the fact that his natural position is LT. In addition to Moses being 35 years old, we lost our backup LT (Lowe) in free agency and didn't have solid depth in the event that Campbell gets injured. Lomu, at worst, should be a solid swing tackle capable of providing depth at both tackle positions during his rookie year. However, like most of this draft class, he is a developmental guy. He's extremely young and needs time in our strength program to unlock his potential. Its not the sexiest pick for some b/c he's not expected to be an immediate contributor. On the other hand, he's just one injury away from having the opportunity to save our season. He also has the potential to become our best LT option at some point down the line. Based on the need and importance of the position, as well as the league wide shortage of quality depth and options, I think this pick had to be made and I credit the front office for making it. GRADE: A

Pick 55: Gabe Jacas (Edge) - I'm a big fan of the Jacas pick and did not expect him to be available at pick #55. Once again the Patriots front office made an aggressive move to move up and grab the player they wanted. Many of the highly touted Edge players were speedy types with small builds. Those are role players in my eyes, not Day 1 or Day 2 prospects. Jaccas is a 3 down player who offers the ability to defend the run and rush the passer. He's just a solid good player. GRADE: A

Pick 95: Eli Raridon (TE) - Raridon was one of my favorite TE prospects. I had him as TE2 in this draft. I don't like calling Big receivers who cannot block a TE. Raridon checks all the boxes. He's still a developmental guy just like all the TE's in this draft but the potential is there. Size, speed, athleticism, hands, blocking ability. He very well might grow to become the most balanced TE in this draft. If it wasn't for the injuries early in his career, he very well could have been regarded as a 1st or 2nd rounder. Raridon tore his ACL playing basketball during his senior year of high school (he was a great basketball prospect as well) and then got injured again playing football during his Freshman year at Notre Dame. If the medicals checked out and he can stay healthy, Raridon could very well become one of Maye's favorite targets. GRADE: A

Pick 171: Karon Prunty (CB) - Like everyone else, my first reaction was "Karon Who?" It didn't seem like anyone had him on the radar but he was a Top 30 viisit guy. He was 3rd team All ACC last season with solid testing numbers but I don't feel I can evaluate the pick at this time. At least 3 other teams also had him in for Top 30 visits so maybe the Patriots weren't his only suitor. Only time can tell if the Patriots scouts nailed it with Prunty or if this was a swing and miss. Its only a 5th rounder so not the end of the world if it doesn't pan out. I do like the idea of going with a CB here though. We do need depth there. GRADE: Incomplete; Initial impression based on who was still on the board: F

Pick 196: Dametrious Crownover (OT) - I love the idea of drafting two OT's, especially since one has always played LT and the other RT. One of the draft sites I relied on, was very high on Crownover so my initial opinion was very positive for this pick. Since then, however, I've realized there is no consensus for this player. There are many who believe he is terrible and one of the worst OT prospects in the entire draft class. Once again, we're going to need to hope that the Patriots scouts know what they're doing. In any event, it was pick #196. If he pans out, its a huge score. If he doesn't, no big deal. GRADE: Incomplete; Initial Impression: A

Pick 212: Namdi Obiazor (LB) - Another guy who, like Prunty, wasn't on my radar but in retrospect appears to be a solid prospect. The issue here are all the draft boards we all pay attention to. Most had Deontae Dawson as a sold late 3rd or early 4th round prospect but all 32 NFL front offices failed to draft him. The truth about consensus rankings is that for many players, there is no consensus. GRADE: Incomplete; Initial Impression: C

Pick 234: Behren Morton (QB) - I was not impressed by Morton at all and did not expect him to even get drafted. Since the draft ended, I've learned that he may have played a good portion of the season injured. That speaks of his toughness. Perhaps he's better when not banged up. Time will tell. GRADE: Incomplete; Initial Impression: F

Pick 245: Jam Miller (RB) - Solid athlete for the position but seems to lack the requisite skill, ie vision and instincts. I feel like Henderson and Stevenson are also lacking in those departments. I was really hoping we'd get someone like Kaytron Allen earlier in the draft instead but I fear our scouting department might not be very good at identifying RB talent. GRADE: D

Pick 247: Quintayvious Hutchins (Edge) - I like the idea of a smallish 3rd down pass rush specialist with speed and quickness to supplement our Jacas pick in round 2. Hutchins sounds like exactly the type of player we would like to land at this spot in the draft. GRADE: B+


OVERALL:
This was obviously a top heavy draft for us with a lot of question marks on Day 3 but all drafts should be weighted accordingly. If Lomu, Jacas, and Raridon each meet expectations and develop into good football players, this draft can be graded no worse than a solid B or even a B+ draft. If any of the Day 3 picks additionally pan out then we're looking at an A grade draft class.

Of course there's also the chance that draft classes get remembered for the picks that were not made as well. If players like Kevin Coleman Jr or Kaytron Allen (whom I both loved) become superstars while Prunty becomes a nothing-burger, those missed opportunities can define the draft class as well.

For now, and playing the role of the optimist that I wish to be, I'm giving the Patriots a GRADE of B+