Do the Patriots draft from big programs? Some numbers...

[patchick]

The question of the Patriots' willingness to draft from small conferences/programs has come up in a couple of threads lately. I thought I'd take a look at their actual history vis a vis the rest of the league.

Based on figures from this article, leaguewide draft pick origins break down as:

Major conference: 77.5%
Mid-major: 14%
Non-FBS: 8.5%

The Patriots over the past decade have drafted like this:

Major conference: 78%
Mid-major: 17.5%
Non-FBS: 4.5%

Especially given that we're looking at a sample of only 90 draft picks, I don't think you can conclude that BB & co. favor major programs any more than the league as a whole does.

 

[manxman2601]

The question of the Patriots' willingness to draft from small conferences/programs has come up in a couple of threads lately. I thought I'd take a look at their actual history vis a vis the rest of the league.

Based on figures from this article, leaguewide draft pick origins break down as:

Major conference: 77.5%
Mid-major: 14%
Non-FBS: 8.5%

The Patriots over the past decade have drafted like this:

Major conference: 78%
Mid-major: 17.5%
Non-FBS: 4.5%

Especially given that we're looking at a sample of only 90 draft picks, I don't think you can conclude that BB & co. favor major programs any more than the league as a whole does.

Well they're certainly less keen on non-FBS teams than the league as a whole.

 

[patchick]

Well they're certainly less keen on non-FBS teams than the league as a whole.

The numbers involved in that conclusion are tiny, though. I'm really not convinced there's a pattern.

Edit: or to look at it another way, if you look only at the past 5 years the Pats have drafted incredibly close to the league averages:

Major: 77%
Mid-Major: 16%
Non-FBS: 7%

 

[patsfaninpa]

Bye-bye David Johnson, McBride and Marpet. Hello, Mike Davis, Lockett and Poutasi.

 

[Off The Grid]

The question of the Patriots' willingness to draft from small conferences/programs has come up in a couple of threads lately. I thought I'd take a look at their actual history vis a vis the rest of the league.

Based on figures from this article, leaguewide draft pick origins break down as:

Major conference: 77.5%
Mid-major: 14%
Non-FBS: 8.5%

The Patriots over the past decade have drafted like this:

Major conference: 78%
Mid-major: 17.5%
Non-FBS: 4.5%

Especially given that we're looking at a sample of only 90 draft picks, I don't think you can conclude that BB & co. favor major programs any more than the league as a whole does.

Double Word Score for referencing DeadSpin in an OP!!