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Sometimes a Belichick draft feels like ordering a burger, getting excited, and then finding out you'll get 2 tacos and a churro tomorrow instead. Anyways, I got curious how these trades have worked out (note: some of these are simplified and ignore minor late round swaps, etc.).
2000 - Forfeited #16 for signing Belichick
Grade: A+. Pretty good coach. Missed out on Shaun Alexander and Keith Bulluck, but got 2 decades of pitch-perfect deadpan press-conference humor.
2002 - Trade up from #32 to #21 to draft Daniel Graham
Grade: B. Sounds worse than it was. Sure, we missed out on Ed Reed (#24), but there was only dreck left at #32.
2003 - Trade Bledsoe and move a bit to eventually draft Ty Warren.
Grade: A-. We passed on Troy Palamalu, but got the underrated cornerstone Warren.
2003 - Trade #19 to draft Eugene Wilson and Dan Klecko in 2003 and Vince Wilfork (#23) in 2004
Grade: B+. Pretty deep draft where we passed on Willis McGahee, Larry Johnson and Nnamdi Asomugha and the 2004 pick was probably lower than we anticipated, but Wilfork used his natural gravitational abilities to fall to us the next year and save the trade.
2007 - Trade Deion Branch to draft Brandon Meriweather (#24)
Grade: C-. It was the right time to trade Branch, but it was never the right time to draft the player who some may call "the Laurence Maroney of our defense".
2007 - Trade #28 into 2008 to eventually draft Jerod Mayo and Shawn Crable
Grade: B-. We passed on Joe Staley and Greg Olsen, but it was a fairly weak draft class overall. The 2008 pick was higher than anticipated, thankfully.
2008 - Trade down from #7 to #10 to grab Mayo and Crable
Grade: B+. The players drafted 7, 8, 9 were forgettable (S Ellis, D Harvey, K Rivers), so we saved on the old top-heavy rookie payscale, but drafting a LB with the calves of a CB never panned out.
2009 - Trade down from #23 -> #26 -> to draft Darius Butler, Brandon Tate, Edelman in 2009 and Gronk in 2010
Grade: A. Classic Belichick draft: terrible CB and WR, but amazing 7th round positional project and the best WWE US Title holder in NFL history. Was frustrating at the time, as Clay Matthews and Michael Oher were taken with our traded picks.
2010 - Trade down #22->#27 to draft Devin McCourty, Aaron Hernandez and Taylor Price
Grade: A-. Frustrating at the time, as we passed on Dez Bryant and Demaryius Thomas with the picks we traded to grab some no-name DB from Rutgers. Hernandez would go on to sell thousands of jerseys which would soon lead to thousands of refunds.
2011 - Trade down from #28 for Shane Vereen in 2011 and Chandler Jones (#27) in 2012
Grade: A-. Some Pats fans were again groaning that we passed on Mark Ingram, but it paid off the following year.
2012 - Trade up to #21 from #27 for Chandler Jones and trade up to #25 from #31 for Donta Hightower
Grade: A. So good that they couldn't even afford both of them a few years later. The picks they traded to move up? Used on Doug Martin, Kevin Zeitler, Jared Crick and Brandon Thompson
2013 - Trade down from #29 to draft Jamie Collins, Logan Ryan, Josh Boyce, and a 7th traded for LeGarrette Blount
Grade: A-. This is how dynasties get a round 2. We didn't miss out on anything between our original pick and Collins. And the #29 pick was everything-yet-nothing Corderelle Patterson.
2017 - Trade 1st (and 3rd) for Brandin Cooks
Grade: B. Cooks was a bad fit but this draft was terrible around where we would've picked. Cooks at least held his value to be traded for...
2018 - Trade Brandin Cooks for Isaiah Wynn (#23), Ryan Izzo, Keion Crossenin in 2018 and Byron Cowart in 2019
Grade: TBD.
Thoughts?
2000 - Forfeited #16 for signing Belichick
Grade: A+. Pretty good coach. Missed out on Shaun Alexander and Keith Bulluck, but got 2 decades of pitch-perfect deadpan press-conference humor.
2002 - Trade up from #32 to #21 to draft Daniel Graham
Grade: B. Sounds worse than it was. Sure, we missed out on Ed Reed (#24), but there was only dreck left at #32.
2003 - Trade Bledsoe and move a bit to eventually draft Ty Warren.
Grade: A-. We passed on Troy Palamalu, but got the underrated cornerstone Warren.
2003 - Trade #19 to draft Eugene Wilson and Dan Klecko in 2003 and Vince Wilfork (#23) in 2004
Grade: B+. Pretty deep draft where we passed on Willis McGahee, Larry Johnson and Nnamdi Asomugha and the 2004 pick was probably lower than we anticipated, but Wilfork used his natural gravitational abilities to fall to us the next year and save the trade.
2007 - Trade Deion Branch to draft Brandon Meriweather (#24)
Grade: C-. It was the right time to trade Branch, but it was never the right time to draft the player who some may call "the Laurence Maroney of our defense".
2007 - Trade #28 into 2008 to eventually draft Jerod Mayo and Shawn Crable
Grade: B-. We passed on Joe Staley and Greg Olsen, but it was a fairly weak draft class overall. The 2008 pick was higher than anticipated, thankfully.
2008 - Trade down from #7 to #10 to grab Mayo and Crable
Grade: B+. The players drafted 7, 8, 9 were forgettable (S Ellis, D Harvey, K Rivers), so we saved on the old top-heavy rookie payscale, but drafting a LB with the calves of a CB never panned out.
2009 - Trade down from #23 -> #26 -> to draft Darius Butler, Brandon Tate, Edelman in 2009 and Gronk in 2010
Grade: A. Classic Belichick draft: terrible CB and WR, but amazing 7th round positional project and the best WWE US Title holder in NFL history. Was frustrating at the time, as Clay Matthews and Michael Oher were taken with our traded picks.
2010 - Trade down #22->#27 to draft Devin McCourty, Aaron Hernandez and Taylor Price
Grade: A-. Frustrating at the time, as we passed on Dez Bryant and Demaryius Thomas with the picks we traded to grab some no-name DB from Rutgers. Hernandez would go on to sell thousands of jerseys which would soon lead to thousands of refunds.
2011 - Trade down from #28 for Shane Vereen in 2011 and Chandler Jones (#27) in 2012
Grade: A-. Some Pats fans were again groaning that we passed on Mark Ingram, but it paid off the following year.
2012 - Trade up to #21 from #27 for Chandler Jones and trade up to #25 from #31 for Donta Hightower
Grade: A. So good that they couldn't even afford both of them a few years later. The picks they traded to move up? Used on Doug Martin, Kevin Zeitler, Jared Crick and Brandon Thompson
2013 - Trade down from #29 to draft Jamie Collins, Logan Ryan, Josh Boyce, and a 7th traded for LeGarrette Blount
Grade: A-. This is how dynasties get a round 2. We didn't miss out on anything between our original pick and Collins. And the #29 pick was everything-yet-nothing Corderelle Patterson.
2017 - Trade 1st (and 3rd) for Brandin Cooks
Grade: B. Cooks was a bad fit but this draft was terrible around where we would've picked. Cooks at least held his value to be traded for...
2018 - Trade Brandin Cooks for Isaiah Wynn (#23), Ryan Izzo, Keion Crossenin in 2018 and Byron Cowart in 2019
Grade: TBD.
Thoughts?
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