Iaputi at #22 is our best value

[captain stone]

I am hoping one of the top 5 DEs will still be available at #22 to replace Seymour/Green. There will certainly be top 5 guards left in round 2 while conversely D-linemen go off the board quickly in the first round. So the value is not there for Pats at #22 when plenty of holes on D need to be filled.

After today's DL workouts at the Combine, who are your top DEs, and best realistic DE available? I ass-ume that list includes some combination of Morgan, Griffen, Pierre-Paul, Dunlap, Odrick & Wootton.
I expect the first 3 names to be called before 22;
I'm too scared to draft Dunlap in the first round;
I'm not sure if Odrick can make enough plays in the backfield to warrent a #22 overall;
and I'm hoping that, with his medical history, Wootton slides into the 40s.

Instead of a DLman, there might be better value for 22 at either OLB (Graham, Kindle, Sapp) or at OL (Pouncey, Bruce Campbell, Charlie Brown). Except for Matt Tennant - who's really made himself some money this week, and has closed the gap btwn him & Pouncey, who much to my dismay didn't fully participate in workouts/drills - there's no other OLman worthy of a 2nd-rounder (IMHO), whereas there are 3 other OLBs - Misi, Hughes, Worilds - who might still be avail. into the 40s.

 

[WelshPat]

After today's DL workouts at the Combine, who are your top DEs, and best realistic DE available? I ass-ume that list includes some combination of Morgan, Griffen, Pierre-Paul, Dunlap, Odrick & Wootton.

Those guys you named are very different players. From what I've read around the 'net, Morgan is not a fit for the 3-4. Griffen is usually mocked at the very bottom of round 1, JPP will be gone, Dunlap has a lot of bad game tape. All of those guys are 4-3 DE's, and will make their money getting after the QB.

Odrick is a guy that fits a need, comes across as intelligent, but as you said, does not make a lot of plays in the backfield. His game is stuffing the run. He's a little more athletic than Warren, a guy who is solid, but like Odrick, does not give you much pass rush and is more of a run stuffer, but is no where near the athletic freak that Seymour was/is. I think he's a guy the Patriots will look into at 22.

 

[CGH TX PATS]

Pass rush at 22 & 42.

 

[DaBruinz]

As the Colts have been kind enough to show us these last 10 years (most wins by any team in NFL) - offense alone doesnt win the Lombardi. Defense does and Pats D is just not championship calibre yet.

Just a point of information. The Colts have NOT won the most games in the last 10 years. They've won the most Regular season games, but not the most over-all. That belongs to the Pats.

Iaputi definately is a talent but I can't remember the last time a guard won a championship game for anybody. A defensive stud however can be a game changer. (See last 2 superbowls turned on a pick 6 by defense.) Pats need to go with best defensive player available at #22.

I am hoping one of the top 5 DE will still be available at #22 to replace Seymore /Green. There will certainly be top 5 guard left in round 2 while conversley D-lineman go off the board quickly in the first round. So the value is not there for Pats at #22 when plenty of holes on D need to fill. Furthermore, there might be several candidates to fill guard spot IF Neal not back. ex. Kazur, Ohnberger, Bussey.

Joker, it just does not compute for me.....unless you are playing the Riddler instead.

I agree that Iupati isn't the best value. I don't even believe he fits the Pats system.

 

[Water Boy]

I'd be ok with Iaputi. I have a hard time seeing the Pats re-sign Mankins to a market value deal which I'm guessing would be in the 6-7 million/year range. That's too much money for the OG position IMO.

 

[WaterfallJumper]

In regards to Odrick: I find it odd that you all think he's more of a run-stuffer than a pass-rusher. Every time I watch him, I wish he had a little more sand in his pants. He's got a good motor and pretty good hands, but he gets too high, and doesn't maintain good leverage or positioning toward the running lane. Teams can run at him; I've often seen a guard or center turn him out of the hole. Nonetheless, he can get into the backfield. I think he'll be a great 3-tech. He has 24.5 tackles for loss and 14.5 sacks in 46 games, with seven of those sacks coming in his senior year--a trend showing decided improvement, in my opinion. Pretty good numbers from the tackle position, actually.

 

[sg14]

So what did Tennant do at the combine??
He is the C from BC?,
Does he have more power than Koppen?

I have been figuring since the ugly loss to Baltimore that we are going DE (BB likes DL), or maybe OLB, but yea , you never know,,,

Instead of a DLman, there might be better value for 22 at either OLB (Graham, Kindle, Sapp) or at OL (Pouncey, Bruce Campbell, Charlie Brown). Except for Matt Tennant - who's really made himself some money this week, and has closed the gap btwn him & Pouncey, who much to my dismay didn't fully participate in workouts/drills - there's no other OLman worthy of a 2nd-rounder (IMHO), whereas there are 3 other OLBs - Misi, Hughes, Worilds - who might still be avail. into the 40s.

 

[WaterfallJumper]

So what did Tennant do at the combine??
He is the C from BC?,
Does he have more power than Koppen?

I have been figuring since the ugly loss to Baltimore that we are going DE (BB likes DL), or maybe OLB, but yea , you never know,,,

Tennant's a technician with tenacity. The knock on him is that he doesn't always play with power, but he's improved immensely this year. He ran well, looked great in drills, and bulked up 10 pounds from the season. He's 6'5, so a lot of people worry about his leverage issues, which is warranted given his propensity to play a little too high at times. Nonetheless, he's a big, smart, athletic guy who could play guard or center for us, and still has lots of room to grow. Every time I see him I think he's a TE, not an interior lineman, 'cause he's very slender. I think he's just hitting his stride, though, and could easily add 10 - 20 pounds without losing his athleticism. Combine that with better pad level, and he could be a pro-bowl caliber C/OG.

I'd like him from 47 on, and would not be too terribly disappointed if we took him sooner. He's an upgrade from Connolly, and could be better than Koppen in a few years. I don't know if he's off our board, however, because of how tall he is--as I stated, leverage can become a real issue for him at times. Still, he fits our scheme and lineman profile, and I'd like to see him stay in the NE area.

 

[mgteich]

I am not convinced that we will draft a guard. Belichick may be fine with Mankins, Neal, Kaczur, Ohrnberger, Connelly, Wendell and Bussey competing for reps and roster spots.

Obviously Kaczur can also compete for reps at OT with Light, Vollmer and LeVoir.
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I understand folks looking at every unit and wanting to invest resources. For me, the place to invest this year is at DE, OLB, TE and perhaps WR and ILB.

I never have a problem with drafting a developmental OL in the 4th or 5th. I am certainly fine with Johnson in the 2nd. However, I don't think that OG is a top need. If we need a starting OG next year, we'll draft one.