It will soon be time to overpay a free agent OT

[PittPatriot]

Wouldn't go anywhere near N'Keon Coleman.

I like Roman Wilson a lot, reminds me of Antonio Brown pre CTE

Which is why the best WR drafting team of my lifetime chose him. Good foresight by you to make the AB connection.

 

[DaBruinz]

As I said yesterday, all 8 OT's likely enough to start at LT are gone. I suspect that we'll still draft an OT or two after trade down.

I'm sure there are folks who think that there is no problem drafting a starting LT in the 2nd or 3rd, even if they are the 9th or 10th best OT in the draft. Apparently, we tried to move up. We fans knew all was lost when our favorites Mims and Guyton were gone.

Sure, we'll give a go, probably drafting an OT after a trade down. Signing another veteran seems likely.

This was BS and you know it, MG.. There were at least 3 guys still available for LT going into the 2nd round.

There is NO Veteran OT avaliable worth a damn to sign.

 

[DaBruinz]

I am officially OK at LT for now. We still might sign a cheap vet for camp competition.

The man we drafted is easily the best other than the first rounders.

You're ok with LT when the Pats drafted a guy who never started there in his college career?

Paul, Fisher, and Amegadjie are ALL better LTs and it's not even CLOSE.

We have to PRAY that Calvin Anderson comes back and plays like he did in Denver. Otherwise Brisette is toast.

 

[BTTA]

You're ok with LT when the Pats drafted a guy who never started there in his college career?

Paul, Fisher, and Amegadjie are ALL better LTs and it's not even CLOSE.

We have to PRAY that Calvin Anderson comes back and plays like he did in Denver. Otherwise Brisette is toast.

This is an example of draft evaluation certainty that isn't reflected in reality, and is the product of a media machine that's designed to sell advertising by manufacturing something that doesn't exist.

The odds are that two of the three guys mentioned will completely wash out of the NFL. And, that there will be one or two free agent OTs who weren't drafted but end up being better than them.

The Pats picked a guy who they think has a good shot at being a good NFL player. That's all you can ask for in the third round.

 

[State]

Jermaine Eluemunor, Raiders; 29 - edit: signed with Giants; career backup was not the answer anyways

I think Eluemunor was a multiple year starter for the Raiders. The light bulb went on for him after he left the Patriots. You know, keeping the bad weight off, having that sense of urgency, etc.

He would have been good to bring back.

 

[State]

We have to PRAY that Calvin Anderson comes back and plays like he did in Denver. Otherwise Brisette is toast.

Prayer circle time. Right now players like Cal A and BoneyT are key components to this team.

Asking players who haven’t produced at KEY positions to produce is a dubious tact.

 

[mgteich]

This was BS and you know it, MG.. There were at least 3 guys still available for LT going into the 2nd round.

There is NO Veteran OT avaliable worth a damn to sign.

With regards to OT's worth signing, I guess that you are right.
===============
Some trust your evaluations, some trust the team's.

And, we all listen to the mediots.
==========
After the top 8, there was no OT with a 2nd ground grade by most. All were projects that needed a lot or work, mediocre talents or simply shots in the dark.

I am 100% fine that the team didn't make a major reach for a mediocre OT at 34 or 37.

I would have picked a DB instead of Polk but that is another matter. I am OK with choosing a WR.

 

[borg]

Wallace
Grade Analysis
Sizable framed OT with lumbering feet. Average-at-best athlete. Plays with good calmness and accuracy at second level and has quality power but overall athletic profile was severely threatened often in college. A concern for his NFL future. New England did need to add some OL depth. Worried about his upside. (Chris Trapasso)

Rating: 76.34 (Part-time player)
Pro Comparison: Vederian Lowe

 

[jmt57]

The forum has some disagreement in regards to the quality of offensive tackles that were available at #34, versus Caedan Wallace.

Obviously none of us can say with full certainty how any of these players career will turn out.
That being said, we all have opinions as on those same players.

So let's look at what the draft results are for picks #2 and #3, versus what they could have been/what we wished they had been.
To keep it simple I'll just use the identical two positions, WR and OT.

Which pair of players looks the best?

Actual Result:
WR Ja'Lynn Polk
OT Caedan Wallace.

Alternative #1:
OT of your choice: Patrick Paul - Blake Fisher - Roger Rosengarten - Kingsley Suamataia
WR of your choice: Jermaine Burton - Roman Wilson - Jalen McMillan - Luke McCaffrey - Troy Franklin - Javon Baker - Malik Washington

Alternative #2:
WR of your choice: Ladd McConkey - Adonai Mitchell - Malachi Corley - plus any of the above WRs
OT of your choice: Kiran Amegadjie - Matt Goncalves - use on another position; take an OT like Garrett Greenfield or Frank Crum later


Personally I would rank Alternative #1 the best option, followed by Alternative #2. The actual result would be a distant third.


On a side note, the consensus of all 200+ big boards and 1500+ mock drafts has Caedan Wallace listed as the #18 OT. Wallace was the 12th OT selected. Drafting Polk (as opposed to waiting for one of the WRs with the third pick) caused the Patriots to miss out on four superior prospects at OT in the second round.

2024 NFL Consensus Big Board - Top NFL Draft Prospects Ranked Daily | NFL Mock Draft Database

The 2024 NFL Consensus Big Board aggregates prospect rankings from analyst big boards, mock drafts, and team-by-team mocks across the web. Refreshed every morning.

www.nflmockdraftdatabase.com

 

[mgteich]

The forum has some disagreement in regards to the quality of offensive tackles that were available at #34, versus Caedan Wallace.

Obviously none of us can say with full certainty how any of these players career will turn out.
That being said, we all have opinions as on those same players.

So let's look at what the draft results are for picks #2 and #3, versus what they could have been/what we wished they had been.
To keep it simple I'll just use the identical two positions, WR and OT.

Which pair of players looks the best?

Actual Result:
WR Ja'Lynn Polk
OT Caedan Wallace.

Alternative #1:
OT of your choice: Patrick Paul - Blake Fisher - Roger Rosengarten - Kingsley Suamataia
WR of your choice: Jermaine Burton - Roman Wilson - Jalen McMillan - Luke McCaffrey - Troy Franklin - Javon Baker - Malik Washington

Alternative #2:
WR of your choice: Ladd McConkey - Adonai Mitchell - Malachi Corley - plus any of the above WRs
OT of your choice: Kiran Amegadjie - Matt Goncalves - use on another position; take an OT like Garrett Greenfield or Frank Crum later


Personally I would rank Alternative #1 the best option, followed by Alternative #2. The actual result would be a distant third.


On a side note, the consensus of all 200+ big boards and 1500+ mock drafts has Caedan Wallace listed as the #18 OT. Wallace was the 12th OT selected. Drafting Polk (as opposed to waiting for one of the WRs with the third pick) caused the Patriots to miss out on four superior prospects at OT in the second round.

2024 NFL Consensus Big Board - Top NFL Draft Prospects Ranked Daily | NFL Mock Draft Database

The 2024 NFL Consensus Big Board aggregates prospect rankings from analyst big boards, mock drafts, and team-by-team mocks across the web. Refreshed every morning.

www.nflmockdraftdatabase.com

Yes, we will see how the 4 superior OT's work out in the future. We'll how many of them are 5-year starters and which are top 10 OT's.
===========
Part of the problem is that the team really wanted Polk. He was likely much higher on their board than any of the WR's you mention in Alternative 1, or perhaps even Alternative 2. Personally, I think the actual is much better than Alternative 1. I do NOT think that there was a top LT prospect left after the first 8. Wallace will hopefully be a solid long-term backup, most likely a swing OT. Our starting LT will be signed or drafted next year.

My bottom line is that I agree that we did not address getting our 10-year starting LT. Instead, we completely transformed the WR corp. The last step is to add a top WR, or even two next year. Otherwise, we're done.

The two OL's were 2 more steps in the 3-year rebuild started last year. I think that 2 more serious additions will be needed next year, including the acquisition of a top LT. The other addition will depend on what the staff decides that we need after a year of working with the current group. There are many variables, affect almost every player on the OL.
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In the end, we are judging different goals. The team gave up on finding our long-term LT solution in this draft after Morgan was picked; I believe he was the #8. The team moved to signing the WR's. I am under no illusions. I don't think the staff is either. THEY know that this was not a one-year fix to the Offense. We still need to solve the LT situation. Given just how bad our Offense was last year, I think that the team has done a lot. Of course, it will take 2 seasons to see the results. In 2025, we will have Maye starting, and we will have added the LT and signed a top WR, and perhaps added another OL. IMO, not bad at all for a 2 year fix. We'll be ready for serious competition for the division in 2026. I do think that we may have a couple of minor step still to come in free agency this year, for example, the signing of a RB or two.