NBC Article on Patriots Draft Strategy

[Bill Lee]

Bill Belichick offers detailed insight on how Patriots evaluate prospects in draft

If you want to know how the Patriots evaluate prospects, here's some great insight.

l.patsfans.com

Given it was Perry who asked the question, I'm sure we'll hear more of this either in print or on the podcasts.

 

[DropKickFlutie]

Given it was Perry who asked the question, I'm sure we'll hear more of this either in print or on the podcasts.

Phil Perry is probably thrilled and also Curran will likely talk about it too. Interesting that Belichick followed up on this one

 

[Bill Lee]

Phil Perry is probably thrilled and also Curran will likely talk about it too. Interesting that Belichick followed up on this one

Yeah, maybe Lombardi too. Lombardi didn't go into this whole color coding thing. He did mention 'flags' on players for medical, "character", etc. Seems these are indicated using colors.

 

[Bill Lee]

Perry dropped a story but it was about the context around the question, rather than any insights he gleaned from BB's answer.

Perry: Belichick delves into intricacies of Pats' draft-pick grading process

What goes into the Patriots’ draft grading process? Head coach Bill Belichick provided a rare inside look at how New England does it.

www.nbcsports.com

 

[DropKickFlutie]

Perry dropped a story but it was about the context around the question, rather than any insights he gleaned from BB's answer.

Perry: Belichick delves into intricacies of Pats' draft-pick grading process

What goes into the Patriots’ draft grading process? Head coach Bill Belichick provided a rare inside look at how New England does it.

www.nbcsports.com

He was probably giddy that Belichick asked for him. Pretty cool to be able to glean out a thoughtful long response from Belichick.

 

[DropKickFlutie]

The beautiful simplicity of the Patriots’ draft strategy

Bill Belichick recently explained the mindset behind his team’s decision making.

www.patspulpit.com

Good points made about Harris and White

 

[Bill Lee]

The beautiful simplicity of the Patriots’ draft strategy

Bill Belichick recently explained the mindset behind his team’s decision making.

www.patspulpit.com

Good points made about Harris and White

Quoth BB:

I don’t feel comfortable going to the draft saying, ‘Well, we’re going to take one guy at this position and take another guy at that position. It doesn’t go that way. Then I just don’t think you’re getting the value for the picks that you have. I would say I’ve never gone into a draft saying, like, ‘Well, we got to draft somebody or other at this position or this group of positions or whatever.’ It’s sometimes those players are there and sometimes they’re not. Sometimes they’re there and you can really use them and sometimes they’re there and maybe you don’t feel that it’s as necessary, but then when you get good players on your team inevitably you use them.

It's as clear and emphatic a statement about picking BPA rather than need that I've ever read.

It also shows why the BSPN draft industrial complex has such a hard time figuring out BB's drafting. They like to look at the roster and see who fits. BB looks who is available at the time he's picking and sees who is on his board and makes the pick. BSPN can't possibly know BB's board and are looking at need rather than BPA anyway so they usually get it wrong. They also can't seem to cope with a team drafting a player the team knows will sit for a year just because they feel he will eventually become a good player, BSPN is all about instant gratification.

All I can say is I'm really glad this time a good quarterback was there when we picked, we really did need that, even if he doesn't play for a year.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

You know all that "draft the best football players" stuff is smoke and mirrors for the credulous masses. There is an ultra-top-secret formula combining a four dimensional stacking sceme with the juicedratic equation inside a dog named Nike inside a vault inside a volcano that you can read through super-sensitive sensors when he farts, fed through a spectrometer, and then used to make the pick.

Tragically, the war room misread "UDFA or Sooner if available" twice before the potentially tragic ambiguity made its mark...

 

[DropKickFlutie]

Ernie wrote the system of numbers, letters, colors (pink stripe) used in Foxboro the last 20 years.

Morning sports update: Bill Belichick praised Ernie Adams before letting him make the Patriots' final 2021 draft pick

The Celtics lost to the Trail Blazers on Sunday, 129-119. Both Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum left the game after a late-game collision while trying to make a play on […]

www.boston.com

 

[DropKickFlutie]

Patriots deployed a flexible plan to not move up and possibly consider QB or LB. The 2nd pick was orchestrated by Eliot Wolf.

Patriots reportedly passed on first-round trade, even if another team took Mac Jones

The Patriots took a disciplined approach to the first round of the draft, and were OK taking someone else if another team made a trade to take Mac Jones.

l.patsfans.com

 

[Bill Lee]

Patriots deployed a flexible plan to not move up and possibly consider QB or LB. The 2nd pick was orchestrated by Eliot Wolf.

Patriots reportedly passed on first-round trade, even if another team took Mac Jones

The Patriots took a disciplined approach to the first round of the draft, and were OK taking someone else if another team made a trade to take Mac Jones.

l.patsfans.com

A quick snip:

That’s the case according to Albert Breer in his Monday column for The MMQB. The Patriots were reportedly “committed to taking a disciplined approach” early in the draft. New England didn’t even call the New York Giants when the 11th pick came on the clock, then the Chicago Bears acquired the selection to take QB Justin Fields. If another team leapfrogged the Patriots to take Jones before No. 15, the Pats may have simply “pivoted” to drafting “someone like” linebacker Zaven Collins, who went at pick No. 16 to the Arizona Cardinals. They then would have eyed a quarterback in the second round, possibly Stanford’s Davis Mills.

Ok, now trolls will have something to work with should Mills be better than Jones...

I get it, BB is disciplined and follows his board, but man, I'm so much more excited about this upcoming season now that we have Jones on our team, a path forward with a guy with great accuracy and decision making. I don't even care if he doesn't play this season, but I bet he does at some point.

And yeah, I get that following the board and being disciplined is a large part of why we have been so successful over the years and our 'bad' 2020 season is something at least 10 other teams would call a good season.

I'm just glad the Jones pick made sense for both the head and the heart.

 

[DropKickFlutie]

A quick snip:


Ok, now trolls will have something to work with should Mills be better than Jones...

I get it, BB is disciplined and follows his board, but man, I'm so much more excited about this upcoming season now that we have Jones on our team, a path forward with a guy with great accuracy and decision making. I don't even care if he doesn't play this season, but I bet he does at some point.

And yeah, I get that following the board and being disciplined is a large part of why we have been so successful over the years and our 'bad' 2020 season is something at least 10 other teams would call a good season.

I'm just glad the Jones pick made sense for both the head and the heart.

It ended up perfect. Like Bill not calling timeout in the Seahawks Superbowl. Let the draft fall and it ended up ideal for the Patriots to get Mac Jones.

 

[ohiopatsfan]

Regardless of the BPA philosophy BB espouses, this year's draft felt different. All draftees, especially day 1 and day 2, were for positions of need, there were no real head scratchers, only one trade rather than the multiple trades we are used to seeing and no reported activity in the UDFA market. Results remain to be seen as the season unfolds, but I have high hopes.

 

[Bill Lee]

Regardless of the BPA philosophy BB espouses, this year's draft felt different. All draftees, especially day 1 and day 2, were for positions of need, there were no real head scratchers, only one trade rather than the multiple trades we are used to seeing and no reported activity in the UDFA market. Results remain to be seen as the season unfolds, but I have high hopes.

I suppose, but if we were drafting based on need we'd be drafting for a WR who could get separation in the 2nd round, IMO.

I get it, we have a good OL, good TEs, good RBs, a running QB in Cam, that's how we roll in 2021, but if I look at our roster I see a WR that can get separation as the prime need.

And I also get that BB looks at team building in his own very successful way, and has shown he can win without such, but still it is an entire element of the game that we struggle on.

So, I think BB is still drafting on BPA as per his grading system, and it just happened that Jones and Barmore graded well and were in positions we could access. We saw what kind of WR scores well in BB's grading system, luckily college football didn't produce a 2nd Harry this season.

 

[mgteich]

I suppose, but if we were drafting based on need we'd be drafting for a WR who could get separation in the 2nd round, IMO.

.

I cannot disagree more strongly. Our need for a DT was huge.

 

[DropKickFlutie]

I cannot disagree more strongly. Our need for a DT was huge.

Run defense was poor last year, the biggest need. How do you feel about Godcheaux ? I wasn't jumping up and down.

 

[mgteich]

Run defense was poor last year, the biggest need. How do you feel about Godcheaux ? I wasn't jumping up and down.

I was OK with Godchaux, not jumping up and down. That didn't come until we re-signed Guy, and then understood the need to draft Barmore. As an aside McMillan will likely be an upgrade over Bentley.

 

[Bill Lee]

I cannot disagree more strongly. Our need for a DT was huge.

Fair enough, although our need for WR who could separate on 3rd down was IMO also huge.

Seemed like anything beyond 3rd and 5 was an incomplete or a 2 yard run followed by an automatic punt last season.

On the other hand, it did seem people were able to run at will on us, especially later in the season.

 

[captain stone]

It ended up perfect. Like Bill not calling timeout in the Seahawks Superbowl. Let the draft fall and it ended up ideal for the Patriots to get Mac Jones.

Then I wish he had used that same strategy with the Barmore pick...We lost the opportunity to find TWO more players who might've helped us...

 

[DropKickFlutie]

Fair enough, although our need for WR who could separate on 3rd down was IMO also huge.

Seemed like anything beyond 3rd and 5 was an incomplete or a 2 yard run followed by an automatic punt last season.

On the other hand, it did seem people were able to run at will on us, especially later in the season.

Meyers is pretty good ? 750 yards in 11 games is 1200 yards in 16 games...