Every team's foundation is its last 5 years of draft picks and its QB. We're still doing great in the QB department, but the overall talent deficiency is 5 years in the making. I worried it would come eventually, should have realized it was coming sooner. The sum total that this team has to show for the last 5 years of round 1-3 picks is a handful of JAGs. Belichick had done an indefensibly ****ty job drafting for five solid years and this is the inevitable result.
Luckily nobody in the AFC is especially good, so even if they dig the hole deeper next week (which I fully expect) they'll still have a pretty easy path to a bye if they pull their heads out of their asses and play some actual football. Having the GOAT QB gives us that luxury
So, BB is supposed to be able to see the future and know the following:
That Wynn, Berrios, Dawson, Izzo and Sam are going to suffer injuries that require them to be IRed.
That Garcia is going to be stricken with blood clots in his lungs that hadn't shown up on the Combine Physical or the Patriots Physical in May or the TC Physical in July.
BB is supposed to see the future and know that Rivers would tear his ACL in Camp.
People forget how good the Pats 2016 draft actually was. Thuney, Brissett, Valentine, Karras, Hill, Mitchell. Roberts is mediocre, but also came from that draft. Hill was lost when the Pats tried to stash him on their PS. He's been an outstanding STs player for the Eagles. Without Mitchell, the Pats don't win the SB. Thuney has been a solid, though not outstanding LG. Karras is a good back-up on the interior and showed himself a capable spot starter.
The 2015 draft was pretty good as well. Malcolm Brown, Trey Flowers, Shaq Mason, Joe Cardona, Geneo Grissom, and Daryl Roberts. Roberts was another one they lost trying to get to the PS. Grissom has been a decent role player on STs.
The 2014 draft netted them Garoppolo, Stork, White, and Fleming.
The 2013 draft netted them Collins, Harmon, and Ryan.
I know that Malcolm Brown isn't an All-Pro, but at the 32 pick of the 1st round, should he be?
You have starters in Thuney, Flowers, Mason. You have excellent long snapper Joe Cardona.