Serious question: Why did BB finally select LBx2 this year?

[Triumph]

IMO Kraft & BB not to mention Brady can safely say lookin at our musical DBs last year and all those pts given up and bein ranked on D was something that was considered last year addressing this years problem. Gettin these 2 players was a no brainer. This was a long time comin ( see my rants about gettin Julius Peppers) I would like to see us gettin a bonified above avg CB or S. Our front 7 will definitely help out our DBs.
BB did NFL a favor last couple of years with our D. Can you imagine if he addressed CBs & pass rushers Brady would have 3 more rings!

Word

Nice to see another non koolaid drinker around here.

 

[PatsFanSince74]

I don't think there is a mystical answer. I think the boring answer is the right one.
He looked at his team, considered the best way to use his picks, and found 2 LBs that could help the team and were value for the slot. Same as all his other picks.

I'm sure it was because BB pours over this Board for several hours every day and decided, "Hey, those guys posting at PatsFans.com, who couldn't get a job filling Gatorade bottles for any team I've ever coached, have been right all along. I'd better do what they say this year or I'm in trouble."

 

[PATSYLICIOUS]

Definitely because he finally found the guys he liked.

I don't understand why his 'criteria' wouldn't ever have involved drafting an area of obvious need first. This is probably the first draft since 2008 where he saw a LB or DE that he thought would fit and worth the pick/trade-up. Nothing else is different about this year, the team has always been or was right on the brink of being a bonafide favorite. And they've needed DE/OLB for a few years now.

 

[Triumph]

Mayos contract is up after this season. Assuming he signs the tender he will be a RFA next season and gone without a new contract in 2014. Maybe the Pats would deal Mayo in 2013 for the right price.

Saban and BB run the same defense and Hightower is a supposed defensive signal caller that can play all LB positions in the Pats D.

 

[Triumph]

I'm sure it was because BB pours over this Board for several hours every day and decided, "Hey, those guys posting at PatsFans.com, who couldn't get a job filling Gatorade bottles for any team I've ever coached, have been right all along. I'd better do what they say this year or I'm in trouble."

It took balls to go up and grab a player that you want. Theres no back peddling if your wrong and hes a Bust. See 1st round mistakes like Maroney and Meriweather.

Trading down is the safe easy way out.

 

[Clonamery]

Mayos contract is up after this season. Assuming he signs the tender he will be a RFA next season and gone without a new contract in 2014. Maybe the Pats would deal Mayo in 2013 for the right price.

Saban and BB run the same defense and Hightower is a supposed defensive signal caller that can play all LB positions in the Pats D.

You continue to be an idiot.

 

[Sciz]

Mayos contract is up after this season. Assuming he signs the tender he will be a RFA next season and gone without a new contract in 2014. Maybe the Pats would deal Mayo in 2013 for the right price.

Saban and BB run the same defense and Hightower is a supposed defensive signal caller that can play all LB positions in the Pats D.

Mayo just got a huge extension...

 

[VJCPatriot]

The value and the talent were there. The Pats were aggressive in this year's draft, moving up for guys the felt were among the rare 20-25 players who are bona fide 1st round talents. The Pats track record with 1st round picks is VERY GOOD. So we should be excited about that. There are some teams who consitently bungle the 1st round even when they draft early. The Pats tend to do better with their early picks even if their later picks are hit and miss.

Let's look at what the prospects offer us.

Chandler Jones is a long and athletic pass rusher. 6'5 266 lbs with 35.5" arms. He is a potential contributor right away in pressure packages. Whether he can be as successful as the Aldon Smiths of the NFL is yet to be seen. But he has a high ceiling and he could potentially play the 'elephant' role that the Pats have been looking for a replacement since McGinest retired.
Chandler Jones - NFL Draft Prospect Profile | FOX Sports on MSN

Dont'a Hightower is a ferocious leader and physical presence inside the box on defense. He is also a versatile backer who has played both inside, outside, and rush backer. He was a team captain for the #1 defense in college last year. I think he is even more athletic than Spikes and allows the Pats to shut down the run with a lineup of Hightower-Spikes-Mayo. How well Hightower can drop back on pass plays is my main question. But if he can do that effectively as well, this Pats defense will take another big step forwards.
NFL Events: Combine Player Profiles - Dont'a Hightower

I'm loving the draft thus far! I know there are no guarantees, but based around what I've heard about these two guys they have the potential to be studs in the Pats defense. The Giants built the defensive backbone of their superbowl championship teams with special linebackers - LT 1981, Carl Banks 1984, Pepper Johnson 1986. Championships 1986 and 1990.

 

[Buchanty]

There are a number of factors at play here, including some that we will probably have no knowledge about until BB's biography is written.

The factors in play are:

1. New Rookie wage scale makes 1st round selections budget friendly
2. Not a deep draft in quality - yes there are likely to be good players in later rounds, but expect the best value in 1st round, early 2nd and Undrafted FAs
3. Pre-draft talk indicated that a lot of teams were looking to trade down, providing opportunity for value trade ups
4. Both picks were team captains indicating maturity and responsibility
5. Saban's input - what did he say about Upshaw that has him dropping to 2nd round?
6. Steelers passing on Hightower, though I like the DeCastro pick it must have been hard to choose between D and O given the number of holes in the team.
7. Multiple fronts and disguised defenses with Hightower playing along the line Mayo, Spikes in the middle Ninkovitch, Carter (please bring him back), Jones, Fletcher, Carpenter and Cunningham on the outside and opportunities for Markell Carter and Tarpinian to get playing time. DLine also looks solid with the additions of Scott and Fanene.
8. The right players were available at the right position in the draft.

Of the choices I really don't think BB changed his criteria much if at all. Cant wait for training camp, and we still have the 2nd round and 2 more rounds of FA to go.

PS biggest concern of the draft was Buffalo loading up on D adding Gilmore at CB to Williams and Anderson.

Biggest relief was Jets taking Coples over Ingram and not addressing their need for pass protection.

Biggest surprise - Broncos not helping Manning with picks on the O - though they could get TE Fleener at 35

 

[Ring 6]

But the Homers will proclaim the Pats still got value.

Of course they got value. In this case the value happened to be moving up to get the players that were the best fit because there was a big dropoff after that.
Do you know the definition of value?

 

[West Philly Patriot]

I don't think Chandler Jones is Aldon Smith. CJ is not very sudden and he's doesn't have great quickness, what he does have is an awesome motor and he's physically gifted for sure. Prototype size and he has stood up on a few plays already so there is some limited tape of him out there doing that.

But he isn't the fluid athlete that Aldon Smith is, he is however a much stronger guy and will be better against the run imo. I don't feel like he has that short area quickness to be a pure pass rusher in either scheme, but can do well in both and will control the edge like a champ. He's crazy long and he just doesn't stop working.(pause)

Hightower will be the better pass rusher in the 4-3 imo and I think they got great value in both. They did what they had to do to land those players. Chandler Jones in a weaker OLB/DE draft is probably top 15 easy with those measurables. Hightower was 100% a raven by the next pick and probably shouldn't have been there at 25 anyway you could argue.

Would have loved to see BB's face when Bruce Irvin went 15 to seattle. Thats the catalyst for our entire 1st round haul.

 

[Ring 6]

It took balls to go up and grab a player that you want. Theres no back peddling if your wrong and hes a Bust. See 1st round mistakes like Maroney and Meriweather.

Trading down is the safe easy way out.

Are you saying Bill Belichick lacks balls and makes decisions based on doing the safe thing so he cannot be criticized?

 

[Aldogg]

Hightower might be the first jersey I buy for a player in a long time. Not only did we snipe the Ratbirds, since you know they wanted Hightower to be the heir apparent to Ray Lewis, I feel this guy is the difference maker on this defense and is a three down linebacker, while adding in my opinion adding a defender who might be be more violent than Spikes.

Jones is a guy who I didn't look at much highlights or combine footage on. He was all over the boards, and Mayock, who is the only national draft guy I really trust his opinions on, has Jones at 9 overall, and Jones has a family pedigree (one brother a Raven, the other the UFC LW champion,) and while is more of a project, honestly if he is the new Mcginest we will all be very happy.

I think this is the first time the draft board went our way, and BB instead of bulding up a stockpile of picks saw he finally had the guys he has been waiting for and decided to cash in the assets for once and get the pieces he feels he has been waiting a long time for.

 

[condon84]

Looking at our current depth for 3-4 OLB / 4-3 DE is all you need to know why we moved up to grab Hightower and Jones.

 

[Tunescribe]

I believe the rookie salary cap had a lot to do with this.

 

[ausbacker]

I don't think Chandler Jones is Aldon Smith. CJ is not very sudden and he's doesn't have great quickness, what he does have is an awesome motor and he's physically gifted for sure. Prototype size and he has stood up on a few plays already so there is some limited tape of him out there doing that.

But he isn't the fluid athlete that Aldon Smith is, he is however a much stronger guy and will be better against the run imo. I don't feel like he has that short area quickness to be a pure pass rusher in either scheme, but can do well in both and will control the edge like a champ. He's crazy long and he just doesn't stop working.(pause)

Hightower will be the better pass rusher in the 4-3 imo and I think they got great value in both. They did what they had to do to land those players. Chandler Jones in a weaker OLB/DE draft is probably top 15 easy with those measurables. Hightower was 100% a raven by the next pick and probably shouldn't have been there at 25 anyway you could argue.

Would have loved to see BB's face when Bruce Irvin went 15 to seattle. Thats the catalyst for our entire 1st round haul.

The three picks that stood out to me that landed the Patriots the plentiful bounty; Irvin, Coples, McLellin. Once those dominos fell, it was on like Donkey Kong.

 

[ctpatsfan77]

Looking at our current depth for 3-4 OLB / 4-3 DE is all you need to know why we moved up to grab Hightower and Jones.

No, it's not.

As a quick example: what made Jones worth trading up to 21 for, when he wouldn't take Connor Barwin at 40?

Jones averaged about 9 TFLs and about 3 sacks a year; Barwin had 14 TFLs and 11 sacks in his first year as a DE.

 

[Rob0729]

One thing that might have factored into it with Hightower is that Nick Saban is finally graduating his own recruited and grown players into the draft. Saban runs a similar system as the Pats and looks for the same skill sets. This is really the first draft class of Saban recruited and developed LBs.

 

[Patspsycho]

One thing that might have factored into it with Hightower is that Nick Saban is finally graduating his own recruited and grown players into the draft. Saban runs a similar system as the Pats and looks for the same skill sets. This is really the first draft class of Saban recruited and developed LBs.

That is an excellent observation.

 

[ivanvamp]

Remember Jason Pierre-Paul had great measurables, just a year w/ a Florida school, and a fast-riser. The Giants picked him as a pass-rusher @15, two picks ahead of NE picking Solder last year. So, Pierre-Paul worked out great for the Gints.

Chandler Jones is this year's Pierre-Paul, similar measurables, lack of college production but great motor and potential. Those are rare traits that can't be taught. The rest is coachable.

Jones doesn't have JPP's explosiveness, not even close. Nice player, will be a solid pro, I'm happy to have him, but Jones is no JPP.