The notion that I have to make “excuses” for unmitigated success is absurd.
Yes there have been bad draft classes, there have also been great ones. Then there were players like Maroney who were good players who got injured. They got Mankins and Ghost in those drafts you cite. Want to see some bad drafts, go look at Bill Walsh’s drafts, and he is known as the godfather of drafting.
There were also a fair share of UDFA’s who worked out from those classes. About a third of the league is made up of these guys.
The cap is a financial certainty, there’s no opinion involved at all and the draft is one tool used to build a roster. You can’t rely on the draft for your entire roster. The best coaches in history hit on 30% of their picks in their best draft classes. The Pats have won more rings than any team in history… there’s no precedent for it. This is the epitome of fan entitlement.
This Josh McDaniels obsession of yours is weird.