Conducting any type of exercise or drill has some risks involved with it. Unfortunately, we saw one of the potential 1st round selections go down with a serious injury during his Pro Day workout. At the Michigan Pro Day, Edge David Ojabo tore his Achilles running an LB drill. He was projected as a mid 1st round selection. He will still be drafted in the top 100 but this definitely will cost him money.
Here are some results since my last article, good and bad. The scouts say that a bad combine or Pro Day doesn’t hurt the players since they have so much film on them. The videos have become so sophisticated they can tell the scouts how fast you are actually running. Game speed versus running in shorts.
Central Michigan Bernhard Raimann OT 6’6” 303lbs 32.88 Arm Length, 5.05 40, 30 reps @225#’s – In his mock draft, Zach Cox of NESN had Raimann as the Patriots 1st Round pick after a trade with TEN. Only has two years of experience at LT. Raimann’s Relative Athletic Score https://ras.football/ras-information/?PlayerID=21097&pos=OT was 9.81 out of 10. That’s the 23rd highest for an OT since they started keeping these stats in 1987. That’s out of 1146 OTs.
Auburn Roger McCready CB 5’11”, 191 lbs, 4.46 40, 32 vert, 116” BJ, Bench 19 reps, 6.96 3-cone. From McCready’s game film he was determined to be one of the fastest CBs in the country. This was confirmed at the Senior Bowl running the equivalent of 22 MPH.
Zakoby McClain ILB 5’11.5”, 227 lbs, 4.67 40, 21 reps
Colorado Carson Wells EDGE 6’26” 241 lbs, 4.61 40, 35” Vert, 117” BJ, 4.51 Short Shuttle, 7.11 3-cone, 16 BP
Clemson Justyn Ross WR 6’03”, 210 lbs, 4.63 40, Very disappointing time may drop him down to a UDFA
Georgia Derion Kendrick CB 4.79 40 at his Pro Day will probably drop him from the list of players drafted.
Quay Walker LB 6’4” 242 lbs, 7.04 3-cone 23 BP reps
Devonte Wyatt DT 6’27, 304 lbs, 4.62 40, 7.41 3-cone
Channing Tindall LB 6’2” 222 lbs, 4.18 Short Shuttle, 7.25 3-cone
Michigan State Conner Heyward TE 5’11” 237 4.72 40, Didn’t do any other performance events. Pro Day only did Bench Press 18 reps and position drills. More of an H-back / Fullback. Not a good look when he doesn’t perform the performance events.
Minnesota Boye Mafe EDGE 257 lbs, 4.52 40 at Combine, Pro Day 42” Vert, 21 BP reps, 4.46 Short Shuttle. Evan Lazar thinks Mafe is one to watch for the Patriots.
Penn State Drew Hartlaub S 5’11” 170 lbs, 4.28 40, 6.75 3-cone, 4.25 Short Shuttle, 36” Vert, 1009 BJ. This guy is a special teams demon and with 4.28 speed he would make a great eventual replacement for Matthew Slater.
Patriots Free Agent Signings
Jabrill Peppers This is a very underappreciated signing by the Patriots. Peppers, recovering from a torn ACL, may not be available until right up to the start of the season. His numbers were very favorable in 2020. He will turn 27 during the season and this could be a very motivated player, playing on a one-year, show me contract. He gives them depth at the in-the-box strong safety position. He is capable of playing Free Safety and Slot Corner. He is a better zone defense player than man to man. He is third in the league in sacks as a blitzing safety over the last 5 years.
Malcolm Butler Please stand up if you saw this one coming. I thought Butler’s relationship with Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots was permanently damaged after being sat down for the Super Bowl. Butler was signed away as a Free Agent the next year as the Patriots did little to bring him back. Now when they are desperate for a number one CB, here comes the Butler! Butler’s age is a factor here as he will be 32 during the season. He sat out all of 2021. However, in 2020 his stats were pretty good. If he can regain some of that prowess the Patriots might just have the bridge player at CB they need. This will allow the team to draft and develop their next #1 CB. Butler’s signing does not impact the player compensation formula.
Terrence Mitchell CB This is strictly a depth piece and if we have to rely on Mitchell we are in deep trouble. He was one of the worst CBs in the league according to Pro Football Focus. He was ranked 116.
Ty Montgomery WR At one time Montgomery was a very good receiving back. He has played mostly WR as a Jet sweep type of player. His contributions have been waning for years. If the Patriots draft a wide receiver with Return skills then Montgomery might not even make the team.
Resigned:
Trent Brown His re-signing really solidifies the Offensive line. His contract is heavily incentive-laden and they need Brown to be injury-free from Day one and throughout the season. This move allows Michael Owenu to move back to Right Guard, his natural position.
Henry Anderson DT Missed most of the season with a shoulder injury. Anderson re-did his contract for a reduced salary. Strictly a depth piece that will be on the bubble to make the team.
Losses:
Gunner Olzsewski he never developed as a WR. There was hope he could make the jump the way Julian Edelman did in his third year. It didn’t happen and his Punt Return average went down too. Olzsewski signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Brandon Bolden Time is up with the Pats for the Special Teams standout. Bolden did a remarkable job filling in for James White when he went down with his hip injury. Bolden picked up the slack in the pass-catching area but also did a remarkable job of pass protecting young Mac Jones. Bolden signed wit the Las Vegas Raiders.
Jakub Johnson he stated to a German newspaper that he was told the Patriots were moving in another direction as far as his position (FB) was concerned. This is a watch item for the Pre-season. Johnson followed Head Coach Josh McDaniels to Las Vegas.
Next Week Mock Draft 4.0 – The Patriots Type Players according to Bacon Grundle Candy. I will use the Pro Football Focus Draft Simulator and BGC’s list of Patriots Type Players to make my selections. I will try and stay true to the round in which BGC has projected these players.
My final Patriots-specific Mock Draft will be the week of the Draft followed by my 1st Round Projection on Draft Day.
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Merrimack Valley native and lifelong fan of the New England Patriots. My earliest memories of the Patriots were attending as a child with my dad, the off-season practice at Phillips Academy. I was at the Patriots game at Harvard Stadium in 1970 where Bob “Harpo” Gladieux was called out of the stands by the stadium announcer over the PA to play in the game. Analyzing the draft since ESPN first started to televise it in 1980 and former writer for the Lowell Sun Newspaper.
