Patriots News 4-7, Draft Consensus, Draft Visits and Ernie Adams
(PHOTO: Nell Redmond-USA TODAY Sports) 🕑 Read Time: 8 minutes
Posted Under: Patriots Commentary
(PHOTO: Nell Redmond-USA TODAY Sports) 🕑 Read Time: 8 minutes
New England Patriots > Patriots Blog
(PHOTO: Nell Redmond-USA TODAY Sports) Good morning. Here are your Patriots news and notes for April 7. Not long after the Dynasty docuseries was over, we wrote here that we could have watched hours more of Ernie Adams, Bill Belichick’s lifelong friend, mystery man (Pink Stripes), and the Director of Research, which is a mystery in itself. On Julian Edelman’s “Names With Games” podcast, Adams shared some great tidbits on facing Peyton Manning in the early days of the Patriots’ Dynasty, where Manning and Brady dueled often.
“The one that was most impressive in pregame, hands down, was Peyton Manning,” Adams said.
Adams watched Manning during his pregame warmups and was impressed with his footwork and timing of his throws with his receivers; Adams knew that he had to put in extra time studying the Colts.
“I made a point, at least an hour a day, to study the Colts,” Adams added. “Everyone was trying to play them in Cover 3 and Cover 1. They killed teams running up the seams. It was a slaughter. I said, ‘We can’t do this. We need to go in and play Cover 4.” Manning confirmed that he disliked attacking the seams and using in-cuts against that defense. Adams felt completely justified.
“I’m sitting there thinking, ‘Yes! That’s why we played in it.’ It made my day.” Well Ernie, you made ours.
The draft is less than three weeks away, and for the first time in a long while, after the first pick, there are questions about how the first round plays out. But perhaps the Patriots are set with who they want at #3.
The answer appears to be yes. With many people involved in the draft evaluation, Eliot Wolf will have the responsibility of making the Patriots pick at #3 or trading out of it.
Tom E. Curran of NBC Sports Boston has certainly been advocating that the Patriots should trade out of the #3 pick and collect more draft capital, but he has said that the Patriots now have changed that mindset, and they are more than comfortable taking either Jayden Daniels or Drake Maye.
Last week, Jerod Mayo said that for the Patriots to move back, they would require getting “a bag,” meaning at least three first-round draft picks.
“And I keep circling back to it’s gotta be three first-round picks, meaning Minnesota at 11, and 23 and their first-round pick from next year,” Curran said on his “Patriots Talk Podcast” with Phil Perry.
“From what I’m hearing, it’s going to take a lot more than that for the Patriots to be moved off their spot. Because they as a team collectively understand the opportunity that these three quarterbacks represent at the top of the draft – take McCarthy out – these two quarterbacks, whether it be Daniels or Maye.”
“This isn’t Trey Lance and Zack Wilson. It’s two people that there is full consensus (emphasis mine) that they’re franchise quarterbacks.”
“So regardless of what I’ve been saying, I’m giving you a sense now of what the Patriots’ mindset might be,” Curran added. “It would take an unbelievable amount to move them off their spot. Not that they couldn’t be, but it would take them a lot to move out of three because they see it right there in front of them. The hardest thing to capture is there.”
And while it is still possible that they move off the #3 pick, it certainly looks like the team is pretty much set at staying put. And at least for me, I think it is the best move to go for a possible franchise QB.
Quick Hitters For the Patriots and NFL News:
Drake Maye: The Patriots met with the NC quarterback on Friday at Gillette Stadium in a Top 30 visit, which marks the third time they’ve met with him. More about him below.
The Patriots met with him at the NFL Scouting Combine and again at NC’s Pro Day before the meeting in Foxboro. Because of that, the visit to Gillette Stadium will not include any on-field work.
Jayden Daniels: According to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, the LSU quarterback is slated to visit the Patriots on Monday as part of a Top-30 visit. Like Drake Maye, the Patriots met with him at the NFL Scouting Combine and LSU’s Pro Day, and as such, his visit will not include on-field work.
With the Washington Commanders holding the second pick in the draft, they are expected to take Jayden Daniels as their next quarterback in the upcoming draft. But at this time of year, nothing is ever off the table. The Patriots at #3 will get either Daniels or Maye, but in essence, neither is a consolation prize.
Mac Jones: The ex-Pat quarterback dished on the Patriots a bit this week in a press conference for the Jaguars. Jones was asked about his hobbies, and while some of his answers were the usual fodder, the last one raised some eyebrows.
“I don’t really have too many,” Jones said about his hobbies. “I like to golf a little bit. I like to go fishing. I like to be on the beach. I like to do a little bit of rapping.”
Jones then laughed before continuing. “I got a couple of songs, but nobody knows about it, so I’m letting the world know now that I’m not in New England.”
Patriots 4th & 2 Podcast: Last week, we discussed the latest news from Foxboro in our PatsFans.com podcast.
Derek Havens and I discussed the draft prospects along the front seven. Defensive linemen, edge players, and linebackers. Please check it out and leave us a review.
Russ Francis/Chuck Fairbanks: The former Patriot tight end and head coach should be in the Patriots team Hall of Fame, and the fact that Francis isn’t in is an absolute travesty. Francis and the Raiders’ Dave Casper changed the game with how teams used the tight end position. This will be discussed in our Sunday posts until it happens. Casper is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Francis’ numbers stand up well against Casper’s, yet he isn’t even in the team’s HOF.
Area 51 News: Patriots Host Local College Pro Day —
After attending several Pro Days, the Patriots met many local college players hoping to keep their NFL dreams alive. They hosted a Pro Day that was set up like the NFL Scouting Combine, where the players ran on-field drills like they do in Indy.
While none of the players here are considered top prospects, most won’t get drafted at all but still could signed as UDFAs or invited to rookie minicamps on a tryout basis.
Here’s a list of players who attended, according to NESN:
Brian Abraham, EDGE, Albany
Anthony Frederick, WR, Bryant
Kenny Dyson, EDGE, Bryant
Daniel Abraham, LB, Villanova
Joe Andreessen, ILB, Buffalo (Bryant)
Jalen Coker, WR, Holy Cross
Jordan Colbert, S, Rhode Island
Nick Correia, G, Rhode Island
Bryce Gallagher, LB, Northwestern
Kasim Hill, QB, Rhode Island
Randall Harris, CB, New Hampshire
Kyle Hergel, OG, Boston College
Jason Maitre, CB, Wisconsin (BC)
Jarrett Martin, S, Rhode Island
Darion McKenzie, CB, Merrimack
Quinn Sweeney, DE, Springfield College
David Satkowski, G, Stonehill
Lorenzo Thompson, OT, Rhode Island
One player of note is Jalen Coker, a WR at Holy Cross, who was invited to the Combine, where he ran a 4.57 in the 40-yard dash. In a pretty amazing stat, he accounted for 46 percent of Holy Cross’ passing yardage in 2023. He scored 31 touchdowns in 39 games for the Crusaders. Last season, he caught 59 passes for 1,040 yards and 15 TDs. He met with the Patriots at the Shrine Bowl.
His deep speed is average, but he has a very good catch radius, strong hands, and excellent ball-tracking skills. He was a force in the red zone but may struggle to get separation against NFL cornerbacks.
The Patriots hosted two tackles from Notre Dame’s Blake Fisher, Penn State’s Caedan Wallace, and tight end Jared Wiley from TCU.
Fisher visited on Friday. As a freshman, he was the Fighting Irish’s starting left tackle but suffered a major knee injury in his first game. After that, he only played right tackle; however, he played opposite left tackle Joe Alt.
Wallace allowed only one sack in 2023 but, like Fisher, was strictly a right tackle in college. He played a total of 40 games for the Nittany Lions, so he has plenty of game experience. He tips the scales at 6’5, 314. He’s considered a Day 3 pick but allowed on two sacks in the past two seasons.
The intriguing visit is that of Wiley. He, too, is considered a Day 3 prospect but is also considered by many to be a potential “diamond in the rough” in the upcoming draft. His draft stock has risen thanks to an athletic showing at the NFL Scouting Combine.
He ran a 4.62 in the 40-yard dash, a 7.19 in the 3-Cone Drill, and had a 9.10 broad jump. He tips the scales at 6’6 249 and is considered more of a move-TE rather than an inline “Y” tight end in the Gronk mode. But that could change.
Wiley, who played for TCU in 2023 and had 47 catches for 520 yards and 8 touchdowns, could be an intriguing option for the Patriots. He has the size and speed to attack the seams, so he’s someone to keep an eye on.
The Buffalo Bills parted ways with the talented but “pain in the tush” (Thanks RKK) wide receiver Stefon Diggs, trading him to the Houston Texans for a 2024 6th-round, a 2025 2nd-round, and a 5th-round 2025 draft picks.
That compensation was surprising, as Houston’s bill doesn’t become due until next season. Even more surprising is that Buffalo has to eat $31 million in dead cap space. That speaks volumes about how much they are tired of Diggs’ antics on and off the field.
“Are we better today? Probably not. It’s a work in progress,” Buffalo GM Brandon Beane said via video conference.
“These moves are never easy — very hard, not made overnight, anything like that — but any time you make a move like this, as I said, very difficult, you’re doing it because you’re trying to win,” he added.
The Bills allowed Diggs to seek a trade with teams. However, one team was banned from trading for Diggs… the Kansas City Chiefs. So, while the Bills were wanting to rid themselves of the wide receiver, they weren’t willing to help the Chiefs, who have beaten Buffalo three times in the playoffs since 2020.
But the surprise was that Diggs re-did his contract with the Texans, voiding the last three years of his contract, making him a free agent in 2025. Wouldn’t that be a scenario in 2025 if Diggs ends up in KC?
With Gabe Davis gone via free agency to Jacksonville and Diggs a Texan, the Bills’ offense is going to look a lot different in 2024. However, with the upcoming draft, Buffalo will no doubt be looking to add one of the talented wide receivers that will be available.
So, don’t write the Bills’ epitaph just yet, Jets fans… but it just goes to show how things can change quickly in the NFL.
In other NFL news, the NFL Network is purging much of their on-air talent. Melissa Stark, Andrew Siciliano, James Palmer, and Will Selva are out at the NFL Network.
The league’s move of its “Good Morning Football” show from NYC to LA is supposed to be cost-saving. Really? The league is chock full of revenue, and at every turn, they reach into fans’ pockets for more cash. Every happening now has become a “prime-time event” and, more frequently, into extra fees.
Mike Florio reported that GMF will be on hiatus until August…with the draft less than three weeks away. As with other Park Avenue moves, this is a head-scratcher. And during draft time, it is not a good move.
2022 Season: 178—92—2
2021 Season: 183—88—1
2020 Season: 169—86—1
2019 Season: 162—93—1
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“They’ve been great,” Maye said. “Coach [Jerod] Mayo, first-year head coach, congrats to him. And just in there talking with new offensive coordinator coach Alex Van Pelt, and learning their stuff. He’s just been awesome.
“For such a historic program and team and history up there in New England, so just getting the chance to know them, get to know what they’re about, and their champion mindset of getting back to the glory days has been cool.”
Quarterback Drake Maye said about his meeting with the Patriots last week. He met with the team again on Friday.
“He brings a lot of energy. You can tell he has that leadership ability,” Mayo said. “And also the exciting part about a guy like Drake Maye is the ceiling. Like, there is really no ceiling with a guy like that. Now, in saying that when we’re trying to put together this roster, I know a lot of people look at the ceiling, but you also got to kind of see how low is the floor. How low is the floor?”
Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo on meeting Maye during the interview process. Maye is now believed to be there when the Patriots pick at #3, with ESPN’s Adam Schefter reporting Washington is likely to be selecting Jayden Daniels as the #2 pick.
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“Talent sets the floor; Character sets the ceiling.” Bill Belichick
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