Patriots News 4-14, Mock Draft 3.0, Gilmore, Law Rally For Bill
(PHOTO: David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports) 🕑 Read Time: 7 minutes
Posted Under: Patriots Commentary
(PHOTO: David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports) 🕑 Read Time: 7 minutes
New England Patriots > Patriots Blog
(PHOTO: David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports) Good morning. Here are your Patriots news and notes for April 14. The draft is less than two weeks away, and we have entered into the disinformation phase.
Agents and some teams will purposely leak erroneous information to throw off the true plan for the draft by having someone say, “Player A is now ‘the guy’ when they pick in Round 1.”
I truly believe that some media types may stretch the truth just a little bit with their 11th-hour reporting. At this stage of the draft process, I take a healthy dose of skepticism with many of these big stories coming out.
I wish the draft were this afternoon. But with a new regime in place, it will be interesting to see how the Patriots conduct their first draft as the new front office/coaching staff. Since Bill Belichick took over in 2000, this will have a totally different feel to it.
Quick Hitters For the Patriots and NFL News:
Ladd McConkey: The Patriots met with the Georgia WR several times and is a possibility for the Patriots with their pick at #34 in the upcoming draft. The Globe’s Chris Price got to speak with McConkey on his podcast.
Price is a super writer, author, and football guy. In the interview McConkey told Price what the interviews with the Patriots entailed and some of the questions he was asked. Some good stuff there.
Tom Brady: Brady was on the “Deep Cut” podcast with host Vic Blends this week and was asked if a team calls needing a QB in an emergency situation, would he be interested in playing again.
“I’m not opposed to it,” Brady said. “I don’t know if they are going to let me if I become an owner of an NFL team. I’m always going to be in good shape. I’ll always be able to throw the ball. So, to come in for a little bit, like MJ (Michael Jordan) coming back, I don’t know if they would let me. But I wouldn’t be opposed to it.”
Jacoby Brissett, the current Patriots’ starting QB joked on Instagram that “I’m not liking this post.”
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 secondary and
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.
Speaking of Bill, he was out in Washington state, visiting his son Steve and was wearing the Washington sweats. And no, the sleeves weren’t cut off. He spoke to the staff there and at Nebraska, where Matt Ruhle gushed over Belichick’s coaching clinic which went about four and a half hours non-stop.
“He is so smart, he’s seen so much, that he can make the complex so simple that it humbles you and embarrasses you.
“I was embarrassed yesterday listening to him, how smart he is, how simple it was. I mean, so you have this man who’s a savant, right? Who’s been a defensive coordinator, he’s been a special teams coordinator.
“He’s coached, you know, he could be an offensive coordinator. He’s been a head coach twice. He’s been a G.M.
“He’s talking about football in a way that just like, I mean, illuminates things, that makes things so simple that you’re like, ‘Oh my goodness.’”
Ruhle added that after he was fired from the Carolina Panthers, Belichick and Andy Reid were two of the first people to call him… and offered some advice.
“I got the job, he sent me a bottle of Dom Perignon and said ‘Hey, congratulations’.
Two of the best cornerbacks in Patriots history were upset at how Belichick was portrayed in the docuseries “The Dynasty” on Apple TV. Ty Law and Stephon Gilmore joined the list of former players upset at how negatively Belichick was painted on the series.
Law told Julian Edelman on his “Games With Names” podcast that he hadn’t watched the entire series.
“From what I’ve been hearing, I really don’t like what I’ve been hearing,” Law said to Edelman. “(…) I don’t like what I’m hearing about how they’re making Bill (Belichick) look. How they’re portraying Bill.
“I haven’t seen it, so I have to see it for myself to get a real assessment, but just from a lot of people … I don’t like it because they made him look like the bad guy. I don’t like that.”
Law added that he conducted a four-hour interview with the filmmakers only to have a couple of quick soundbites because he wasn’t talking smack about Bill.
Gilmore said, “Just watched The Dynasty. Bill was the greatest coach I’ve ever been around. Don’t let that fool you. I’ll never forget we were a predominantly man team during the 2018 season all the way up to the Super Bowl. When we played the Rams we switched to Zone,” Gilmore wrote on X/Twitter.
“No coach would switch what they did all season in a big game like that,” he added.
Meanwhile the Patriots were removing the “Do Your Job” signs around the facility.
On this particular mock draft, Drake Maye was taken by Washington and the Patriots selected Jayden Daniels, who gives the Patriots a mobile, dual-threat quarterback and should make the offense fun to watch.
I also didn’t conduct any trades, which I don’t believe the team will do, and just played the draft strictly with the picks they currently have. I believe this draft would definitely help with the rebuilding process.
At #34, the tackle I was looking for was taken, however Adonai Mitchell, WR, Texas was there for the taking and he was too good to pass up. Mitchell is an ascending prospect with the size, length, speed, and athleticism to threaten all three levels (short, intermediate, and long) on the football field. At 6’2, 205, he ran a 4.34 in the 40-yard dash at the Scouting Combine. He is an intriguing prospect and could be the “X” WR the Patriots currently require.
With their 3rd-Round pick #68 overall, Patrick Paul, a tackle out of Houston was the selection. Paul is a big man at 6’7, 331 and moves well for a man of his size. He’s a much better pass protector than a run blocker at this stage of his career. As he gains more strength at the NFL level, he should turn into a well-rounded left tackle for years to come.
Kris Abrams-Draine in the 4th round is an intriguing cornerback prospect. While he’s on the slender side at 5’11, 179, his ball skills and production were outstanding in the SEC.
In 2023, he was a Second-team Associated Press All-American. First-team All-SEC. He led the team with 4 INTs and 13 PBUs. He can play a variety of coverages and could be a steal for the team.
It was surprising to see TE Ben Sinnott still there at #137. The Kansas State grad is a very versatile TE who can play inside at the traditional “Y” or in the slot, and was even used as a fullback.
He’s slightly on the small size at 6’4, 250 and would project as a move tight end in the NFL. But his athleticism is outstanding, he scored a 9.72 at the Combine. In his final two seasons he caught he caught 79 passes for 1,116 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Nelson Cesar, Edge, Houston, could become a very good sub-package pass rusher for the Patriots. He tips the scales at 6’3, 260 and contributed 43 total tackles, 13.5 TFL, 9.5 Sacks, and 1 PD in 2023.
He’s a good choice for the 6th round with 180th pick, as we’ve reached the stage where the picks are more projections at this point.
With the 193rd pick, I took Ainias Smith, WR from Texas A&M. He’s undersized at 5’9, 190, but is quick, elusive, and surprisingly powerful as a runner. He is a productive slot receiver who isn’t afraid of running across the middle.
With the Patriots he’d be more of a gadget guy, with the occasionally running the ball or catching it underneath. He’s a good route-runner already and could carve out a niche for himself.
With the final (231st) pick in their draft, the Patriots select Gabe Hall, the defensive lineman from Baylor. At this point, it was “best player available” and Hall, although a longshot, can be an effective interior pass rusher.
He has imposing size and length at 6’6, 291 pounds but is not an effective run stopper. But he’s athletic enough to get off the ball quickly using his length and has a great spin move and a non-stop motor. He’s a longshot, but has the potential to be a good sub-package guy.
Who are your favorite players in the draft this season, share some of your favorite players and mock drafts this spring with us, especially with Derek Havens and I at our podcast.
Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow would like for the NFL to do away with the taunting penalties. Appearing on the Kelce brothers’ podcast, he made his feelings known.
“Yeah, I’m pro taunting,” Burrow said. “We’re all grown adults that work really hard at what we do. And sometimes we’d like to show it. I’m not going to get my feelings hurt if somebody sacks me and taunts me like you made a play. I get it. Like good for you.”
O.J. Simpson died from prostate cancer on Thursday at the age of 76. While his private life was checkered to say the least, his on-field production was outstanding and he was one of the best running backs ever. Simpson was the first RB to get 2,000 yards in a season, doing it in just a 14-game season. Many of us remember that season, where he roasted the Patriots for 469 yards in two games (250 and 219 respectively) in 1973.
In 1994, the world watched as Simpson tried to run in a slow-speed chase by police following the murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman. He was later acquitted but found criminally liable later and ordered to pay the Goldman family $33 million dollars.
In other NFL news, Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice turned himself in to police on Thursday in connection with his role in a six-vehicle crash in Dallas last month.
Rice was drag racing a Lamborghini alongside a Chevrolet Corvette. Both cars were registered to Rice, the second car was driven by SMU football player, Teddy Knox. Both vehicles lost control, causing a six-car accident on a Dallas highway, according to Dallas police. Rice was reportedly driving at 119 mph just prior to the crash. Rice is now facing eight felony charges as a result of the crash.
Rice was filmed leaving the scene of the accident, and has admitted wrongdoing in the incident. He could be suspended by the Chiefs or the NFL as well as spending time in jail.
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“At the end of the day, it’s not where you get drafted. It’s not going to set you in stone with how good you’re going to be in your NFL career. Obviously, it’s being surrounded by the right people, the right coaches, how you present yourself, how you work hard.
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen on the draft and where players get drafted isn’t as important as hard work.
“You go through high school and college the same way: never listening to your coaches because you’re the best. But when you get to the pros, all that stops because everybody there has talent.”
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“Talent sets the floor; Character sets the ceiling.” Bill Belichick
Follow me on Twitter @SteveB7SFG or email me at [email protected]
Listen to our Patriots 4th and 2 podcasts on Apple and YouTube as Russ Goldman, Derek Havens, and myself from PatsFans.com discuss the latest Patriots news and game analysis.
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