Former wide receiver Deion Branch is certainly no stranger to big moments when it comes to his time with the Patriots, and he’ll be in the spotlight for them again this week.
The NFL announced that Branch will be among a host of big names on hand to represent each of the 32 teams who will announce draft selections this week. Branch, who was selected in the second round (65th overall) out of Louisville in 2002, is the player set to announce one of New England’s selections. The league didn’t make it clear which pick the former Super Bowl MVP would be announcing, but it’s expected to be at some point during Friday’s day two selections.
That’s fitting, given that Branch himself was a day two pick.
The former wideout certainly had some memorable moments, coming up big in each of his two Super Bowl appearances here in New England. Against the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl XXXVIII, Branch finished that game with 10 catches for 143 yards along with a touchdown, including a key 17-yard reception with 0:14 left to go in the game on a 3rd-and-3 from the Panthers’ 40-yard line.
That reception got New England down to the Carolina 23, helping set up Adam Vinatieri’s 41-yard field goal that gave the Patriots a 32-29 victory and their second Super Bowl title in three seasons.
The following year, he came up big again against Philadelphia. He finished that game with 11 receptions on 12 targets for 133 yards, which earned him Super Bowl MVP honors following the Patriots’ 24-21 win over the Eagles.
Meanwhile, another former Patriot, running back Curtis Martin, will be representing the Jets to announce one of their day two picks. That’s a little bittersweet given that Martin was a former 3rd-round pick by New England in 1995 (74th overall).
Many likely remember that the former University of Pittsburgh standout followed former head coach Bill Parcells, who left New England to coach the Jets after the 1996 campaign, to New York following the 1997 season. Martin then went on to play for the Jets until his retirement in 2007.
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Ian Logue is a Seacoast native and owner and senior writer for PatsFans.com, an independent media site covering the New England Patriots and has been running this site in one form or another since 1997.
