Dion Lewis:

The Patriots added some much-needed youth into the wide receiver core, by selecting Malcolm Mitchell and Devin Lucien in the NFL Draft.

LeGarrette Blount has made a home for himself in New England, and it looks like he’ll have a shot at remaining here for at least another season.

This is our fist preview of the NFL Draft, and in this episode, we concentrated on the offensive positions in the draft.

Booker would be a perfect complement to the New England offense. A big, reliable back to get the tough yards inside and provide a target in the passing game

With the continued moves the Patriots are conducting in free agency, it makes their job a bit easier once the draft rolls around. Without as many holes to fill, they can be flexible and opt for the best player available or move up and down if they so choose.

Leonte Carroo from Rutgers could be the next player to keep the Scarlet Knights pipeline to New England alive. He’s been a very consistent productive receiver for the past three seasons in New Jersey where he’s averaged over 20 yards per reception the last two seasons

I think we can all expect the Patriots to make a move to move into either the 4th or 5th rounds as the talent level brings to drop steeply between the third and sixth rounds.

In this episode, we discussed the many moves the Patriots have made since Free Agency opened for the 2016 season.

Garrett has a long stride to speed by opponents but the size and physicality to win jump balls and be able to bring down balls in traffic. Possesses very good hands, timing on his jumps and has the quickness at the line where he can beat man coverage

Howard has the proto-typical size of an NFL power back at 6’0, 230 and has a thick, powerful build. He has good vision and will follow his blockers to daylight and has decent lateral agility for a big man.

Jonathan Williams from Arkansas is a power back who fits the Patriots needs perfectly. Powerfully built at 5’11, 220, he has quick feet to avoid tacklers but is at his best when running north-south. Prior to his injury in August that caused him to miss the entire season, he had a very solid 2014 season. Running in the tough SEC, Williams averaged 91.5 yards per game and 5.6 yards per carry for the Razorbacks.

Belichick then got TE Marcellus Bennett and a 6th round pick from the Bears for a 4th round pick. Bennett is a dynamic tight end who should pair well with Rob Gronkowski and give Tom Brady big targets in the red zone as well as excellent blockers in the running game. Bennett caught 90 passes two years ago but was injured in 2015.

Dixon is not the biggest back at 5’10, 215 but he’s not afraid to and is effective running between the tackles. In his four years at La. Tech he had a combined 87 touchdowns, (72 rushing and 15 receiving) and is very effective after first contact. He averaged 3.3 yards after contact despite only averaging 1.7 before contact due to his being keyed on

Dion Lewis’ recovery following ACL surgery has been “encouraging.”

Given the injuries to the offensive line and then losing both starters (Dion Lewis, LaGarrette Blount) to IR during the season doomed the Pats running game in 2015. Truth be told, they ran the ball very poorly overall for most of the season and it was a major reason for their failure in the AFC Championship Game.