In 2012, following a championship season and then a record setting season with the Packers, Director of Player Personnel Reggie McKenzie took the General Manager position with the ever struggling Oakland Raiders and did something horrific but almost necessary; he blew them up. He cut or traded a massive number of high priced veterans regained oodles (a fun and underused word) or draft picks, and chose some premium starters in the draft. This past season, following a previously unimaginable level of success, Bill Belichick lost his main man Tom Brady, and decided to do something so savy; he blew up the Patriots.
In a season where failure could readily be correlated with the wacky changes under Covid, the Patriots, already under a cap burden from their departed Quarterback hero, $31 million of dead cap, and over $45 million attributed to Injury Reserve (per Spotrac), it was a great season to saw “screw it” and prepare for the next year. Due to their 2020 Rest season, the Patriots approached the 2021 contracted cap year with over $69 million in cap space as of March 17th (per Draft Kings). New England used this cap space to shore up some holes and sign some vets, but it is time to turn to the draft and have some fun!
Round 1
We saw last season a Cam Newton who was still dangerous with the ball in his hands, but not so much when the ball left his hands. So let’s give him some guys to be confident throwing the ball to. At pick 15, New England snags any of three massive difference makers; Chase, Waddle, or Smith. Little more can be said of Ja’Marr Chase who had jaw dropping season for LSU in 2019 while still a teenager. He has everything you need in a receiver, but will likely be gone by 15. Waddle has speed, both sudden and long, and if not for an ankle injury may have matched his Heisman winning teammate in receiving stats. While slight and a bit undersized, he doesn’t have size concerns. DeVonta Smith, on the other hand, may be one of the lightest 1st round WRs drafted in the common era. He is skinny. I weigh more than him, and whenever that happens it is bad. But if there is any position to get away with weighing less than 183 pounds in the NFL, it is wide receiver. And with Smith’s skill set, route running, speed, silky smooth shifts of suddenness in the open field, and versatility as a returner as well, he is worth the risk. Rashod Bateman may have seemed early here a month ago, but he tested better than anticipated, and it more than backs up wat I see on tape. With great all around size, good routes, and deceptive speed for his size, he would not at all be a reach here.
Round 2
With the departure of his O line over the last few years, Beli is going to get some hog ups front. It starts with a safe and strong pick in Alijah Vera-Tucker. Getting him at 53 may seem rather unlikely, but there are so many good OL guys this year; safe guys may very well fall. Vera-Tucker has position versatility, strength, and size. He is perfect for New England. Other players who could slot here include Liam Eicheberg from Notre Dame, Trey Smith from Tennessee, Walker Little from Stanford, Alex Leatherwood from Alabama, or Jalen Mayfield from Michigan. These guys are all different. Liam is a true tackle, but maybe be the safest guy behind Vera-Tucker on the line in this draft. Smith is positionally versatile as well, but his more a mauling monster on the left with great size and strength. Little has almost no tape from the past two years, but played great in 18 and oozes potential. Leatherwood is all tape with great length, but is he a product of Saban? Mayfield played great against a lot of NFL pass rushers, but his testing was nearly abysmal from what was expected of a guy who shows smooth and quick movement off the line; will those limitations stop him at the next level?
Round 3
Sticking with O Line help Brady Christensen and James Hudson have already been highlighted by me in previous mocks, as have Ben Cleveland and D’Ante Smith. All are in play here. But for a new guy, I will go with Quinn Meinerz. I have only really mentioned him before, so let’s go deeper. This Wisconsin boy comes to the Senior Bowl basically flaunting a crop top for his jersey. He looked like a guy at the bar who watches football and talks about the Good Ol’ Days. Then his guy started one-on-ones and began to stonewall most everyone sent against him. He may not have looked athletic or quick, but he plays great. He then backed up his athleticism at his pro day with a 40 as fast as 4.86, and sub 4.5 and 7.5 shuttles and 3 cone drills. He can move. So grabbing this dude, who has flexibility at both guards and the pivot, would be total Belichick… if he is still there.
Round 4
With a couple picks in round 4, let’s get some more weapons for Newton and the future QB (see a pattern here?). Tutu Atwell is a similar player to Rondale Moore, but will likely be available far later. I am starting to wonder, aside from weight, why. Tutu tips that scales at under 170, lighter even than the slender Smith mentioned earlier. Atwell appears a more rounded receiver to me than Moore, though, and with better hands. His routes aren’t always crisp, but he does adjust well to off target balls. He has been exceptional for Louisville. Given I already noted New England may take an undersized hotrod at wide out in round 1, a different mold of guy to look at here is Sage Surratt. If you wants to watch a guy who shows all the size, toughness, and physicality of a dominant receiver, watch Surratt. At 6’3” and about 215lbs, Surratt is nearly the epitome of WR body types. Sadly, the reason you see him win 50/50 balls and boxing out defenders and stiff arming guys is because he has not shown a consistent ability to outrun or shake good defenders. While he has the hands, body control, and physicality you dream of for receivers, he lacks the speed and quickness, so round 4 makes sense for him. Also, I will not stop drumming for Amari Rodgers. Dude better not make it out of round 4, and should be gone by end of day 2. If he is still available here, grab him.
A compensation pick for New England is going to turn into the 2022 starter, Kellen Mond. Mond is all over the place on draft boards, and Simms even put him in his top 5 QBs for this draft. Don’t buy that. After Lawrence, Wilson is the likely #2 QB. After that, you wonder over success with Fields of potential in Lance at QBs 3 and 4. Mac Jones is the likely QB 5, then Kyle Trask would be 6, and with a great Pro Day showing health and tons of athleticism, Stanford’s Davis Mills is likely QB7. And what teams need QBs? Jacksonville, New York, and San Fran will grab QBs, meaning Darnold and Jimmy will be available this year or next, Watson will likely not get traded now (depending on his legal status) so Houston isn’t in the market. Washington Football team will grab one. Chicago likely views Dalton and Foles and stop gaps, so a 1st round QB makes sense. New Orleans and Carolina are wildcards, but unlikely to take guys high. Pitt will probably grab someone day two. With Darnold, Jimmy G, and eventually Watson becoming available, other QBs will drop. So basically…
1st
Jax – Lawrence
NYJ – Wilson
SF – Lance
Den – Fields
Chi – Jones
2nd
Car – Trask
Pitt - Mills
Who else needs a QB early? Mond will drop to New England as a compensatory round 4 pick.
Round 5
I swear I haven’t been ignoring the defense, but they were pretty good still last year even without basically any forced fumbles and missing two starters to COVID opt outs. Time to address a weakness, though. Grabbing Kary Vincent Jr. from LSU makes sense. He is FAST. He ran a 10.01 100 meter at LSU. He is smaller at 5’10”, but has good length for his frame. He plays hard and fast, a little undisciplined at times, but Belichick makes guys disciplined, so going to a detail minded coach could make Vincent a huge steal.
Another corner could be Robert Rochell. He also lacks ideal size, but is a bit taller, longer, and heavier. He was spectacular at Central Arkansas, but wilted under the lights of the Senior Bowl. He overcame a recruiting concern due to injury, has showcased some great tested speed, and appears a dedicated and determined player. His pro day was amazing with a sub 4.4 40, 3 Cone under 6.85, vert over 42 inches, and broad jumping more than 11 feet. After the pro day and with the great tape he has from previous seasons, unlikely he is still here. But if his Senior Bowl caused his stock to plummet, he may be a steal here.
Round 6
Going back to the offense, let’s throw another receiver the Pat’s way. If Nico Collins is still here, steal him. His pro day was great, especially for his size, but Nico looks less polished and less athletic than Donovan Peoples-Jones, who some-freaking-how lasted until round 6 last year. The Patriots may unload N’Keal Harry, in which case Collins replaces the size and with better speed and quickness. Again, not likely he is still here, but crazier things have happened in the 6th round for the Patriots.
Round 7
Let’s end with one more weapon- Chris Evans. No, not the hunky Captain America actor. The running back from Michigan who hasn’t really done anything on the field since being suspended from the 2019 season. I love what I know about his character. He appears to be a hard worker, dedicated and loyal, and a tempting athlete. I have seen him mostly as an UDFA, but I will let Beli have him here. His 3 Cone drill of 6.56 is insanely good. His vert and broad were both great, and he displayed adequate to good speed in his shuttle (4.14) and 40 (4.44). The biggest question to me is why he did next t nothing form the Wolverines last year.
15 – DeVonta Smith
46 – Liam Eichenberg
96 – Quinn Meinerz
120 – Tutu Atwell
122 – Sage Surratt
139 – Kellen Mond
177 – Kary Vincent Jr
188 – Robert Rochell
197 – Nico Collins
242 – Chris Evans
No comments:
Post a Comment