Patriots Post-Draft Recap

Before the lights were turned off at Radio City Music Hall, the insta-pundits already passed judgment on the “Winners & Losers” of the weekend’s college draft. Hey, Mel, let us know in three years how prescient your analyses were, because that’s generally how long it takes teams to determine whether a team’s picks pan out.

NFL Draft Weekend is one of those rare moments when grown men are allowed, encouraged even, to behave as if they’re twelve years old in the schoolyard boasting how their team’s latest draft choice will be the stud who will instantly turn around a team’s fortunes. It doesn't matter the sport or the amount of capital that's invested in scouting and draft combines, there will always be booms and busts. The Patriots always seem to have a knack of finding guys from off the beaten track who come in and make nice contributions to the team. Fans in the hinterlands now complain of the Patriots' success. With all due respect, it’d be nice to remind them that three Super Bowls in the last six seasons still does not wipe away a forty-year legacy of mediocrity and failure.

Right now, New England has loaded up for another shot to make it deep in the playoffs. There will be sixteen games that be determinative, as well as the health of the players. As with every other NFL team, they’re also an injury or two away from the abyss, so folks around here ought to temper their enthusiasm. If Brady gets hurt, there does not appear to be a “Plan B” in the playbook.

For the Patriots, this draft was not one of necessity but one to find depth, not impact. Their primary areas of depth were the secondary, linebacker and another running back would’ve been nice. Fans really can’t grouse about what the team does or doesn’t do on Draft Weekend since the Belichick/Pioli management team and scouts came on board. They have a proven track record and obviously know what they’re doing (that nevertheless doesn’t stop the fandom from opining). Many of their impact needs were addressed during free agency, so chances were pretty good that they weren’t going to be generating a lot of buzz with the players they drafted.

That was true in some respects, but not in others. The Pats’ first pick was at #24, and they selected Brandon Meriweather, a safety from “The U.” Generally, gun-toting thugs are not the sort of guys who are favored by the Patriots. There were a number of corners and safeties who’d already been snapped up, so rather than trade out of the pick they settled on Meriweather. When last this space discussed the thugs who play for “The U’, it was in the context of the brawl that occurred during the FIU game on October 14th. Meriweather was last seen stomping on an FIU player and was suspended. There was also an “incident” involving a firearm that was dismissed. Since these incidents occurred around the time Miami defensive lineman Bryan Pata was murdered in his apartment (riddled with bullets), any “playa” associated with “The U” has be viewed with a reasonable amount of suspicion, including Meriweather and his college teammate Greg Olsen (drafted by Chicago at #31) and the infamous “7th Floor Crew”. Meriweather will be given the benefit of the doubt for now by Patriots fans, but “handsome is as handsome does”.

At #28, they did flip the pick to the 49’ers for their #1 in ’08 and a fourth-round pick this year, #110th. Hopefully, the Niners will continue to rebuild and the pick will be in the 12-20 range next year. They had no second pick as a result of the trade with Miami for WR Wes Welker, so they had to wait to #91 to make their next choice.

In the interim, the Patriots saw a number of highly talented players land elsewhere. Maybe they looked at this year’s group and found them wanting, or maybe in the long-term they determined that there was “better value” next year. At #91, the Patriots traded the pick to Oakland for their third-round pick next year, and the seventh pick this year, #211. So, Day One consisted of one safety, first and third round picks next year and fourth and seventh round picks this year. OK, I guess.

Day two opened with a bang. Oakland’s long-rumored trade of Randy Moss with New England was finally consummated. The Patriots received the “controversial” Moss in exchange for pick #110. The media had a field day with this trade, as if the Patriots would take a flier on someone without hedging their bets. (Maybe such things occurred on the Sullivans' watch, but not now) The jockers may drool over Moss’ ability to catch footballs, but when it comes to the help, Mr. & Mrs. K have the final say. Everyone knows that Moss brings two things to the table: awesome talent and potential headaches. However, the Patriots considerably cut their risk by demanding a $6 million “restructuring” and a termination clause should any “character issues” arise. While the talk shows went on overload, the fact remains as a business transaction, it’s a low risk/high reward proposition: if Moss plays well, his career is resurrected and the team reaps a reward. If not, then they’re out a fourth round pick. Everything else is hot air.

At pick #127, the Pats went back to “The U” and drafted defensive tackle Kareem Brown. He’s 6-foot-4-inch, 290-pounds, who had 11 ½ sacks and 60 tackles last year who may be provide even greater depth to the D-Line. The Pats next pick at #171 in Round 5 was Clint Oldenburg, a 6-5, 298-pound offensive lineman from Colorado State.
The Patriots have had success in recent years with O-Linemen in the mid-late rounds, so this guy may be another valuable addition. In Round 6, they had four picks (feast or famine, no?). Justin Rogers of SMU, a DE/OLB type was the first. Notre Dame cornerback Mike Richardson came next, along with Justise Hairston of Central Connecticut St., at #208. And closing with Corey Hilliard, an OL from OK State followed at #209. In the final round, the Pats selected LB Oscar Lua of USC at #211) and closed out with OL Mike Elgin of Iowa at #247.

Looking at the Patriots’ chief divisional rivals, The NY Jets and Buffalo selected a number of fine players, so look for these teams to improve in the über-competitive AFC East. As far as Miami, what were they thinking by selecting Ted Ginn at #8? The guys they passed on will come back to haunt them later on (as will happen with the teams that passed on Brady Quinn).

The story of the Draft was the acquisition of Moss. As far as the other guys, their value to the team, if any, will be known somewhere around 2009-10.

Each year, after the draft concludes, a number of UDFA’s sign up for training camp invites. Among them was a certain running back who brilliantly performed for John Harvard’s Crimson for four years. Clifton Dawson signed a free-agent deal with Indianapolis. Of this I’m certain, this kid will be playing pro football somewhere in the fall, whether in the NFL or in his native Canada. I was amazed that the Patriots didn’t give him a look-see, because he’s similar in many respects to Kevin Faulk (who’s been around awhile and usually misses four to six games a year with injury). The pundits turn their noses at Ivy League players, but gems can be found in every league. Having either watched or listened to every one of Dawson’s games at Fair Harvard, it was obvious that he was head and shoulders above the competition (despite his lack of height). When he has the football in his hands great things tend to happen. He will be a very good addition to someone’s roster. Let’s hope that it’s not in Indianapolis.
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NOTE: Regarding people who have too much time on their hands: It was front page news in Boston last week that Brady was seen wearing a Yankees cap while blissfully strolling through Central Park with his supermodel sweetheart. Who cares?
If he were seen wearing a Giants or Jets cap, maybe that’d be an issue. Other than his exploits on a football field, what do we really “know” about this guy anyhow? Whatever life the guy lives when it’s not football season is his business, not any of ours. By all appearances, success has only made the kid more humble and hard working. Maybe he finds the scene in Manhattan better than in Boston, and maybe he's a Yankee fan, so what? Simply because an athlete plays for a local team doesn’t necessarily imply that he identify himself with that particular city.