(Photo by Brian Allen for Voice of America)
Bill Belichick is generally regarded as one of the best NFL general managers at finding late-round talent; the signature Belichick move is trading away an early draft pick for a package of later ones.
But the idea that the Patriots get all of their talent in the third day of the NFL Draft is misguided. This misconception stems from the fact that Brady was famously taken 199th overall and several fan-favorites were signed fresh off the street (see Danny Amendola, Malcolm Butler, Julian Edelman).
What was once a defensive force and a strength of this football club has become the fatal flaw that cost them Super Bowl LII (of course, it doesn't help when your coach puts the second best cornerback on the bench in the biggest game of the year).
Over the last year, the defensive side of the ball has undoubtedly (and justifiably) been the focus of talent concerns; the integral pieces of the last great Pats defense (2014) are all but gone. Chandler Jones and Jamie Collins were dealt for minimal returns, Rob Ninkovich and Jerod Mayo retired, Brandon Browner and Darrelle Revis were lost to free agency, and Dont'a Hightower can't seem to stay healthy. What was once a defensive force and a strength of this football club has become the fatal flaw that cost them Super Bowl LII (of course, it doesn't help when your coach puts the second best cornerback on the bench in the biggest game of the year).
What's more pertinent is the fact that many defensive "studs" of the past came from early draft picks or were acquired from other clubs. Ty Law, Lawyer Milloy, Tedy Bruschi, Richard Seymour, Vince Wilfork, Jerod Mayo, Patrick Chung, Devin McCourty, Chandler Jones, Dont'a Hightower, Jamie Collins, and Logan Ryan were all selected inside the first three rounds of their respective drafts. Darrelle Revis and (more recently) Stephon Gilmore were scooped up from free agency with lucrative contracts.
So, who have the Pats taken in rounds one through three since 2014? Derek Rivers, Antonio Garcia, Cyrus Jones, Joe Thuney, Vincent Valentine, Jacoby Brissett, Malcolm Brown, Jordan Richards, Geneo Grissom, Dominique Easley, and Jimmy Garoppolo. Among those, Brown might be the only one that has real star potential as an NFL defender (I understand that we are waiting on some of these prospects because of injury, but the point still stands). It's not as though the Pats aren't trying to build the defense either; six out of the last 11 early-round draft picks played on the defensive side of the ball.
Bill Belichick is considered a defensive mastermind, but he can only do so much with minimal talent. The idea that Belichick can "develop" an entire cast of mediocre players into a great defense simply isn't true. Because of his failure to hit on early draft picks (with admittedly less picks than usual), Bill is now faced with the tall task of drafting the quarterback of the future while also bolstering an incredibly meager defense.
The Pats should sit tight with the picks they have and spend their first rounder on the best quarterback available. Hopefully, Belichick can use this selection to develop the heir apparent while simultaneously pushing Brady to play at a high level (yes, I know they had this with Jimmy G, but it's time to move on).
Using the two second round selections to get solid front-seven contributors (I love ILB Rashaan Evans out of Alabama, see below) and spending later picks on the offensive line and potentially a DB, Bill can begin to plug the numerous holes in the Patriots lineup. Simply put, Belichick has more picks in this draft than he's had in several years, and it would be disappointing if he squandered the opportunity to acquire gifted young players.
All in all, I hope that the Pats are willing to spend money and draft capital to inject youth and talent into a struggling defense that has a new defensive coordinator at the helm. There are several 25- and 26-year-old UFA outside linebackers that the Pats could sign for minimal salary and see who pans out. Now is the time to prepare for life without Brady, and with up to $17 million in cap space to spend, it would be smart for Kraft to open his wallet and let Bill make some moves.
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