The New England Patriots have had a miserable last few months: losing to the Tennessee Titans in the AFC Wild Card game, Tom Brady parting ways and joining the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Kyle Van Noy and Elandon Roberts leaving for Miami, Jamie Collins and Danny Shelton leaving for Detroit, and trading Duron Harmon and a seventh round pick to Detroit in exchange for a fifth round pick.
The Patriots have many needs right now, besides just QB. With more draft picks they can fill the positions that deserted them during Free Agency.
The Patriots have 12 draft picks in this year’s draft which is tied for second most; 11 of those 12 picks come after pick 86. In what promises to be a deep draft, the Patriots should flip that 23 overall pick into a second and a fourth or a fifth rounder.
Bill Belichick is known for stealing key players in the middle rounds. In 2010 he picked Rob Gronkowski in the middle of the second round and two rounds later he picked Aaron Hernandez. In the 2016 second round, he picked Joe Thuney, who has been one of the best left guards in the game. Thuney has been on two Superbowl winning Offensive lines. In 2015, Bill picked Trey Flowers in the fourth round. In 2018, Flowers led the Patriots in sacks with 7.5.
You can make the case that Bill has drafted better players in the second and third rounds than he has the first. Just last year he picked N’keal Harry in the first round with other better receivers waiting such as Deebo Samuel, DK Metcalf, and AJ Brown.
Finally, Patriot fans should not get Quarterback hungry for a guy like Jordan Love, who has major flaws in his game such as short throw accuracy and awareness. If the Patriots can trade their first rounder for more middle round selections, they can fill more holes and have the same chance of drafting effectively on Thursday night.
Photo: Middle Tennessee State University Athletic Communications
