New England Patriots

Owner: Robert Kraft
Founded: 1959
Stadium: Gillette Stadium
2010 record: 14-2
Last playoff appearance: 2010, AFC East Champs, L28-21 NYJ
General Manager: Bill Belichick (de facto GM)
Head Coach: Bill Belichick (2000 – current, 126-50 as NE head coach, 162-94 all-time as head coach, also, apparently Bon Jovi dedicated a song to him, “Bounce.”)
Offensive Coordinator: Bill O’Brien
Defensive alignment: 3-4
2010 NFL Rankings:
OFF: 32.4 PTS (1st)           363.8 YDS (8th)                  240.4 PASS (11th)             123.3 RUSH (9th)
DEF: 19.6 PTS (8th)          366.5 YDS (25th)               258.5 PASS (30th)             108.0 RUSH (11th)
Pro Bowlers: Tom Brady QB, Wes Welker WR, Matt Light OT, Logan Mankins OG, Vince Wilfork DT, Jerod Mayo MLB, Devin McCourty CB, Brandon Meriweather FS
2011 schedule:
1 Sep 12 at Dolphins 7:00 PM Tickets
2 Sep 18 vs. Chargers 4:15 PM Tickets
3 Sep 25 at Bills 1:00 PM Tickets
4 Oct 02 at Raiders 4:15 PM Tickets
5 Oct 09 vs. Jets 4:15 PM Tickets
6 Oct 16 vs. Cowboys 4:15 PM Tickets
7 Bye
8 Oct 30 at Steelers 4:15 PM Tickets
9 Nov 06 vs. Giants 4:15 PM Tickets
10 Nov 13 at Jets 8:20 PM Tickets
11 Nov 21 vs. Chiefs 8:30 PM Tickets
12 Nov 27 at Eagles 4:15 PM Tickets
13 Dec 04 vs. Colts 8:20 PM Tickets
14 Dec 11 at Redskins 1:00 PM Tickets
15 Dec 18 at Broncos 4:15 PM Tickets
16 Dec 24 vs. Dolphins 1:00 PM Tickets
17 Jan 01 vs. Bills 1:00 PM Tickets

TEAM NEEDS: DE, OLB

Potential Free Agents:
Kevin Faulk RB – re-signed –
Fred Taylor RB
BenJarvus Green-Ellis RB – re-signed
Sammy Morris FB – re-signed –
Matt Light OT – re-signed –
Logan Mankins OG – franchise tag
Gerard Warren DE/NT
Tracy White MLB – re-signed
Shayne Graham K

Free agent acquisitions:
Marcus Stroud DT (Bills) - 2 yrs
Shaun Ellis DL (Jets)
Andre Carter OLB (Redskins)

Free agent losses:
Quinn Ojinnaka OT/G – signed by Rams
Ty Warren DE - Signed with Broncos
Brandon McGowan FS
Jarrad Page SS – signed by Eagles

Trades:
Traded 2013 5th round pick to Redskins for DT Albert Haynesworth
Traded 2012 and 2013 draft picks to Bengals for WR Chad Ochocinco-Johnson

Picks in 2011 NFL Draft 

(overall draft grade: B-): There were some risky picks in my opinion in the Patriots’ 2011 draft, but with risk comes upside. Ras-I Dowling’s scouting report has injury flags on it, Ryan Mallett has apparent character and drug concerns, and Marcus Cannon is risky since his cancer scare just prior to the draft. The Solder pick has great upside, however as he came to Colorado as a tight end but switched to offensive tackle. Vereen and Ridley look to provide a two-headed monster in the Pats’ backfield. Lee Smith was drafted for his blocking after they drafted two pass-catching tight ends last year. Markell Carter is a pass rushing prospect. At the end of the day, I didn’t see great value in their draft.

(! Indicates draft pick who was interviewed, had a private workout, etc. prior to the draft according to my compiled list):
Rd 1, Pick 17 (17) Nate Solder OT, Colorado! – I had Solder rated at 24th, and Anthony Castonzo was still on the board. Solder is 6-8 and will have trouble with smaller, quicker rushers. He’s got superb agility for a man his size, though.
Grade: B              Rated: 24

Rd 2, Pick 1 (33) Ras-I Dowling DB, Virginia – injury concerns, but if not for injuries, this pick would be very solid.
Grade: B-             Rated: 60

Rd 2, Pick 24 (56) Shane Vereen RB, California – not going to say I understand this pick, as there was still Leshoure and other better running backs (according to most of us draftniks) on the board.
Grade: C              Rated: 85

Rd 3, Pick 9 (73) Stevan Ridley RB, LSU – has good size and strength, punishing running style. Big back with blocking ability. Shane Vereen can provide the lightning while Ridley could be the thunder in the Pats’ new backfield.
Grade: C              Rated: 152

Rd 3, Pick 10 (74) Ryan Mallett QB, Arkansas – Surprise! Is there a better environment for Mallett to learn in than this one? Tom Brady and Bill Belichick molding Mallett into the franchise quarterback until Tom Brady’s time is up. The Packers molded players behind Brett Favre (Mark Brunell, Matt Hasselbeck, Aaron Brooks, and Aaron Rodgers) and the Pats are starting to do the same (Matt Cassel, Mallett).
Grade: A+           Rated: 29

Rd 5, Pick 7 (138) Marcus Cannon OL, TCU – Massive lineman at 350+ pounds, but cancer scare scared off teams. If it goes away, this could be a steal. The Patriots can afford to take this type of risk.
Grade: Wait and see       Rated: 77

Rd 5, Pick 28 (159) Lee Smith TE, Marshall – blocking tight end and could be a nice long snapper.
Grade: D              Rated: 260

Rd 6, Pick 29 (194) Markell Carter LB, Central Arkansas – small school prospect who was getting looks from a few teams. Pass rusher.
Grade: C              Rated: NR

Rd 7, Pick 16 (219) Malcolm Williams DB, TCU – Will have to make team by impressing on special teams.
Grade: D              Rated: NR

2010 Patriots Draft review:
Here are some interesting nuggets of information I saw in the Patriots’ 2010 draft press conferences: I was dreading listening to these press conferences because I knew how monotonous and boring Head Coach Bill Belichick speaks, but every once in a while, he’ll let some interesting things out. If the Pats hadn’t traded back to 27 from 22, they still would’ve still taken Rutgers’ Devin McCourty. After talking about spending an hour with McCourty at Rutgers watching film, Belichick said that the Pats look for players who are well prepared and work hard in their preparation. Belichick saw McCourty as a player who can affect the game on all four downs, which valued him above other players (Penn State’s DE Jared Odrick and Texas’ OLB Sergio Kindle, who were available at where the Pats were picking and were at positions of need for them, as well). Bill said that Taylor Price was playing in a bad offensive system at Ohio that hindered his production. Brandon Spikes’ slow 40 time at the combine certainly didn’t deter them from taking him, but it shouldn’t have affected his stock anyways. Belichick said his production at Florida and reaction time is more telling of how fast he actually plays. They were surprised (as was I) that they had the opportunity to pick Aaron Hernandez in the fourth round. So the pick was obviously a steal for them. At least five of the Pats’ picks were team captains in college. They didn’t go out to specifically draft team captains, but the fact they were team captains helped.

Rd 1, Pick 27 (27)              Devin McCourty CB, Rutgers – 16 starts, 82 TCK, 1 SCK, 17 PD, 7 INT, 2 FF

Rd 2, Pick 10 (42)              Rob Gronkowski TE, Arizona – 16 games, 11 starts, 42 REC, 546 YDS, 13 AVG, 10 TD, 1 FMBL LOST

Rd 2, Pick 21 (53)              Jermaine Cunningham DE, Florida – 15 games, 11 starts, 34 TCK, 1 SCK, 1 PD, 2 FF

Rd 2, Pick 30 (62)              Brandon Spikes LB, Florida – 12 games, 8 starts, 61 TCK, 3 PD, 1 INT

Rd 3, Pick 26 (90)              Taylor Price WR, Ohio – 1 game, 3 REC, 41 YDS, 13.7 AVG

Rd 4, Pick 15 (113)            Aaron Hernandez TE, Florida – 14 games, 7 starts, 45 REC, 563 YDS, 12.5 AVG, 6 TD, 3 RSH, 47 YDS, 15.7 AVG

Rd 5, Pick 19 (150)            Zoltan Mesko P, Michigan – 16 games, 58 PNT, 43.2 AVG, 38.4 NET AVG, 65 LNG, 19 I20

Rd 6, Pick 36 (205)            Ted Larsen OL, New Mexico State – waived in final cuts, signed by Tampa Bay.

Rd 7, Pick 1 (208)              Thomas Welch OL, Vanderbilt – waived in final cuts, picked up by Minnesota

Rd 7, Pick 40 (247)            Brandon Deaderick DE, Alabama – 10 games, 4 starts, 10 TCK, 2 SCK

Rd 7, Pick 41 (248)            Kade Weston DT, Georgia – no games, IR

Rd 7, Pick 43 (250)            Zac Robinson QB, Oklahoma State – let go in final cuts, Seattle and then Detroit signed him to practice squads

Looking back at my grades for the 2010 Patriots draft class: After the 2010 draft, I gave the Pats an overall grade of B. I was way off, and that’s good news for their future. McCourty (B+), Gronkowski (B+), and Cunningham (C+) are all picks I now feel like were graded a letter grade below where they should be. You’re not going to hit on every pick, but the Pats sure did try. Larsen ended up being cut and picked up by Tampa Bay and started at left guard for them. They got great production out of Gronkowski and Hernandez (A). Who needs Randy when you’ve got those guys? I didn’t like punter selection in the fifth round, but he looked very solid with a 43.2 yard average. The way the Pats hit homeruns with at least two or three of their picks, they earn an A grade.

First Round Picks From Last Five Years: Devin McCourty CB, Jerod Mayo MLB, Brandon Meriweather DB, Laurence Maroney RB

2010 Stat Leaders
Tom Brady  324-492  65.9%  3900 YDS  7.9 YPA  36 TD  4 INT  111.0 RTG

BenJarvus Green-Ellis  229 ATT  1008 YDS  4.4 AVG  33 LNG  13 TD

Wes Welker  86 REC  848 YDS  9.9 AVG  35 LNG  7 TD

Shayne Graham  12-12  100.0%  41 LNG

Jerod Mayo  175 TCK

Mike Wright  5.5 SCK

Devin McCourty  7 INT

Out of Season Storylines (Because there is no offseason)
Tom Brady 2010 NFL MVP

Bill Belichick AP Head Coach of the Year

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