Patriots Combine Combinatorics

by MaPatsFan on Feb 24, 2009 8:29 PM EST in News Comment 14 comments

No, this is not a statistics class. Hopefully I didn't give anyone heart failure or the cold sweats with memories of an 8:00am Statistics 1 class. But, a Matt Cassel trade could open up a WORLD of possibilities during the draft. QB talent is rare and hitting the lottery on day one with a rookie QB is even rarer or more rare or...whatever. Anyway, it's a turkey shoot, at best. So, just hear me out on this one. The Detroit Lions have 2 picks in the first round and 5 picks in the first 3 rounds. SBNation's very own Mocking The Draft has Detroit picking Georgia QB, Matt Stafford, with their first round #1 pick. Here's where things approach the realm of, "Hey man, you're off your rocker!! What's in that coffee?!?" Why would the Lions go with a college QB and not a guy who has NFL experience and brought his team to the brink of a playoff berth? A guy like, I don't know, Matt Cassel? Detroit, simply hand Bill Belichick your #1 spot and we'd be happy to trade Matty to you. You can thank us later.

Let's say venus aligns with mars, pigs really do fly, and hell freezes over, OK? What would you, Patriots fan, do with a #1 draft pick? Would you pick a top safety like Missouri's William Moore or a corner like Ohio State's Malcolm Jenkins? How about an OLB/ILB like USC's Brian Cushing? I have lots of love for Tedy, mind you, but he's pushing 36 and it wouldn't hurt to get a young guy under the mentorship of Bruschi as well as some young meat to stand next to Jerod Mayo.

Or, maybe we go for a top WR like Texas Tech's Michael Crabtree. Why, on earth, would we need another WR? Jabar Gaffney's a free agent which leaves the #3 spot wide open for a high performing, young guy. Wes Welker is my man, but he's an underneath, slot guy and Moss is signed through 2010. What better way to groom Randy's replacement than to pick up A guy like Crabtree and give Moss two full seasons to work with him? Money is less of an issue at this point as Cassel's just been traded, freeing up $14.6 million (well, not traded for real, but only in this scenario - WORK WITH ME PEOPLE!!).

The Monkey Wrench in this whole scenario? Belichick absolutely HATES paying big bucks for players. He loves finding underrated and/or undrafted rookies, discarded vets, and jettisoned players who don't fit their current system. Sometimes the experiment fails (Deltha O'Neal comes to mind), but many times he's dead nuts right (Moss and Welker anyone?).

Oh what a tangled web we weave. This is gonna be fun. Cassel gets traded to the Lions for their #1 pick...what would you do?

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Comments

Aaron Curry

This guy shows a lot of potential. Imagine him with Bill Belichick’s coaching. I know linebackers aren’t really the norm for the #1 overall, and an OT would certainly be a good choice, but defense is the more immediate need in my opinion.

by NESilver on Feb 24, 2009 9:11 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Nice pick

Curry is a beast and has the combine numbers to prove it. Can you imagine him next to Jerod? I’m getting all tingly and stuff.

Blogger at SBNation's New England Patriots blog, Pats Pulpit

by MaPatsFan on Feb 24, 2009 9:16 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

By the way...

I know this is off-topic, but did you know about SBNation being on Yahoo! Sports team pages? Pats Pulpit is on the New England team page, as are all the other NFL blogs with their respective teams.

by NESilver on Feb 24, 2009 9:20 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Yep. Cool, ain't it?

I just put up a story and linked to the announcement. I’m stoked, cool stuff.

Blogger at SBNation's New England Patriots blog, Pats Pulpit

by MaPatsFan on Feb 24, 2009 9:47 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Cool, indeed.

by NESilver on Feb 24, 2009 10:00 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Jason Smith

I think my choice would be OT Jason Smith from Baylor. He had a great combine and the O-line struggled some last year. Having a qb with a reconstructed knee under center will only make protection and a solid running game more important.

However, I believe an even better scenario would be Cassel for Detroits #20 pick (from Dallas). The investment at #1 is just to big – especially with many Free Agents coming up next year – and I generally think picks 10-40 offer the best value.

by hythlodaeus on Feb 25, 2009 4:49 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

Good point

Given Belichick’s propensity to pick value players, #20 seems like a more likely scenario.

Blogger at SBNation's New England Patriots blog, Pats Pulpit

by MaPatsFan on Feb 25, 2009 7:15 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Another OL

hey hyth… take a look at an OL named Unger(max is i think his first name). i heard he’s very versatile and is can definitely add depth to our OL.

by patriotguy on Feb 25, 2009 3:57 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Yup.

Unger and Mack are two names I’ve been hearing a lot at offensive line, and they might be had in the top of the second round.

by NESilver on Feb 25, 2009 4:39 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Another situation

I think the pats would trade cassel and to K.C for anthony gonzalez and a 3rd rounder; or to detroit for a 1st(20th) and a 3rd. if we were to have gonzalez, he would be great for mentoring ben watson.
For the scenario(which i like better) of the 1st(20th) and a 3rd, I would get brian cushing or clint sintin and our 23rd pick i would get WR percy harvin. Don’t let his 40-time fool you, he ran with a sprained ankle i heard. He is fast, would compliment the #2 spot with great speed and agility, and a major belicheck fan. i think his speed would rival moss and his quickness and agility could rival welker. Check his analysis at nfl.com and post an opinion on him to me. (would like to know more about college plaers from people and other possibilities as well.

by patriotguy on Feb 25, 2009 3:43 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Percy Harvin

Looking at his bio, he appears to be just as deadly a runner as he is a wide receiver. Belichick loves versatile players and he could fit right in. I’m not sure I know what you mean by “#2 spot”, though.

Blogger at SBNation's New England Patriots blog, Pats Pulpit

by MaPatsFan on Feb 25, 2009 8:30 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs