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Peter King plugs the New England Locker Room Luncheon to benefit the Matt Light Foundation (he specializes in helping at-risk teens) and the Greater Boston Food Bank.
Matt and I will be joined by emerging-star teammate Julian Edelman and star scribe Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston, to take you inside the Patriots and hopefully inside the lives of pro football players. We'll cover the rest of the league too.
The luncheon is at Davio's at Patriot Place in Foxboro, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on May 11. We're selling 30 seats for $1,000 apiece, and for that grand you'll get your picture taken with Light and Edelman, autographs galore, and some quality football talk. (Promise.) For ticket information, or to place your reservation, contact Margrette Mondillo at margrette@goodwinpr.com. Pass along the info to Pats' fans or fans of the game if you know someone who might be interested.
Jeff McLane (Philadelphia Inquirer) comments on the performance of Ellis Hobbs and Asante Samuel when assessing the need for the Eagles to draft a cornerback or two.
"Hobbs may have started in New England, but there was a reason, more than his contract griping, that led to his leaving," one NFL scout said. "He suffers from lapses and isn't the greatest tackler, and you can't have that opposite Asante [Samuel]."
Samuel, for all his deeds - three straight Pro Bowls, 29 interceptions in the last four seasons - has become a liability. Signed to a $59 million deal two years ago, Samuel may be the worst tackling starting cornerback in the league. It wasn't as apparent when he was with the Patriots, but the Eagles' blitz-happy defensive scheme often left Samuel without support.
"I didn't get signed here because I was a great tackler," Samuel said in October. "Everybody saw my film."
TEAM TALK
- PFW Writers' Mock Draft. Pats select OLB Sergio Kindle (Texas) at 22.
- Patriots Today - Belichick's pre-draft interview. (12.52 min. video)
- Josh Kraft, president of the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation, will be presented Thursday with the Eugene T. Davidson, MD, Award for Public Service by the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE). Mr. Kraft is accepting the award on behalf of the 32 NFL teams and their focus on youth health as part of the NFL PLAY 60 campaign.
LOCAL LINKS
- Mike Reiss notes the NFL will announce its 2010 schedule tonight (7 p.m.), and lists some things he'll be looking for from a Patriots perspective.
- Mike Reiss notes the Patriots have a need at TE, but some of the top prospects come with injury risks.
- Ian Rapoport assesses the wide receiver position, saying it's one of the greatest needs of the team going into the draft.
- Shalise Manza Young sees a stocked draft for the defensive line position.
- Ian Rapoport discusses the big void that exists for the Patriots at defensive end.
- Tom E. Curran reports the presence and circumstances of unproven 2009 draft picks Tyrone McKenzie, Brandon Tate and Ron Brace are an interesting subplot to how the Pats will draft.
- Mark Farinella previews the offensive linemen, defensive backs and wide receiver prospects available in this year's draft.
- Karen Guregian notes DL Jared Odrick believes he's the right fit for Belichick's defense.
- Karen Guregian notes WR Eric Decker (University of Minnesota) scored the highest on the Wonderlic test at the NFL Combine and could be a steal in the mid-to-late rounds.
- Albert Breer says drafters need to beware that prototypicals are not always the perfect fit for a particular team.
- Mike Reiss profiles DE/OLB Corey Wooton (Northwestern) and DE Al Woods (Louisiana State) as possible solid fits for the Patriots to select in the draft.
- Robert Lee profiles RB Ryan Matthews (Fresno State), DB Earl Thomas (Texas), TE Rob Gronkowski (Arizona) and WR Dez Bryant (Oklahoma State).
- Christopher Price presents his Hot List: Best draft picks of the Belichick era.
- Jim Donaldson notes that in the NFL Draft, the word 'expert' is used loosely.
- Mike Reiss thinks Tebow may be out of the Patriots' range.
- DJ Bean reveals what the 'experts' are saying in their final mock drafts.
- Shalise Manza Young discusses Pat Kirwan's 3-round mock draft picks for the New England Patriots.
- Mark Farinella continues his Draft Name Game with Part 3, Part 4 and Part 5.
NATIONAL NEWS
- Tim Graham (ESPN) AFC East draft nuggets from Scouts Inc.
- Pat Kirwan (NFL.com) Three-round mock: Expect most interesting draft in years. Pats take Dez Bryant, Jerry Hughes and Tim Tebow as their top 3 picks.
- Tim Graham (ESPN) Marshall offers Moss-like impact in Miami. But... I thought Moss just dogged it on the field and took plays off.
- Peter King (SI) MMQB: Steelers ready to move forward with Big Ben; mock draft madness.
- Wes Bunting (Nat'l Football Post) More draft rumors and rumblings.
- Alex Marvez (Fox Sports) NFL Draft prepares for its red carpet close-up.
- Jim Carlisle (Ventura County Star) NFL Draft hysteria is much too much.
- Tim Graham (ESPN) NFL Blog Network mock draft. Pats pick LB Sergio Kindle (Texas) at 22.
- Tim Graham (ESPN) Closer AFC East look at blogger mock draft.
- Tim Graham (ESPN) A look at draft all-stars from AFC East.
- Don Banks (SI) Snap Judgments: Fins' trade for Marshall part of AFC East arms race.
- Andrew Brandt (Nat'l Football Post) Is Marshall’s big deal a big risk for Dolphins?
- Ross Tucker (SI) Why draft needs can be misleading.
- Charles Robinson (Yahoo! Sports) Draft week inconvenient truths: Season for lying.
- Ross Tucker (SI) Draft needs for the New England Patriots: WR, OLB and TE.
- Andy Staples (SI) Star watch: How top NFL draft prospects ranked as recruits.
- Jack Bechta (Nat'l Football Post) Prepping the draftees: Having the right expectations and setting goals can help transition to the NFL.
- Michael Rosenberg (SI) Too much information: these days nothing about sports stars is off limits.
- Ralph Vacchiano (NY Daily News) QB Ben Roethlisberger likely to be suspended by Wednesday.
- Indy Star Report: IUPUI hotel worker accuses Colt Eric Foster of sexual assault.