New England Patriots Draft History: Which Draft Was Bill Belichick's Best?

A front office's job is to build a roster that is both deep and talented, but still affordable. There are numerous ways to do that. Teams can use free agency to fill certain needs of their roster, or they can make trades. The number one way to build a roster, however, has always been the same: via the draft.

For years, the New England Patriots' front office – led by head coach/general manager Bill Belichick – has explored all those different paths of creating the best possible roster. We have seen the team pull off successful trades, splashy free agency signings and great drafts.

Not all have been equally successful, though. Some trades were better than others (Akeem Ayers vs. Isaac Sopoaga for instance); some free agents more successful (Darrelle Revis vs. Albert Haynesworth). And some of Bill Belichick's 15 drafts as head honcho of the Patriots fielded more satisfying results than others.

Note: we are simply focusing on the drafts here and not on the process of signing undrafted players – for an analysis on that, click here.

 

2000

 

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
2	46	Adrian Klemm	OT	Hawaii
3	76	J.R. Redmond	RB	Arizona State
4	127	Greg Robinson-Randall	OT	Michigan State
5	141	Dave Stachelski	TE	Boise State
	161	Jeff Marriott	DT	Missouri
6	187	Antwan Harris	S	Virginia
	199	Tom Brady	QB	Michigan
	201	David Nugent	DE	Purdue
7	226	Casey Tisdale	LB	New Mexico
	239	Patrick Pass	FB	Georgia

 

The Patriots hit the ultimate jackpot with Tom Brady in the sixth round but also found Patrick Pass, who was the team's fullback for seven seasons, in the seventh. Furthermore, Adrian Klemm and Antwan Harris were five-years back-ups in New England. Out of the team's 10 selections, however, only Brady and Pass went on to find prolonged success in Foxboro.

 

Due to the acquisition of Belichick from the New York Jets, the Patriots sent their 2000 first round selection to their new head coach's former team as a compensation (a pick that turned into defensive end Shaun Ellis), and thus were unable to select a player until pick number 46.

 

2001

 

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1	6	Richard Seymour	DT	Georgia
2	48	Matt Light	OT	Purdue
3	86	Brock Williams	CB	Notre Dame
4	96	Kenyatta Jones	OT	South Florida
	119	Jabari Holloway	TE	Notre Dame
5	163	Hakim Akbar	S	Washington
6	180	Arther Love	TE	South Carolina State
	200	Leonard Myers	CB	Miami
7	216	Owen Pochman	K	BYU
	239	T.J. Turner	LB	Michigan State

 

Just like the year before, New England had 10 draft picks – and just like the year before, they only found two long-term contributors: defensive lineman Richard Seymour and offensive tackle Matt Light. The duo would turn into All-Pro-caliber players, though, and both were valuable members of the Patriots' early dynasty years.

 

2002

 

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1	21	Daniel Graham	TE	Colorado
2	65	Deion Branch	WR	Louisville
4	117	Rohan Davey	QB	LSU
	126	Jarvis Green	DE	LSU
7	237	Anwoine Womack	RB	Virginia
	253	David Givens	WR	Notre Dame

 

New England traded up in the first round to select Daniel Graham, and thus only had six selections in the 2002 draft. The team made the most out of the remaining picks. Graham and Jarvis Green were important role players during the Patriots' second and third Super Bowl winning seasons and beyond, Deion Branch was the MVP of Super Bowl XXXIX, and David Givens still holds the team record for most postseason touchdown receptions (seven).

 

2003

 

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1	13	Ty Warren	DT	Texas A&M
2	36	Eugene Wilson	CB	Illinois
	45	Bethel Johnson	WR	Texas A&M
4	117	Dan Klecko	DT	Temple
	120	Asante Samuel	CB	Central Florida
5	164	Dan Koppen	C	Boston College
6	201	Kliff Kingsbury	QB	Texas Tech
7	234	Spencer Nead	TE	BYU
	239	Tully Banta-Cain	LB	California
	243	Ethan Kelley	DT	Baylor

 

The Patriots found a lot of successful players in 2003, even though second round pick Bethel Johnson, for whom the team traded up, would eventually go down in history as one of Belichick's worst selections. Warren, Wilson, Samuel and Koppen all turned into starters, while Tully Banta-Cain found some success as a rotational pass rusher.

 

Warren and Koppen eventually signed contract extensions with New England, while Samuel was the team's franchise player in 2007. Banta-Cain, after leaving the team in free agency, eventually returned to Foxboro for two more years.

 

2004

 

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1	21	Vince Wilfork	DT	Miami
	32	Benjamin Watson	TE	Georgia
2	63	Marquise Hill	DE	LSU
3	95	Guss Scott	S	Florida
4	113	Dexter Reid	S	North Carolina
	128	Cedric Cobbs	RB	Arkansas
5	164	P.K. Sam	WR	Florida State
7	233	Christian Morton	CB	Florida State

 

Wilfork was a home-run of a selection for the Patriots, while Watson played six seasons as the team's primary tight end. New England got little production out of the rest of its 2004 draft class, however: on opening day 2007 (three and a half months after the tragic death of second round pick Marquise Hill), six of eight 2004 draft choices were no longer with the team.

 

2005

 

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1	32	Logan Mankins	OT	Fresno State
3	84	Ellis Hobbs	CB	Iowa State
	100	Nick Kaczur	OT	Toledo
4	133	James Sanders	S	Fresno State
5	170	Ryan Claridge	LB	UNLV
7	230	Matt Cassel	QB	USC
	255	Andy Stokes	TE	William Penn

 

The Patriots had a productive draft in 2005, selecting several contributors on both sides of the ball. Mankins and Kaczur were starters at left guard and right tackle, respectively, while Hobbs and Sanders were key members of New England's secondary; Hobbs also was the team's primary kick returner and set a then-NFL record for the longest kick off return (108 yards). Cassel filled in for an injured Tom Brady in 2009, leading the Patriots to 11 wins.

 

Three of the team's seven selections – Mankins, Kaczur and Sanders – signed second contracts with New England, while Matt Cassel was franchise tagged (and subsequently traded to the Kansas City Chiefs) in 2009. Hobbs was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles during the 2009 draft for two fifth round picks (which eventually turned into guard Rich Ohrnberger and long snapper Jake Ingram).

 

2006

 

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1	21	Laurence Maroney	RB	Minnesota
2	36	Chad Jackson	WR	Florida
3	86	David Thomas	TE	Texas
4	106	Garrett Mills	TE	Tulsa
	118	Stephen Gostkowski	K	Memphis
5	136	Ryan O'Callaghan	OT	California
6	191	Jeremy Mincey	DE	Florida
	205	Dan Stevenson	G	Notre Dame
	206	Le Kevin Smith	DT	Nebraska
7	229	Willie Andrews	S	Baylor

 

After a solid 2005 draft, the Patriots were less successful in 2006. The team's best pick was Stephen Gostkowski, arguably the premier kicker in the NFL. First round selection Laurence Maroney eventually turned into New England's starting running back but was traded to the Denver Broncos in 2010. He registered 3275 yards from scrimmage and 25 touchdowns in his 52 games with the Patriots.

 

The rest of the 2006 draft class was – to put it kindly – mediocre at best. While David Thomas and Ryan O'Callaghan became serviceable back-up players, the rest of the draft class contributed next to nothing (although Jeremy Mincey turned into a solid defender for the Jacksonville Jaguars). Above them all stands Chad Jackson – another second round wide receiver for whom the Patriots traded up – who appeared in only 14 games over the course of two seasons.

 

2007

 

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1	24	Brandon Meriweather	S	Miami
4	127	Kareem Brown	DE	Miami
5	171	Clint Oldenburg	OT	Colorado State
6	180	Justin Rogers	LB	SMU
	202	Mike Richardson	CB	Notre Dame
	208	Justise Hairston	RB	Central Connecticut State
	209	Corey Hilliard	G	Oklahoma State
7	211	Oscar Lua	LB	USC
7	247	Mike Elgin	C	Iowa

 

From the college-player-selection-process-perspective, New England's 2007 draft was unsuccessful. Brandon Meriweather became the team's starting strong safety but left in free agency 2010 – the Patriots showed little interest in retaining his services. Out of the other eight players of the Patriots' 2007 draft class only cornerback Mike Richardson appeared in a game for the Patriots.

 

While the actual drafting of college players was a failure for the Patriots, they found success in another area of the draft: trades. Prior to the draft, the team dealt its second and seventh round picks to the Miami Dolphins for wide receiver Wes Welker. On draft weekend, New England traded its second first round pick (the first one, used on Meriweather, was acquired by the Seattle Seahawks as a compensation for Deion Branch) to the San Francisco 49ers for a 2008 first round pick and a 2007 fourth round selection. The latter was sent to the Oakland Raiders in exchange for wide receiver Randy Moss.

 

2008

 

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1	10	Jerod Mayo	LB	Tennessee
2	62	Terrence Wheatley	CB	Colorado
3	78	Shawn Crable	LB	Michigan
	94	Kevin O'Connell	QB	San Diego State
4	129	Jonathan Wilhite	CB	Auburn
5	153	Matthew Slater	WR	UCLA
6	197	Bo Ruud	LB	Nebraska

 

While the league forfeited the Patriots' original first round selection due to cameraman-in-the-wrong-location-gate, the team still was able to pick in the opening round, courtesy of the above-mentioned 2007 trade with the San Francisco 49ers. New England made the most out of this selection, drafting defensive rookie of the year, future All-Pro and team captain Jerod Mayo. Another future All-Pro and team captain, Matthew Slater, was drafted in the fifth round.

 

The Patriots got little production out of the rest of their 2008 draft class, although fourth round pick Jonathan Wilhite started 13 games for the team during his three-year tenure in Foxboro.

 

2009

 

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
2	34	Patrick Chung	S	Oregon
	40	Ron Brace	DT	Boston College
	41	Darius Butler	CB	Connecticut
	58	Sebastian Vollmer	OT	Houston
3	83	Brandon Tate	WR	North Carolina
	97	Tyrone McKenzie	LB	South Florida
4	123	Rich Ohrnberger	G	Penn State
5	170	George Bussey	G	Louisville
6	198	Jake Ingram	LS	Hawaii
	207	Myron Pryor	DT	Kentucky
7	232	Julian Edelman	QB	Kent State
	234	Darryl Richard	DT	Georgia Tech

 

The Patriots were busy on draft weekend 2009, picking 12 players and making seven trades. Out of the players selected, New England found some serviceable role players (Tate, Pryor) but also some disappointments (Brace, Butler, McKenzie). The team also selected two All-Pro talents: Sebastian Vollmer and Julian Edelman – both key members of the Patriots' offense.

 

Patrick Chung, the Patriots' first selection in 2009, re-joined the team in 2014 after spending his 2013 campaign with the Philadelphia Eagles.

 

2010

 

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1	27	Devin McCourty	CB	Rutgers
2	42	Rob Gronkowski	TE	Arizona
	53	Jermaine Cunningham	LB	Florida
	62	Brandon Spikes	LB	Florida
3	90	Taylor Price	WR	Ohio
4	113	Aaron Hernandez	TE	Florida
5	150	Zoltan Mesko	P	Michigan
6	205	Ted Larsen	C	NC State
7	208	Thomas Welch	OT	Vanderbilt
	247	Brandon Deaderick	DE	Alabama
	248	Kade Weston	DT	Georgia
	250	Zac Robinson	QB	Oklahoma State

 

As they did in 2009, the Patriots were pretty active during the 2010 NFL draft: just like the year prior, the team selected 12 players and made seven trades. They found a little more short-term success in 2010, though, and selected seven players, who would become part-time starters.

 

Of those seven, two are still with the Patriots: safety Devin McCourty and tight end Rob Gronkowski; both are signed through the 2019 season and are foundation type players. For about a year it looked as if Aaron Hernandez – who, in August 2012, signed a contract extension through 2018 and was released by the team in June 2013 – would join the duo.

 

The other four former starters – Cunningham, Spikes, Mesko and Deaderick – are currently free agents but appeared in a combined 169 games for the Patriots. Sixth round pick Ted Larsen, whom the team released during roster cut-downs, is currently projected to start at guard for the 2015 Arizona Cardinals.

 

2011

 

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1	17	Nate Solder	OT	Colorado
2	33	Ras-I Dowling	CB	Virginia
	56	Shane Vereen	RB	California
3	73	Stevan Ridley	RB	LSU
	74	Ryan Mallett	QB	Arkansas
5	138	Marcus Cannon	OT	TCU
	159	Lee Smith	TE	Marshall
6	194	Markell Carter	LB	Central Arkansas
7	219	Malcolm Williams	CB	TCU

 

In 2011, the Patriots once again had a multitude of draft picks. While only two players – Nate Solder and Marcus Cannon – remain with New England today, the team found other contributors in running backs Shane Vereen and Stevan Ridley as well as quarterback Ryan Mallett, whom the Patriots – even though he never played valuable snaps during his time in Foxboro – trusted enough to make him Tom Brady's sole back-up.

 

While the team drafted well in 2011, one pick turned out a bust: cornerback Ras-I Dowling. Drafted with the valuable first pick of the second day, Dowling simply could not stay healthy and as a result appeared in only nine games for the Patriots, prior to his release in August 2013.

 

2012

 

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1	21	Chandler Jones	DE	Syracuse
	25	Dont'a Hightower	LB	Alabama
2	48	Tavon Wilson	S	Illinois
3	90	Jake Bequette	DE	Arkansas
6	197	Nate Ebner	S	Ohio State
7	224	Alfonzo Dennard	CB	Nebraska
	235	Jeremy Ebert	WR	Northwestern

 

The motto of 2012 was quality over quantity: of the seven draft picks the Patriots made, six are still on the roster. The team chose to trade up twice in the first round to snatch defenders Chandler Jones and Dont'a Hightower – both have turned into starters and seem to be in the franchise's long term plans.

 

The team also found two core special teamers in Ebner and Wilson. On the one hand, the argument can be made that the latter had been overdrafted but, on the other, he still plays a starting-caliber number of snaps.

 

Time will tell if seventh round pick Alfonzo Dennard will re-conquer a starting spot – he held one prior to the arrival of Brandon Browner in 2014 – and if third round pick Jake Bequette can crack the defensive end rotation.

 

2013

 

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
2	52	Jamie Collins	LB	Southern Miss
	59	Aaron Dobson	WR	Marshall
3	83	Logan Ryan	CB	Rutgers
	91	Duron Harmon	S	Rutgers
4	102	Josh Boyce	WR	TCU
7	226	Michael Buchanan	DE	Illinois
	235	Steve Beauharnais	LB	Rutgers

 

For the second time in five years, New England did not pick a player in the first round of the draft. Instead, the team opted to trade back to acquire more picks via a one-for-four deal with the Minnesota Vikings. The trade paid off, as all four of those picks are still with the team: Jamie Collins, Logan Ryan, Josh Boyce and running back LeGarrette Blount (the Patriots traded the Vikings' seventh round pick and running back Jeff Demps to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for Blount).

 

While Collins, Ryan and Harmon look like safe bets to make the Patriots' 2015 roster, second round wide receiver (sounds familiar?) Aaron Dobson faces a potential make-or-break year. He had a solid rookie campaign but was plagued by injuries in his sophomore season and as a result played only four games.

 

2014

 

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1	29	Dominique Easley	DT	Florida
2	62	Jimmy Garoppolo	QB	Eastern Illinois
4	105	Bryan Stork	C	Florida State
	130	James White	RB	Wisconsin
	140	Cameron Fleming	OT	Stanford
6	179	Jon Halapio	G	Florida
	198	Zach Moore	DE	Concordia-St. Paul
	206	Jemea Thomas	CB	Georgia Tech
7	244	Jeremy Gallon	WR	Michigan

 

New England's most recent draft produced only one starter – as of yet. Bryan Stork was inserted into the starting offensive line in week 4 and never looked back; he could hold down the center spot for years to come.

 

The rest of the 2014 draft class is one collective question mark. Easley and Garoppolo flashed their talent in limited action, as did tackle Cameron Fleming. White might see more snaps next season due to the departure of Shane Vereen.

 

Dubbed a "draft for the future", this future might come sooner for some players (Easley, White) than others (Garoppolo, Fleming).

 

---

 

Under Bill Belichick's leadership, New England has drafted 133 players for an average of 8.9 selections per year. The positions targeted with those selections are as follows:

Position	Quantity
Linebacker	16
Cornerback	16
Offensive Tackle	13
Wide Receiver	12
Tight End	12
Defensive Tackle	12
Safety	11
Defensive End	10
Quarterback	9
Running Back	8
Guard	5
Center	4
Kicker	2
Fullback	1
Punter	1
Long Snapper	1

 

The method of accumulating draft picks during the process of selecting players worked: the Patriots have been able to maintain success over the course of the last 15 seasons even though they usually select at the bottom of each round. On average, New England made its first pick at spot 25.

 

---

 

The Patriots during Bill Belichick's reign have had some stellar drafts. Which one takes the proverbial cake, though?