Excellent pick with Mayo and once again the Pats prove that there isn't a mock draft expert alive that knows what the Pats think. All anyone heard was the need for a corner. Sorry, that is not a value money position for the Pats and there was no way and is no way the Pats will ever draft a corner that high. They obviously had Mayo targeted and were only trying to trade as far down as possible to where they could still draft him and make him more financially affordable. My guess is that they were willing to trade down as low as 13 or 14 because they think he would have still been there.
Anyone who watched the college game this year knows just howvaluable this kid was to that Vols defense. He was the key to everything they did. He was a double digit tackle machine and is made in the same mold both physically and mentally as a Teddy Buschi, maybe even more physically gifted. He has an unteachable nose for the ball and a great ability to read offenses. He will be huge for this team for years.
And as always, all indications are that he is a leader and exemplary human being.
you know something that even Bill doesnt know. Thats pretty amazing. Last I checked, he said they would take a cb that early, if the right on was there (a champ Baily type). There wasnt.
I am so sick of people making absolute statements about what the pats will or wont do. Prior to this draft, everyone talked about how they dont take lb's early. well they did here. Prior to drafting ben watson, everyone said they wouldnt use a high pick on a TE. Prior to drafting Mankins we heard they wouldnt use high picks on O-Line. Prior to drafting Meriweather we heard they wouldnt go after a safety in the first round. It issimply ignorant to make absolute statements about positions they will or want draft at based on past drafts. the simple fact is that they draft based on skill...if a player is high on their board it doesnt matter what position he plays.
As for obviously targetting Mayo...how do you know they werent targeting Rivers and assumed he would be there at 10? (I am happy it was mayo over rivers, but again, a huge assumption that is grounded in very little evidence)
Absolutes.
I find your believing Bill Belichick when he said he would take a corner that high in the draft
absolutely hilarious. Since when does Bill offer
absolutely any inside information of the real thinking and workings of the New England Patriots? You must
absolutely believe that Tom Brady's shoulder has been hurting him enough to be listed as questionable on the injured list for the last 5 years.
If the Pats were ever going to take a corner with a pick as high as 7 and give him a guaranteed $20 million with a contract reaching as high as $50-$60 million, they would have paid Asante Samuel. Now that's an
absolute statement,
absolutely logical.
How do I know they targeted Mayo, simple, there wasn't a whisper around anywhere that had the Pats even thinking of looking at this kid. That's how. You said it yourself, the Pats do what no one expects them to do. And if the Pats thought so highly of Rivers they would have taken him at 7. Lots of very knowledgable NFL people had New England taking Rivers and being very high on him. He was there. Thinking they gambled trading their pick down to save a few bucks landing a guy that everyone thought they wanted is
absolutely crazy. Thinking that they would trade down to save money on drafting a guy that no one thought they wanted hence thinking he was sure to be there is not crazy.
As to your points about the other picks you mentioned no one I know of ever said that the Pats wouldn't take a TE with the 21st pick. It's not like the 21st pick is an elite pick. Also your statement regarding the Mankins pick is
absolutely absurd considering that Belichick has a much publicized stance that linemen are the most important and valuable players there are. His first overall pick as the Pats head was an offensive lineman, remember Adrian Klemm. And remember that he did choose an offensive lineman two years in a row in the first round(technically TEs play on the offensive line) and that Matt Light was a 2nd rounder as well.
Your point about making absolute statements being ignorant "about positions they will or want draft at based on past drafts" shows a slight degree of ignorance itself. Mel Kiper, ESPN, Sports Illustrated and others have made billions of dollars making absolute statements about teams picks for years and years and they based those statements about those teams on past draft history and tendencies.
Lastly, yes the Pats rate the players. But they do not do it the way you think and do not draft the
absolute highest rated player on the board. I will have to do an extensive search to find the article but there was an article with a Pats insider(not Belichick) that detailed the Pats rating system. The system was more along the lines of positional value and talent versus just best available player. Say the best available player at 7 was a QB or a WR, do you really believe the Pats take that player? Now let's say that player is a player that plays a postion that the Pats don't put a high financial value on, say RB or WR. Do you think the Pats are going to draft a player that will throw an inbalance into the financial situation of the salary structure for a position that the players know the front office doesn't pay for? Suddenly guys that play important positions, like QB, left OT, and DE that have been making less than market value for years are going to walk into Bill's office demanding trades or very large raises.
So before making your own
absolute statements about ignorant
absolute statements think about the bigger picture involved.
