Yeah, Butler would have been a steal when instead Danny took a bust in 3J.
But how does Danny compare with his colleagues in drafting overall? Just ballparking it, I'd say he's done relatively better drafting in the mid-to-late second round than in the first. He's probably a top five second-round draft picker, no more than 10th in picking in the first, and maybe seven overall.
He seems to have peaked in his drafting--and here I'm again just ballparking it--what, years two through six, maybe? With the exception of missing the importance of size and strength for the PF spot, which hurt him with Gody and 3J but is understandable considering his hits with Gomes, Powe and Baby--he really seems to miss on judging some players' mindset.
The Patriots put a lot of stock in how important football is to a player, how intelligent he is, and how coachable he is. Giddens, Green, maybe Melo and to a degree 3J seem to be examples of where Danny has come up short on that. Bring back the brain doctor? There's got to be another way, but I get the sense that they either don't research and/or value that aspect of players enough. Oh, and that he hires his own kid as a primary assistant in this area isn't a great sign either.
