TCMD - Patriots War Room

[Soko]

57 minutes ago, Deadpulse said:

need some insight on the LT's in this draft. Got any insight @Yin-Yang?

Well, there’s 2 guys that are pretty consensus head and shoulders above the rest. Orlando Brown and Conor Williams. 

After them, depending on how they test and whatnot, there’s a group that we can look at early (1st/2nd). It’s actually a solid overall class. 

Brian O’Neil, Pitt: Dude’s a great athlete. He’s not quite as big as Solder, but they’re similar athletes. O’Neill, sitting at 6’6 and ~310, is a converted tight end (like Solder) that showed his movement skills as a tackle. As you’d expect from a converted TE, he isn’t built like a bull and could stand to put on weight. Additionally, his technique comes and goes (both hand and footwork), but he’s shown the ability. I think a guy like Scar likes good athletes that he can coach up - O’Neill is a great fit IMO. 

Mike McGlinchey, Notre Dame: Will likely be gone by #31, but he’s a clean prospect IYAM. Does a lot of things really well, he just doesn’t have the power/strength you really, really want. That can be remedied in some cases, in others not. I see him as a day 1 guy regardless. 

Chukwuma Okorafor, Western Michigan: Now say it ten times fast. Quite unlike O’Neill, Okorafor is a natural mauler (6’6, 330) and has the ‘anchor’ that Solder lacked. He’s pretty quick off the line for someone of his size, gets to the second level, and is sticky once his hands are placed. That said, as you might expect of someone his size, his lateral movement to this point has been limited and he doesn’t always have the best leverage. I’ve only watched but so much of him, but I’ve read that some question his football instincts/intelligence when it comes to edge rushers and that he lacks the mean streak you want in an offensive linemen. As a project, he reminds me of a more athletic Shaq Mason (but x10 better at withstanding a bull rush). He’s not a dependable pass protector on Day 1 IMO, but if he’s there in round 2 and we keep both our picks, it’s not a bad pick. 

Kolton Miller, UCLA: Bigger, lengthier guy at 6’8, 310~. Unlike Oforafor, he’s got instincts and intelligence when it comes to defenders and blocking in the run game. A good enough athlete, he’s got footwork better than many other tackles in this class IMO. Also seems to play with a good motor when run blocking. His issues are actually quite similar to Solder’s - he can get bull rushed and plays too high. I’m reading that he’s only average when it comes to lateral movement and can struggle in pass pro as a result against pure speed guys. He’s more of a day 1 starter than Okorafor, but his ceiling is lower too. Round 2 pick. 

Haven’t really looked at some super-developmental guys yet. Also have to check out Jemarco Jones, he is an early round target by many. 

 

[AlNFL19]

4 minutes ago, Yin-Yang said:

Well, there’s 2 guys that are pretty consensus head and shoulders above the rest. Orlando Brown and Conor Williams. 

After them, depending on how they test and whatnot, there’s a group that we can look at early (1st/2nd). It’s actually a solid overall class. 

Brian O’Neil, Pitt: Dude’s a great athlete. He’s not quite as big as Solder, but they’re similar athletes. O’Neill, sitting at 6’6 and ~310, is a converted tight end (like Solder) that showed his movement skills as a tackle. As you’d expect from a converted TE, he isn’t built like a bull and could stand to put on weight. Additionally, his technique comes and goes (both hand and footwork), but he’s shown the ability. I think a guy like Scar likes good athletes that he can coach up - O’Neill is a great fit IMO. 

Mike McGlinchey, Notre Dame: Will likely be gone by #31, but he’s a clean prospect IYAM. Does a lot of things really well, he just doesn’t have the power/strength you really, really want. That can be remedied in some cases, in others not. I see him as a day 1 guy regardless. 

Chukwuma Okorafor, Western Michigan: Now say it ten times fast. Quite unlike O’Neill, Okorafor is a natural mauler (6’6, 330) and has the ‘anchor’ that Solder lacked. He’s pretty quick off the line for someone of his size, gets to the second level, and is sticky once his hands are placed. That said, as you might expect of someone his size, his lateral movement to this point has been limited and he doesn’t always have the best leverage. I’ve only watched but so much of him, but I’ve read that some question his football instincts/intelligence when it comes to edge rushers and that he lacks the mean streak you want in an offensive linemen. As a project, he reminds me of a more athletic Shaq Mason (but x10 better at withstanding a bull rush). He’s not a dependable pass protector on Day 1 IMO, but if he’s there in round 2 and we keep both our picks, it’s not a bad pick. 

Kolton Miller, UCLA: Bigger, lengthier guy at 6’8, 310~. Unlike Oforafor, he’s got instincts and intelligence when it comes to defenders and blocking in the run game. A good enough athlete, he’s got footwork better than many other tackles in this class IMO. Also seems to play with a good motor when run blocking. His issues are actually quite similar to Solder’s - he can get bull rushed and plays too high. I’m reading that he’s only average when it comes to lateral movement and can struggle in pass pro as a result against pure speed guys. He’s more of a day 1 starter than Okorafor, but his ceiling is lower too. Round 2 pick. 

Haven’t really looked at some super-developmental guys yet. Also have to check out Jemarco Jones, he is an early round target by many. 

 

I took a look at some OTs and my rankings were:

1. Connor Williams, Texas - good combination of technique and athleticism

2. Mike McGlinchey, Notre Dame - Great technique but lacking power

3. Orlando Brown, Oklahoma - Huge and powerful but has some technical questions

4. Kolton Miller, UCLA - Good athlete

5. Alex Cappa, Humboldt State - Good athlete but watch out for small-school guys

6. Chukwuma Okorafor, Western Michigan - Athletic and strong

7. Jamarco Jones, Ohio State - Solid athlete with some technical issues

8. Brandon Parker, North Carolina A&T - Another athletic small-school tackle

9. Desmond Harrison, West Georgia - Harrison is a phenomenal athlete but a huge off-field question mark

10. Tyrell Crosby, Oregon - Very strong but kind of stiff athletically.

That's what I've got so far. I think Martinas Rankin might have to kick inside to guard. These aren't really by "fit" but rather just my grades on them in general. 

[Deadpulse]

Keep it coming guys, I really value your input on these prospects!

Here is our updated Depth Chart with our new additions from round 1:

New England Patriots Depth Chart
Offense
Position	Number 1	Number 2	Number 3	Number 4	Number 5
WR	0185 - Brandin Cooks - WR	0342 - Chris Hogan - WR	1099 - Kenny Britt - WR
TE	1487 - Rob Gronkowski - TE	0791 - Jacob Hollister - TE
LT	0110 - Antonio Garcia - LT
LG	0929 - Joe Thuney - LG	0381 - Cole Croston - LG
C	0491 - David Andrews - C
RG	1579 - Shaquille Mason - RG	1655 - Ted Karras - RG	0330 - Chase Farris - RG
RT	1221 - Marcus Cannon - RT
WR	1028 - Julian Edelman - WR	1208 - Malcolm Mitchell - WR	0159 - Bernard Reedy - WR
QB	1689 - Tom Brady - QB	0228 - Brian Hoyer - QB
FB	0830 - James Develin - FB
HB	1877 - Le'Veon Bell - RB	0836 - James White - RB
Defense
Position	Number 1	Number 2	Number 3	Number 4	Number 5
LDE	1723 - Trey Flowers - 43DE	0559 - Derek Rivers - 43DE	0671 - Eric Lee - 43DE
LDT	1210 - Malcom Brown - 43DT	0021 - Adam Butler - 43DT	1770 - Vincent Valentine - 43DT
RDT	1174 - Lawrence Guy - 43DE	1998 - Nick Fairley - 43DT
RDE	1771 - Vinny Curry - 43DE	0526 - Deatrich Wise - 43DE	0717 - Geneo Grissom - 43DE
WLB	0618 - Dont'a Hightower - 43OLB	1584 - Shea McClellin - 43OLB
MLB	1145 - Kyle Van Noy - 43OLB	0650 - Elandon Roberts - ILB
SLB	5650 - Sean Weatherspoon - 43OLB	0748 - Harvey Langi - ILB
CB	1608 - Stephon Gilmore - CB	0965 - Jonathan Jones - CB
SS	1409 - Patrick Chung - S	0985 - Jordan Richards - S
FS	0587 - Devin McCourty - S	0635 - Duron Harmon - S
CB	0674 - Eric Rowe - CB	0424 - Cyrus Jones - CB
Special Teams
Position	Number 1	Number 2	Number 3	Number 4	Number 5
K	1604 - Stephen Gostkowski - K
P	1529 - Ryan Allen - P
H	1529 - Ryan Allen - P
PR	1028 - Julian Edelman - WR
KR	1028 - Julian Edelman - WR
LS	0919 - Joe Cardona - LS

[Soko]

4 minutes ago, AlNFL19 said:

5. Alex Cappa, Humboldt State - Good athlete but watch out for small-school guys

You have him this high/above the others? I think his competition questions are pretty legitimate - at least legitimate enough to put him below some of the other guys. Wouldn’t surprise me if he’s a solid NFL starter, just risky. 

4 minutes ago, AlNFL19 said:

That's what I've got so far. I think Martinas Rankin might have to kick inside to guard. These aren't really by "fit" but rather just my grades on them in general. 

Good input! 

Are you that particularly low on O’Neill? He - sans probably McGlinchey if he even falls that far - is one of the guys I realistically hope we can get in round 1. 

[Soko]

@Deadpulse

Pretty solid overhaul so far, actually. Doesn’t Fairley have some sort of heart condition, though? 

Also, it’s clear tackle is a hole. Where else are we looking to prioritize: LB, CB, DE, TE, RB?

[AlNFL19]

2 minutes ago, Yin-Yang said:

You have him this high/above the others? I think his competition questions are pretty legitimate - at least legitimate enough to put him below some of the other guys. Wouldn’t surprise me if he’s a solid NFL starter, just risky. 

Good input! 

Are you that particularly low on O’Neill? He - sans probably McGlinchey if he even falls that far - is one of the guys I realistically hope we can get in round 1. 

Yeah I have Cappa highly-rated but I don't know if he'll end up proving me right...

O'Neill I think has some technical issues but I think Scar could fix them up. I would not reach on O'Neill at 31, as I don't think OT is a big enough need, especially with the players who will probably be avaliable defensively. We could probably land O'Neill at 2.40 or 2.42 or whatever it ends up being if we really want to.

As a side note - what's everyone thinking about drafting the successor to Brady?

[AlNFL19]

Just now, Yin-Yang said:

@Deadpulse

Pretty solid overhaul so far, actually. Doesn’t Fairley have some sort of heart condition, though? 

Also, it’s clear tackle is a hole. Where else are we looking to prioritize: LB, CB, DE, TE, RB?

After getting Le'Veon I doubt RB. The tight end class is pretty deep so I think we could get a decent guy in the 3rd if we wanted to. 

[Soko]

5 minutes ago, AlNFL19 said:

Yeah I have Cappa highly-rated but I don't know if he'll end up proving me right...

O'Neill I think has some technical issues but I think Scar could fix them up. I would not reach on O'Neill at 31, as I don't think OT is a big enough need, especially with the players who will probably be avaliable defensively. We could probably land O'Neill at 2.40 or 2.42 or whatever it ends up being if we really want to.

As a side note - what's everyone thinking about drafting the successor to Brady?

Fair enough. A lot will change after they all test, but I don’t even think it’s a given O’Neill will be there by 2. He could squeeze into the first along with Brown, Williams, and McGlinchey if things fall all wrong.

What do you think is a bigger need than OT in this mock? Going in with Garcia and Cannon is definitely not a good situation given one’s inexperience and the other’s bill of health. I’d say linebacker or defensive end, the former having some really good players that will likely be there at that spot - but even then, a pro ready tackle is a big need IMO. Even with Solder this year (although without Cannon) Brady got hit quite a lot this year.

As for successor, I’m all for it with one of the first three picks. I don’t know much about the QBs this year, though. 

 

[Deadpulse]

16 minutes ago, AlNFL19 said:

17 minutes ago, Yin-Yang said:

@Deadpulse

Pretty solid overhaul so far, actually. Doesn’t Fairley have some sort of heart condition, though? 

Also, it’s clear tackle is a hole. Where else are we looking to prioritize: LB, CB, DE, TE, RB?

After getting Le'Veon I doubt RB. The tight end class is pretty deep so I think we could get a decent guy in the 3rd if we wanted to. 

I have a reserve contract in place for Burkhead. Basically its not an active bid, but if someone tries to sign him in FA it will activate and if our bid is higher we will nab him. 

 

As for Fairley, he does have a heart condition. I figured I'd sign him cheap and hope for the best. Worst case he retires and comes off the books. 

[AlNFL19]

Just now, Yin-Yang said:

Fair enough. A lot will change after they all test, but I don’t even think it’s a given O’Neill will be there by 2. He could squeeze into the first along with Brown, Williams, and McGlinchey if things fall all wrong.

What do you think is a bigger need than OT in this mock? Going in with Garcia and Cannon is definitely not a good situation given one’s inexperience and the other’s bill of health. I’d say linebacker or defensive end, the former having some really good players that will likely be there at that spot - but even then, a pro ready tackle is a big need IMO. Even with Solder this year (although without Cannon) Brady got hit quite a lot this year.

As for successor, I’m all for it with one of the first three picks. I don’t know much about the QBs this year, though. 

 

I think we need DL more. It seems like every Super Bowl we play, we can't sack the QB. The DL class is pretty good, though, so we might look elsewhere. I'd also like to add an off-the-ball linebacker. Hightower is at his best blitzing and getting a WLB lets him do that. Guys like Roberts and Van Noy are decent, but they struggle in coverage (see Week 14 vs. Miami). In the Super Bowl, the Eagles tore us up through the middle. We could address that with trades though, and the class is pretty good at the top I think. I don't know if O'Neill will be a Day 1 pick, but we'll see.

As for quarterbacks, I think the best scheme fit for us is Luke Falk from Washington State. Yeah, he's not very mobile and stands in the pocket too long, but there's no better QB to pick up how to read a defense from than Tom Brady. He's got great accuracy and good mechanics, and has a decent feel for pressure in the pocket. I hope he'd be available at 63. A lot of other guys I think seem to like Oklahoma State's Mason Rudolph, but I personally would hate to draft him. His accuracy and mechanics aren't great and he had receivers running wide open all the time.

[AlNFL19]

Just finished my offensive player grades (like 10 players per position). I'll start defense later today, but first... 

[bluemushrooms]

Holy crap we got Bell.

 

Well looks like we'll be riding the UDFA RBs this year