Take It From Tedy

Former Pats LB Tedy Bruschi had a great post on social media when he mentioned that some of the best players are drafted in the third round which was happening tonight.

He was a third round pick by the Pats back in 1996. He played 13 years for them and won three Super Bowls. He wears a red jacket from the team's Hall of Fame.

ESPN mentioned that third round picks  from last year played in 474 games, compared to 417 for the second and 396 for the first.

As they say, it doesn't really matter when you get drafted.

Trade Night

The NFL Draft begins tonight with the first round. Many have made predictions, but nobody knows how it will unfold. Teams make trades all the time.

In his 22 drafts, Bill Belichick has made trades in 21 of them. He had no problem trading up 27 times or going down on 28.

He has also traded picks or players 27 times for future considerations. Anything could happen tonight.

Brown and Brady Together

Tampa Bay is a rare exception when they have all 22 of their starters from last year returning for another try for Super Bowl LV.

Free agent Antonio Brown signed a one year contract for a guaranteed $3.1 million and $6.25 million with all incentives.

No doubt he wanted more money, but he has played his best with Tom Brady.

In only eight games last year, he had 45 receptions for 483 yards and 4 TD's.

This was a wise move on his part. He can go out and have a big year that sets him up for a bigger payday.

Numbers of The Draft

 I traveled several miles to New Hampshire today to place wagers through my phone using the DraftKings Sportsbook app.

They have all sorts of bets for the first round of the NFL draft on Thursday night. I made wagers on the total number of players drafted by position, based on the over and under.

I thought they set reasonable odds, although a few weeks ago, they had the Quarterbacks at 5.5 for the over and under. They changed it to an exact number of <4, 5 of 6+.

It should be an interesting night. The NFL has done a great job in creating a huge event for fans with all the hype leading up to it. 

Speculating On The End

The rumor mill is in overdrive with so much speculation. Where do they come up with this?

It's always some anonymous source. Things will happen. It might not be the way they predict. 

Maybe we will finally see the end of the Jimmy Garoppolo stories.

Jaycee or Trey

 I looked at the results of two mock drafts that had different selections by the Pats.

Charlie Casserley projected CB Jaycee Horn from South Carolina with the 15th overall pick. 

The NFL Network hosted a show of picks made by media people. QB Trey Lance of North Dakota State could be headed to Foxborough.

The choices will keep getting more interesting as we approach Thursday night.

Some Played Seven

Massachusetts high schools are having their Fall 2020 season now. Some teams have been able to play seven games while others have dealt with cancellations.

It's great that the kids could play and put some type of closure to the season they lost. Seniors got one more opportunity to get on the field.

Beginning of Money

 

QB Trevor Lawrence hasn't even been drafted, but it sounds like he will land a lucrative endorsement deal with Gatorade.

He will have the opportunity to make a lot of money through his playing contract and any side deals.

Things have worked out so well at this point, but it's only the beginning.

Who's On Fifth?

Anyone can come up with a draft order for a team. It's amazing that some get paid to do it. So many pretend to think they know what a team will do.

It's one thing to get a first round pick correct, but what about the player getting selected in the 5th round? There are so many scenarios of what can happen to any team.

It's hard enough to guess how a team will draft by position.

Teams Won't Say

It remains to be seen if the draft stock of Ohio state QB Justin Fields is impacted over his revelation that he takes medication for epilepsy. The condition runs in his family.

Numerous NFL players have dealt with it. His condition is under control as long as he follows his treatment plan.

Teams should not be afraid to draft him, but hey will never be truthful.

Maybe Winston Time

The media continues their hype over the top quarterbacks for the upcoming draft. They all are the newest and brightest, but how will they do?

Former 2015 overall #1 pick Jameis Winston has struggled at times. His career was up and down during his first five seasons with the Bucs

He sat behind Drew Bress last year with the Saints and saw Tayson Hill get most of the snaps when Brees was injured.

He is fighting for the starting job in light of Drew's retirement. 

They Say It's Voluntary

The Pats started voluntary workouts today, but most of the team is staying away. Cam Newton got most of the coverage for being there. He also has a workout bonus in his contract.

His attendance has generated talk on sports radio. He can't win either way.

If he stayed home, he would hear about it.

Back For More

 

I read an interesting story that said 28 players have done two tours of duty in Foxborough and made significant contributions. There are more who had very brief stays.

Many players leave for bigger free agent contracts, but return seasons later at a reduced pay. 

The Pats are a dynasty. Not everyone can play for them. It just isn't the right fit for all.

Players succeed elsewhere and make more money.

Jackson Plays For Less

It looks like CB J.C Jackson will need to wait until next year to cash in as an unrestricted free agent. He signed his second round tender offer with a salary of $3.384 million for 2021.

The Pats made it very difficult for any team to try and sign him as they would have surrendered a second round draft pick and allow the Pats to match their offer.

Jackson has been a great player since they signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2018. Assuming he has a good season without getting hurt, he should make a bundle in 2022.

Justin Around

 Whatever the Pats do in terms of scouting players for the draft draws a great deal of attention.

The media was buzzing over the amount of personnel they sent to Ohio State's Pro Day to watch QB Justin Fields. What does that mean?

The Pats would need to trade up high in the first round. Maybe this is the year Coach Belichick can spend some of his draft capital, although teams need to grow their own players through the draft and free agent signings.

Swapping Caps

When teams sign free agents, it is often at the expense of other players.

Two days after the Browns signed edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney, they released DT Sheldon Richardson. He appeared in all 32 games during his time in Cleveland, but they saved $11 million in cap space by cutting him.

Clowney's one year deal was structured in such a way that his cap number for 2021 is only $3.87 million.

Both players are great examples of first round picks who ended up bouncing around the league.

Who Will Join The List?

 

After trading QB Sam Darnold, Jets GM Joe Douglas must get it right in drafting a quarterback with the overall #2 pick. They are expected to select Zac Wilson of BYU.

Douglas has 21 draft choices in the next two years. He must improve on a 2-14 record and the team not making the playoffs in a decade.

Darnold was the latest first round pick to be traded. Their track record isn't good. They have moved on from Sheldon Richardson (2013), Calvin Pryor (2014), Leonard Williams (2015), Darron Lee (2016) and Jamal Adams (2017). 

Transfer Time

It's a great day for Division 1 college football players as the NCAA appears to be ready to change the ruling of transferring to another school. Players will no longer be required to sit out a season. The same holds true for basketball and hockey.

This has been a very archaic rule and a burden to players. It's easy to see why they often leave school a soon as they are eligible for the draft.

Players on losing programs want to maximize their opportunities and exposure. This will give them a better chance.

Gronk's Thoughts On 11

Some in the media are trying to create a narrative that Julian Edelman will stay retired for a short time before resurfacing with Tom Brady and the Bucs

Rob Gronkowski fanned the flames when he said it could happen, but he was just being Gronk.

Edelman has a whole new life ahead of him. He should try and walk away. I'm sure he had a lot of time to think about it over the last several months.

Julian Edelman

Julian Edelman announced his retirement today after the Pats terminated his contract over his inability to play this year.

It certainly sounds like he is finished. He will be 35 soon and can no longer play like his former self.

There are those who think he will resurface in Tampa Bay with Tom Brady, but the medical reports don't sound promising for him.

He had an amazing career after being drafted in the 7th round by the Pats in 2009. Although he played quarterback at Kent State, he followed a different path to his success.

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Just Stay Home

The NFLPA and the league has not come to agreement over offseason workouts. The PA is urging players to only attend the team's mandatory mini-camp in June.

Coach Bruce Arians remarked that not having OTA's hurts the development of younger players, but the veterans like it because their job isn't being taken away.

Both sides need to strike a balance. The pandemic is another issue. In the end, some type of agreement will evolve. 

Same In 2022

Some teams will be staking their future by drafting a quarterback in the first round.

Since 2000, 36 have been selected in the top ten picks, with 27 being among the top five.

Only five ever made it to the Super Bowl with Patrick Mahomes and Eli Manning sporting wins. Cam Newton and Matt Ryan are the only first round QB picks to win a regular season MVP award.

Experts are predicting up to six being selected in the first round of this year's draft. In the end, some will have success, while others will become backups or never have any great impact.

The same process while be repeated next year and after.

Draft Jobs

It's hard to believe that the draft is still three weeks away from last night.

So much time has been spent by the media on things that will never happen.

On the other hand, it gives them something to write or talk about and keeps them employed.

Picking Their Points

Some in the media don't want to give up on criticizing Coach Belichick for some of his draft picks, especially with 2018 first rounder WR N'Keal Harry.

Anonymous sources said Belichick went against scouting advice when he selected the big receiver. Critics fail to mention the times when he overruled others and hit on selections.

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They Bet On It

The amount of speculation around the draft has created an industry unto itself with all of the experts offering their advice. There are so many legal wagering options.

Sports gambling has always been part of the sport. It's so different now with the technology constantly evolving.

Odds By Position

It's very interesting to look at the draft by positions selected in the first round. 

DraftKings has all of the over and unders on how many will get picked.

At the end of the day, only 32 players get selected.

Darnold Moves On

With all of the hype around the top quarterbacks in this year's draft, they don't always work out with the team that selected them.

Jets QB Sam Darnold is a great example. The former overall #3 pick in the 2018 draft was traded to the Carolina Panthers for a 6th round draft pick this year and a 2nd and 4th in 2022.

The Panthers indicated  that will will exercise his fifth year option and do something with recently signed Teddy Bridgewater.

His time was up with the Jets. It remains to be seen how successful he will be.

Larry's Legacy

WR Larry Fitzgerald is a free agent after spending all of his 17 seasons with the Cardinals.

It doesn't appear that the team has made a great effort to sign him at the age of 38.

His options are slim. He can find another team and play for a paycheck or retire and keep his legacy intact.

He probably never thought he would reach this point, especially playing that long.

Kraft Speaks In 2021

I listened to the audio recording of the recent conference call between Pats owner Robert Kraft and the media.

They asked a lot of questions to which he gave honest answers. People can either believe him or not when it comes to Tom Brady.

He felt that Brady deserved to make his own decision on his future after 20 years with the team. That's why they didn't use the franchise tag, although they could have done that without repercussions.

Some fans and media members will dispute this forever.

They Hit Overall

A fan on Facebook posted a detailed analysis of the 177 draft picks by the Pats during the Belichick era and whether they were a hit or a miss.

He concluded that there were 61 hits and 116 misses. He admits that his analysis was his opinion, based on his own criteria.

Many of these players didn't make an impact in Foxborough, but had careers that lasted longer than average.

They didn't make the Pro Bowl, but always found a spot on a team's roster.

Brown's Decision

Tampa Bay has resigned most of their key free agents with the exception of WR Antonio Brown.

Coach Bruce Arians has indicated that the team has made him multiple offers and is waiting to hear back.

He is probably trying to maximize the dollars, but it hasn't worked out with other teams. He needs to be with Tom Brady who has gone out of his way to save his career.

If Brown signs elsewhere, it probably won't be his best decision.