Now that the major free agent signings have been finalized, the Last Word On Sports NFL department will be looking at the top three needs for each team heading into the 2016 NFL Draft. Today, the New England Patriots are the focus. I previously wrote an article that discussed New England’s top three needs this off-season.
The Patriots do not have a pick in the first round of the draft this year since NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has zero sense when it comes to doling out discipline. But Bill Belichick’s team does have 11 total picks to utilize this year, including four compensatory selections they were given due to players they lost.
Below are the Patriots draft picks for the 2016 NFL Draft
Second round (No. 60)
Second round (No. 61, from the Arizona Cardinals, via the Chandler Jones trade)
Third round (No. 91)
Third round (No. 96, compensatory)
Sixth round (No. 196, from the Houston Texans via the Keshawn Martin trade)
Sixth round (No. 204, from the Chicago Bears via the Martellus Bennett trade)
Sixth round (No. 208, compensatory)
Sixth round (No. 214, compensatory)
Sixth round (No. 221, compensatory)
Seventh round (No. 243, from Houston via the Ryan Mallet trade)
Seventh round (No. 250)
While the Patriots have added some veteran players this off-season (Chris Long, E.J. Biggers, among others), the Hoodie’s team still has holes they need to address through the draft.
NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS 2016 NFL DRAFT: TOP 3 NEEDS
Running Back
Yes, the Patriots have Tom Brady under center, which helps enormously, but New England couldn’t run the ball last season. They all but abandoned their ground game towards the end of the season and it is one of the main reasons (along with a poor showing from the offensive line) that the Pats fell to the Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship game.
As of now, Dion Lewis and LeGarrette Blount (re-signed to a one-year, incentive laden, deal, by the Pats on Wed.) will be the most utilized backs. But Lewis tore his ACL just five months ago and Blount landed on season-ending injured reserve on Dec. 13 due to sustaining a hip injury. When Lewis and Blount were on the field last season they were playmakers, but it is difficult to project how a player, particularly a running back, will come back from a leg injury. If, for some reason, neither Lewis nor Blount are capable of taking the majority of carries, or either goes down with another injury, there isn’t much faith that the reserve backs (James White, Brandon Bolden, Tyler Gaffney, Joey Iosefa, or Donald Brown) are capable of stepping into that lead back role, although White did a pretty good job taking over for Lewis last season.
The Patriots need to help protect Brady and one way to do that is to actually be able to run the football. With the backs they currently have on their roster a really solid ground game is not exactly a sure thing, particularly if Lewis and/or Blount go down again.
Offensive Line
There’s no way to sugarcoat it, New England’s offensive line did not do their job last season. They failed to keep Brady upright in 2016 and the future Hall of Famer was sacked 43 times, including the playoffs.
Nate Solder and Sebastian Vollmer figure to be the starters at tackle with Cameron Fleming, Marcus Cannon, LaAdrian Waddle and Keavon Milton as the reserves. Solder was really the only Patriots offensive lineman who was worth his salt in 2015, and both Vollmer and Cannon will be free agents after the 2016 season. The Patriots need to add some depth for next year so 2015 isn’t repeated and plan for beyond this coming season.
Center Ryan Wendell was injured last season and that certainly contributed to the offensive line’s poor play, but it wasn’t the only reason. Plus, Wendell is now a free agent and it looks like Bryan Stork will take over the job at center, with David Andrews (Stork and Andrews shared time at center last season) serving the reserve center.
Shaq Mason and Josh Kline will probably start at guard this season, with Tre’ Jackson, Jonathan Cooper and Chris Barker being the reserves. For the Pats to be successful in 2016 there needs to be some improvement at the guard position.
New England needs to be better along the offensive line in 2016 if they hope to make it back to the Super Bowl. Hopefully Dante Scarnecchia (Pats offensive line coach from 1982-88 and 1991-2013), who replaced Dave DeGuglielmo as offensive line coach this off-season, can help get the line playing better. But Belichick’s team will need to draft some help for the offensive line, even if Scarnecchia is returning to New England.
Wide Receiver
Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola and maybe Chris Hogan figure to be the starters, with tight end Rob Gronkowski continuing to be a matchup nightmare for defenses. Aaron Dobson, Matthew Slater, Chris Harper, Nate Washington and Keshawn Martin will be acting as the reserves.
Edelman more than pulls his weight and is one of Brady’s favorite targets, but he’s not your prototypical wide receiver who is a constant downfield threat. Amendola has been inconsistent and his cap hit in 2016 is $6.804 and it increases to $7.866 in 2017. The former Texas Tech wideout has shown glimpses of being a really good receiver, but injuries and inconsistency have been issues for him and there is no guarantee as to how long he’ll be in New England.
Outside of Edelman and Gronk, the Patriots do not have pass catchers who have truly proven themselves consistently. They also do not have a big, fast receiver who can take the top off of defenses. New England needs to draft some young talent at receiver to help Brady and complement what will hopefully be an improved ground game.
The Patriots could also look to improve at linebacker, along their defensive line, or in their defensive backfield (particularly at cornerback) through the draft. New England has made some nice off-season moves thus far, but there are still areas they need to address in this year’s draft if they want to remain atop the AFC East and continue to compete for Super Bowls.
Main Photo: FOXBORO, MA – DECEMBER 06: Head coach Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots looks on during the game between the New England Patriots and the Philadelphia Eagles at Gillette Stadium on December 6, 2015 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
