With the Patriots recording their sixth Super Bowl title, the offseason frenzy officially begins. The Patriots who have plenty of cap space have a league _high 12 draft picks awarded to them. Overall, they have six picks in the first three rounds. One first, two seconds and three_ thirds. In this post, we will discuss three areas the team needs to focus on this offseason.
Patriots 2019 Offseason Needs
Draft A Quarterback; With Tom Brady getting better with age the organization has a four_ year window to develop Brady’s successor. The team’s best bet is to draft a quarterback and have him under team control for five years. Signing a free agent quarterback would be risky as long as Brady stays healthy.
Three quarterbacks who may be available at pick 31 are Brett Rypien of Boise State and Shea Patterson of Michigan. Rypien threw for 10,000 yards passing in four years at Boise State. Shea Patterson of Michigan may also be available at 31. Patterson impressed scouts as he 65 % of his passes in four years at Michigan. We all know the last quarterback the Patriots took from Michigan in 1999. Other possibilities may be Daniel Jones of Duke or Jake Browning of Washington. Jones ‘s stock may drop due to a knee injury he suffered in the second game last season.
Draft A Safety; Just after the Super Bowl veteran Devin McCourty considered retirement. In the past, the Patriots have drafted great safeties such as Patrick Chung and Brandon Meriweather. Some names to keep an eye on are Deionte Thompson of Alabama, Chauncey GardenJohnson of Florida, and Nasir Adderley of Delaware. Out of the three Adderley has the best skill set. Adderley is excellent in zone coverage and is a projected 1st round pick.
Edge Rusher; The Patriots defense ranked 15th in the NFL last year. They stopped the Rams run game in the Super Bowl. Adding another edge rusher can never hurt. The current linebacking group of Donta Hightower, Kyle Van Noy, Trey Flowers, Johnathan Simon, and Elandon Roberts could use an extra body. Some names to keep an eye on are Josh Allen of Kentucky, Nick Bosa of Ohio State, Jachai Polite of Florida. Depending on who is available look for the Patriots to select Josh Allen of Kentucky. Allen finished his career with 224 tackles,15 forced fumbles, and 31 career sacks.
Free Agency; With free agency starting March 1st the Patriots will be searching for a tight end and Receiver help. Some players who could be available for the right price are Jesse James of the Steelers, Antonio Brown of the Steelers and Antonio Gates of the Chargers. Benjamin Watson of New Orleans is also a possibility. James can play both receiver and tight end. Depending on Rob Gronkowski’s decision on retirement look for Belichick to stockpile in this department.
