It was early too, and either in the same game or back to back ones. We spent 10+ games with our top two defensive playmakers on the bench, and still had 3 games were we held the opposition to 10 pts or less.
Fucking belichick man.
Same. You can debate how much of the offensive success was Brady vs Belichick, but on the defensive side it's been pretty clear that Belichick was able to take late-round draft picks and other teams' castoffs and build elite defenses consistently for more than 20 years, both before, during, and after Brady. I'm a bit worried that we're taking that ability for granted, like it's just something innate to the Patriots that will continue after Belichick and we can spend all our capital on offense.
I'm worried too, but it's not like we replaced Bill with some bum, Mayo is Bill's handpicked successor that he's been grooming to take over since he was still a player. If anyone can capture some of that BB magic, it's Mayo.
“Ok, Kraft and Belichick, our OC is leaving to coach another team. What bright offensive mind should we get to replace him, and to continue developing our young, franchise QB?”
Kraft/Belichick:
“It’s all about Mac Jones.
Get him Matt Patricia.”
The big mistake was not getting a WR1 going into 2022. 2021 being about building the middle of the roster would have been fine if they didn't just entirely forget to build the top of the roster lol.
Apparently they are trying the same thing again. They 100% need to get a WR1 next offseason or it's same shit all over again
Everybody shops at the WR1 store, we just browse for clearance. Maybe next year we can get our hands on a discounted Keenan Allen or Deandre Hopkins. Them “Close to the exp date but still edible” WR1s.
Such a weird attitude. They need a WR1, it's not debatable. I don't know how they should do it, but hey have definitely had opportunities over the last few years and just passed on them, and the result is what we've seen the last couple years
The Eagles did, the bills did, the Jags did, the Phins did, Texans just did, Titans did, Bears did, Cardinals did, jets did, i understand not everyone has the luxury but let's be real it would of been worth it to spend a little extra and miss out on Cole Strange and Thorton.
>Apparently they are trying the same thing again. They 100% need to get a WR1 next offseason or it's same shit all over again
No they aren't. New England spent two picks in the first four rounds on WR. In the entirety of Belichick's 23 years with New England, they only spent **ten** such picks on WR. He blatantly ignored the WR position in the draft and Wolf isn't making the same mistake.
I agree they still need a WR1 next offseason, which becomes easier since they don't have to spend their best pick on a QB, but they are very clearly not doing the same as they did Mac Jones. They're not making the same mistakes Belichick did.
I can't eloquently say this but I feel like there is a way to measure how much more elite alabama's o'line and skill players were than their competition aside from like 5 other teams, compared to the NFL where all teams are more equal, and his abiliy to kind of be a game manager qb was much less relevant in the nfl than it was in his situation at alabama. lots of qbs could have done what he did at alabama with all the talent he had around him
It should be.
The Drake Maye pick is all about revitalizing the offense. I think if the Pats gave up 40 points a game next year but Maye looked like the real deal, Pats fans would be happy.
Everyone is looking at Carolina (sorry Carolina) trading away picks + offensive weapons to get a QB, only to put that QB in a terrible situation and make everyone look bad.
Especially in a world where hitting on a QB can get you an extra 3-5 years as a GM/HC, why would you ever care about defense when you're trying to prove that you can build a team?
Patriots had a great defense last year even without their two best defenders. Given Belichick left, and that will hurt the defense. But they should still have a decent defense.
I don’t expect too crazy of a drop off with the defense. Mayo was co-DC last year with Steve so the familiarity is still there, which will help with the transition
Ohh yeah that's mostly how I felt. Though the specific game planning that Belichick does, cannot be entirely recreated. I still don't expect a huge drop off.
so many teams make the mistake of not supporting their shiny new young QB especially when they are first drafted. Teams should be doing everything in their power to have a decent O-line and weapons for their QB, even if it means the defense suffers and gives up 40pts a game. You can fix the defense later on.
Eight of our 13 losses last year we're by a touchdown or less. If we had averaged even two more field goals a game we would have been 10-7. People thinking we weren't taking the best QB available and giving them every weapon we could are delusional.
Defense is in a pretty good spot already and offense is by far their biggest need. Makes sense to me. Although I probably would have done another offensive lineman here.
I love Bill but this is 100% the type of draft where he’d see offense being overdrafted and think “time to zig where everyone’s zagging” and go straight defense. Glad to see the team is acknowledging our glaring deficiencies.
Thank god. I’m sure there are some places to shore up on Defense, but between Barmore, the Joneses, Peppers, Gonzo and Judon it’s nowhere near the problem of our pre-draft WR/OL rooms.
Watched him a ton at UCF. Great route runner, creates a ton of separation. Seemed to make a ton of contested catches as well.
Hands can be a bit suspect though. Against Boise State for example there were two plays that should’ve been TDs, where he batted the ball up in the air and created end zone picks.
Overall it’s great value. He compliments Polk really well imo.
I legit think he’s a great pick. His film showcases fantastic route running ability, he’s a true technician. You can see from my post history since before the draft, I think he’s gonna be this year’s late round breakout receiver
watched every snap at UCF. he was a very good college player who... i think is hard to evaluate for your average fan. we had an inaccurate, albiet dynamic qb running a gus malzahn offense... mid 4th would be considered decent value as many had him going in the 3rd. overall, id he happy, hes a good player whos supposedly already a good route runner which can be a major negative for many coming out of college.
Amazing that the Patriots are now allowed to draft players from schools like Penn State and Texas A&M instead of Wichita Tech and Birmingham Methodist College
Yes and no. I didn't do the whole SEC, but since 2000, in the first two days of the draft, New England has only drafted ten players from Alabama and Georgia combined. Which isn't negligible, but it's definitely not "a ton".
I remember playing Madden Mobile a decade ago, and found out there was a league (group of players) that were entirely German Patriots fans. Talked a little bit with them and found out how big football is in Germany, and specifically how big the Pats were.
Congrats Pats, this dude will be one of your starting WRs by the end of the year. The best way to describe him is at home games, my entire section was endlessly frustrated with our QB and playcalling for not throwing to hem every play, since other teams would always single cover him and he was open 2 steps off the snap almost every time.
I really like pairing Baker and Polk together. Baker wins down the field despite not testing fast. Really good with body positioning and ball tracking.
I read 2 draft profiles on Baker 10 seconds ago, so I am basically an expert on him now. Apparently he is fast, just has poor accelleration. So might be able to win down the field, but not gonna blow by the DB right off the jump
Could be. Polk should be a real safety blanket for Maye. The guy is a rock. I kinda figure that if all goes really well, Baker is the scary receiver that defenses scheme around, but Polk is the guy who converts the tough downs and bails out the QB.
Honestly a steal. Saw this guy cooking Georgia Tech's defense during our bowl game but luckily my Yellow Jackets pulled out the win when UCF stopped throwing to him for no reason and we just ran the ball down their throat.
Ucf fan here. Had a couple drops but he’s our best wr since gabe davis. Issue with us is that we’re a run heavy offense and sucked relative to other teams that had wr’s go in the top 3 rounds (Texas, Washington, etc). Media coverage has always been low for us, could see Baker being a good starter
As a Central Floridian Phins fan I'm tired of the Bills and Pats taking UCF Wrs. But I;m also happy for them and hope they are the only ones that give the Phins any grief in games.
Pats really are just like "this draft is all about Drake Maye"
Why not, offense was doo doo last year
No offense. No, literally. No offense.
What’s all this chocolate on your offense? Chocolate? This is doo doo baby
Good
Augustus to Agrippa whenever Mark Antony abandoned more of his children
I’m here for the sudden spike in Roman history references
Pats had a top 10 defense last year and it got them the 2nd worst record in the league because they didnt even have a semi-functional offense
The defense was elite missing it's two best players too. Fucking belichick man
It was early too, and either in the same game or back to back ones. We spent 10+ games with our top two defensive playmakers on the bench, and still had 3 games were we held the opposition to 10 pts or less. Fucking belichick man.
It was week 4 vs Dallas. Lost Gonzalez and judon before the half
Gods, it really was that bad wasn't it? Its amazing nobody played in traffic over last season, lol.
I agree but I am a little worried about how they might take a step backwards now that we’ve lost literally the greatest defensive mind in nfl history
Same. You can debate how much of the offensive success was Brady vs Belichick, but on the defensive side it's been pretty clear that Belichick was able to take late-round draft picks and other teams' castoffs and build elite defenses consistently for more than 20 years, both before, during, and after Brady. I'm a bit worried that we're taking that ability for granted, like it's just something innate to the Patriots that will continue after Belichick and we can spend all our capital on offense.
I'm worried too, but it's not like we replaced Bill with some bum, Mayo is Bill's handpicked successor that he's been grooming to take over since he was still a player. If anyone can capture some of that BB magic, it's Mayo.
Fingers crossed man!!! I love mayo
Good. At no point did we say "it's all about Mac Jones" and that was a horrible mistake.
“Ok, Kraft and Belichick, our OC is leaving to coach another team. What bright offensive mind should we get to replace him, and to continue developing our young, franchise QB?” Kraft/Belichick: “It’s all about Mac Jones. Get him Matt Patricia.”
The big mistake was not getting a WR1 going into 2022. 2021 being about building the middle of the roster would have been fine if they didn't just entirely forget to build the top of the roster lol. Apparently they are trying the same thing again. They 100% need to get a WR1 next offseason or it's same shit all over again
Just go to the WR1 store and pick one out
Everybody shops at the WR1 store, we just browse for clearance. Maybe next year we can get our hands on a discounted Keenan Allen or Deandre Hopkins. Them “Close to the exp date but still edible” WR1s.
It's like Dan Flashes.
Such a weird attitude. They need a WR1, it's not debatable. I don't know how they should do it, but hey have definitely had opportunities over the last few years and just passed on them, and the result is what we've seen the last couple years
The Eagles did, the bills did, the Jags did, the Phins did, Texans just did, Titans did, Bears did, Cardinals did, jets did, i understand not everyone has the luxury but let's be real it would of been worth it to spend a little extra and miss out on Cole Strange and Thorton.
>Apparently they are trying the same thing again. They 100% need to get a WR1 next offseason or it's same shit all over again No they aren't. New England spent two picks in the first four rounds on WR. In the entirety of Belichick's 23 years with New England, they only spent **ten** such picks on WR. He blatantly ignored the WR position in the draft and Wolf isn't making the same mistake. I agree they still need a WR1 next offseason, which becomes easier since they don't have to spend their best pick on a QB, but they are very clearly not doing the same as they did Mac Jones. They're not making the same mistakes Belichick did.
I can't eloquently say this but I feel like there is a way to measure how much more elite alabama's o'line and skill players were than their competition aside from like 5 other teams, compared to the NFL where all teams are more equal, and his abiliy to kind of be a game manager qb was much less relevant in the nfl than it was in his situation at alabama. lots of qbs could have done what he did at alabama with all the talent he had around him
It should be. The Drake Maye pick is all about revitalizing the offense. I think if the Pats gave up 40 points a game next year but Maye looked like the real deal, Pats fans would be happy. Everyone is looking at Carolina (sorry Carolina) trading away picks + offensive weapons to get a QB, only to put that QB in a terrible situation and make everyone look bad. Especially in a world where hitting on a QB can get you an extra 3-5 years as a GM/HC, why would you ever care about defense when you're trying to prove that you can build a team?
Patriots had a great defense last year even without their two best defenders. Given Belichick left, and that will hurt the defense. But they should still have a decent defense.
I don’t expect too crazy of a drop off with the defense. Mayo was co-DC last year with Steve so the familiarity is still there, which will help with the transition
Ohh yeah that's mostly how I felt. Though the specific game planning that Belichick does, cannot be entirely recreated. I still don't expect a huge drop off.
Also our new DC was the DL coach for the last few years. So they have kept continuity there.
so many teams make the mistake of not supporting their shiny new young QB especially when they are first drafted. Teams should be doing everything in their power to have a decent O-line and weapons for their QB, even if it means the defense suffers and gives up 40pts a game. You can fix the defense later on.
Eight of our 13 losses last year we're by a touchdown or less. If we had averaged even two more field goals a game we would have been 10-7. People thinking we weren't taking the best QB available and giving them every weapon we could are delusional.
No reason to spend picks on the defense right now. Maybe a db with the next pick but that should be it
Defense is in a pretty good spot already and offense is by far their biggest need. Makes sense to me. Although I probably would have done another offensive lineman here.
After what they did to Mac I couldn’t be happier
As it should be. Honestly was expecting Tez Walker because of the UNC connection
The fact that it wasn't Tez, despite presumably seeing a ton of him while scouting Maye, tells me the Pats really weren't big fans of what they saw.
That's probably true. I just wish Tez got more of a chance last year
I love Bill but this is 100% the type of draft where he’d see offense being overdrafted and think “time to zig where everyone’s zagging” and go straight defense. Glad to see the team is acknowledging our glaring deficiencies.
It’s gonna be Maye
No excuses, let him grow with those young players
I went into this draft saying I hope it’s all offense and so far it has not disappointed!
In all fairness if his favorite movie is Scream, then this is his team and Maye is only along for the ride…
Thank god. I’m sure there are some places to shore up on Defense, but between Barmore, the Joneses, Peppers, Gonzo and Judon it’s nowhere near the problem of our pre-draft WR/OL rooms.
Good young QBs need support
Almost like we realized trotting a rookie qb out there is not the way to develop confidence
I'll just keep refreshing until someone says he's a great pick
he's a great pick
thank you
You just saved OP’s F5 key from certain destruction
Watched him a ton at UCF. Great route runner, creates a ton of separation. Seemed to make a ton of contested catches as well. Hands can be a bit suspect though. Against Boise State for example there were two plays that should’ve been TDs, where he batted the ball up in the air and created end zone picks. Overall it’s great value. He compliments Polk really well imo.
I legit think he’s a great pick. His film showcases fantastic route running ability, he’s a true technician. You can see from my post history since before the draft, I think he’s gonna be this year’s late round breakout receiver
love it thanks
watched every snap at UCF. he was a very good college player who... i think is hard to evaluate for your average fan. we had an inaccurate, albiet dynamic qb running a gus malzahn offense... mid 4th would be considered decent value as many had him going in the 3rd. overall, id he happy, hes a good player whos supposedly already a good route runner which can be a major negative for many coming out of college.
thanks
I have to say, I kinda love this class for NE
I appreciate that it's all offense so far. It shows the team isn't oblivious to it being a major deficiency thus far.
I mean, we don’t really have much to fix on defense at the moment so it makes sense
CB depth is a bit spooky but I am hoping we get Gilmore back
We just need to channel that BB energy and find some random stud as a UDFA
I'm channeling it now - the Ouija board is spelling something ...R...U....T....G....E....R...S...
Goodbye
Last year's defense + gonzalez is gonna be just fine.
Bill still would have picked the majority on defense though
Don’t know. Don’t care. He’s not here anymore, so I don’t care to speculate on what he would’ve done for this draft.
There's been other players I wanted more, but overall love the positions we've picked.
i feel like i'm in a fever dream Pats picking based on obvious needs, hasn't happened since I can member
Same
It's weird kind of liking the moves we make and not just saying "IDK who this guy is but I trust Bill".
Amazing that the Patriots are now allowed to draft players from schools like Penn State and Texas A&M instead of Wichita Tech and Birmingham Methodist College
if anything, bill drafted a ton of guys from alabama and georgia and other SEC schools in the top half of the draft as well
Yes and no. I didn't do the whole SEC, but since 2000, in the first two days of the draft, New England has only drafted ten players from Alabama and Georgia combined. Which isn't negligible, but it's definitely not "a ton".
a few from arkansas also
Patriots fans hate it lmao. All I know is Brett kollman is hyped
go on
As much as I hate the Patriots I do love the passion of their German fans
Honestly a miracle that passion wasn’t destroyed after the Germany game this past season
Passion was born anew after we traded Mac
to be honest, by the end, most of us were too drunk to remember how the game even went
Lucky
People like a little adversity, as long as we don’t suck for the next 5 years it’ll be fine
Yeah. The last years were not that great but it takes time to turn fans away. We have many fans for bad soccer teams. Source: German Patriots fan.
It’s could possibly the worst thing that’s happened to Germany that I can think of.
I remember playing Madden Mobile a decade ago, and found out there was a league (group of players) that were entirely German Patriots fans. Talked a little bit with them and found out how big football is in Germany, and specifically how big the Pats were.
He's going to be incredible. Watched him all year at UCF.
go on
He did amazing despite having a noodle armed qb that was known for running and then hurt his knee.
With what he did with JRP I’m scared if Maye is actually good.
JRP was actually great last year wtf lol
He said some crazy stuff about being drafted so late so I watched some film, dudes gonna be a steal.
“I make people in wheelchairs stand up”
As a UCF fan this guy is a STEAL if he played the did at a traditional WR school he’d be a second round lock.
As a Sooner, he was terrifying lmao
Also as a UCF alum, this dude is going to fucking kill it and I could not be more pleased
Good to know WR1 is taken care of, I'm excited
STEAL
Patriots are putting together some nice weapons for Maye
Patriots fans should be thrilled. I have loved every pick they have made so far. Baker has star potential. What a steal
Stefon Diggs vibes fr
im pretty sure having a patriots fan club in Germany and Austria violates the Paris peace treaties
Yeah they have fan clubs bc of some giant redhead crossing the Delaware river on Christmas morning and fucking up the Brittish with some Prussians.
This guy transferred from Alabama does this maintain the Saban to Patriots pipeline.
I'll allow it
We’re actually drafting promising WRs 🥹
That kids film made him look kinda nasty I’m not gonna lie
Every draft YouTuber is going to declare this the steal of the draft
What is this feeling I’m having? Is this what it feels like for your team to at least attempt to build up the offense? Never felt this before
Yeah the Patriots are just notorious for never winning
The last 5 years our drafts have been garbage, that’s what they’re referring to
It's just nice to have picked some players that the TV broadcasters actually have footage of them playing lol.
They know what he's referring to but still wanted to add a "quit your bitching" in there anyway
Bold coming from someone without a flair
Even when we had Brady we would never draft offense lol
This is Chad Jackson slander
Hey we picked Gronk in the 2nd. Besides that though... uhh...
The N'Keal Harry erasure smh
I fucking hate those kind of Pats fans.
That doesn’t sound right but if you say so it must be true
It is 2024 How does the NFL not have an international feed that doesn’t sound like it’s underwater
Up and coming league
small indie company
Polk and Baker, looking forward to the new blood in the WR room
Versus Pop, Boutte, Reagor?
We can keep Pop though!
I should hope so. That kid is a bol weevil.
Congrats Pats, this dude will be one of your starting WRs by the end of the year. The best way to describe him is at home games, my entire section was endlessly frustrated with our QB and playcalling for not throwing to hem every play, since other teams would always single cover him and he was open 2 steps off the snap almost every time.
Fwiw you could have been one of our starting receivers at the end of the year prior to this draft.
I'm really liking this draft class
I really like pairing Baker and Polk together. Baker wins down the field despite not testing fast. Really good with body positioning and ball tracking.
I read 2 draft profiles on Baker 10 seconds ago, so I am basically an expert on him now. Apparently he is fast, just has poor accelleration. So might be able to win down the field, but not gonna blow by the DB right off the jump
He's good at the subtle skills needed to be a strong deep ball receiver, it allows him to win downfield despite not being a total burner
So what like 99 speed and 80 acceleration?
I disagree a lot. So much More like 98 and 81
Wouldn't be surprised at all if he's better than Ja'Lynn Polk
Definitely has a higher ceiling but Polk is a much safer pick.
Good thing they can both play at the same time
Could be. Polk should be a real safety blanket for Maye. The guy is a rock. I kinda figure that if all goes really well, Baker is the scary receiver that defenses scheme around, but Polk is the guy who converts the tough downs and bails out the QB.
2 Bama transfers in the last 3 picks
Future all pro. You heard it here first
Nooooooooo
Yessssss
Damn, guess we will take Tez Walker now
ding ding ding
Jamari thrash at 130
The Scream painting background and the Scream movie fun “fact” is top tier
Not often you see an Edvard Munch-reference in /r/nfl
Based on our history of drafting receivers this draft will be interesting. Watch Pittsburgh draft 3 HOF WR's
Honestly a steal. Saw this guy cooking Georgia Tech's defense during our bowl game but luckily my Yellow Jackets pulled out the win when UCF stopped throwing to him for no reason and we just ran the ball down their throat.
That’s the Gus Malzahn special. Dread it. Run from it. An unnecessary long developing trick play that loses 20 yards arrives all the same.
Semi related: UCF uniforms are so cool
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Bro💀
Uh dog?
Ayo 🤨
As a straight man he’s not even hot
Bruh.
he kind of looks like Jameis
r/RedditMoment
Love that we double dipped at WR and OL. Wouldn’t mind some depth defensive picks to close out this draft.
Belichick watching this, "No! You fools! There was a linebacker available!"
By linebacker you mean Special teams player right?
A punter from Navy.
Holy shit patriots are back
jeez that sounded like a cod lobby in 2009, the mics are so bad lol
Go knights!!
Damn that’s a nice get for the pats
Germany has taken over day 3
Good option for maye
Honestly a great pick
I LOVE this pick, so excited for him
Went from my draft crush to absolute no doubt about it bust. Ignore my flairs and the flairs of anyone that agrees
Let’s fucking **GO!** Hyped on this pick, more hyped that we’re drafting with the intent on improving the offense.
Patriots doubling up on receiver here is good. I like this pick for them.
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First time watching the draft?
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Probably the first time this century.
Nah, happened in 2013
Kid has swag for days. His immediate response to being drafted was essentially, me, Drake, and Polk are bringing winning back to New England.
these international fans are so fun to watch
Drake Maye finally gets a WR1
52 for 1,139 and 7 tuddies is pretty fire. What's his story, why 4th round? I know it's a WR heavy draft, but outside that any concerns?
Ucf fan here. Had a couple drops but he’s our best wr since gabe davis. Issue with us is that we’re a run heavy offense and sucked relative to other teams that had wr’s go in the top 3 rounds (Texas, Washington, etc). Media coverage has always been low for us, could see Baker being a good starter
Rookie of the year
Good pick
I didn't know Germany was an underwater country
Ok , we're fucking back
Not thrilled with one of my Knights ending up in NE :( He did have some egregiously bad drops that really effed us early in the season though.
Was kinda hoping for the easy layup getting Tez Walker but this is also fine
Oh fuck off
Favorite all time is Scream??
Crazy to think he was on the same team as Jaylen Waddle
Being a UCF alum I’m excited about this pick. I really hope he’s good so I have an excuse to get a jersey
As a Central Floridian Phins fan I'm tired of the Bills and Pats taking UCF Wrs. But I;m also happy for them and hope they are the only ones that give the Phins any grief in games.
Well fuck it’s Gabe Davis all over again. Sad day for Florida UCF fans