First-round pick Jerod Mayo and third-rounder Shawn Crable give the team a pair
of young linebackers who can eventually replace the aging Junior Seau and Tedy
Bruschi. New England also has some concerns on the offensive line and at safety,
but did not address those needs in the draft
Round 1, Pick 10 (10) (From Saints) Jerod Mayo OLB 6'1" 242 Tennessee
Mayo can play either inside or outside linebacker. Mayo adds youth to a group of
veteran linebackers in New England. He's known for his competitiveness and
production.
Round 2, Pick 31 (62) Terrence Wheatley CB 5'9" 178 Colorado
The Patriots may have found themselves a steal in Wheatley, considered a
shutdown corner with speed.
Round 3, Pick 15 (78) (From Saints) Shawn Crable OLB 6'5" 241 Michigan
Crable is a big outside linebacker, who is a perfect fit for the Patriots. He
had 16 sacks in college. While Crable is limited in pass coverage, he has great
run-stopping skills and can be a good special teams coverage player.
Round 3, Pick 31 (94) Kevin O'Connell QB 6'5" 225 San Diego State
The Patriots have struggled to develop a quarterback behind Tom Brady, but
O'Connell will have time to develop and could become the backup.
Round 4, Pick 30 (129) Jonathan Wilhite CB 5'10" 185 Auburn
Wilhite made 22 starts and ran very well with a 4.4 in the 40-yard dash. He has
strong measurables across the board as well as 101 tackles in college.
Round 5, Pick 18 (153) (From Buccaneers)
Matt Slater WR 5'11" 195 UCLA
The son of Jackie Slater, he is a great kick returner and took back three for
touchdowns this year at UCLA. He is also very fast and ran a 4.4 at his Pro Day.
Round 6, Pick 31 (197) Bo Ruud OLB 6'4" 234 Nebraska
The younger brother of current Bucs middle linebacker Barrett Ruud. He has been
a starting linebacker the past two years at Nebraska.
New England Patriots 2008 NFL Preview
The Patriots should dominate the
division again as long as Tom Brady remains healthy. For anyone who
is questioning how much difference a quarterback makes you saw this
preseason just how bad the Patriots could be if Brady goes down.
With Randy Moss, Wes Welker and crew it will not be the offense that
could be the Patriots problem. The defense how ever is getting older
every year and with the loss of Asante Samuel and Randall Gay they
will have to rely on rookie Terrence Wheatley to produce.
Offense: The offense was the best in the league last year,
and as long as Tom Brady is healthy they will have another great
year. We can't predict 50 TD's from Brady, because that's just a
crazy year, but with Lawrence Maroney stepping it up, the team
itself could be better as the offense controls the ball some more
and takes pressure off of an aging defense.
Defense: The Patriots defensive backfield got rocked over the
offseason. It shows a certain level of hubris for this club to think
they can simply let Samuel walk away. He made opponents think twice
before attacking the left side of the field. Had Gay stayed, he
would have been the No. 1 CB. Instead, journeymen Bryant, Webster
and Sanders will compete for the job. The loss of Pro Bowler Asante
Samuel and veteran Randall Gay created a need at the cornerback
position. To address that situation, the Patriots drafted Terrence
Wheatley in the second round. The bright side for this year is that
Jerod Mayo's with his nose for the ball, youth, and speed at inside
linebacker have gotten him right into the flow of things. He also
has Tedy Bruschi next to him and Pro Bowl nose tackle Vince Wilfork
in front of him so he should be free to roam and make some big hits.
Which should help the Patriots defense out against the run. The good
news is that for some reason Belichick has always managed to game
plan defensive schemes for any opponent or situation.
Overall: Seeing
how this team responds to the devastating conclusion of what had
been the greatest season in NFL history is one of the most
fascinating NFL storylines of 2008. For most clubs, a bounce back
would be impossible. Not this one.
New England will not go 16-0. It also
won't be challenged for the division title in any significant way.
There also wont be nearly as many blow outs this year, and the
division is better, all of which will serve the Patriots well as
they are our pick to win the Super Bowl this year.
