Does Belichick Get a Pass on Poor Drafts?

[CW McGraw]

Compared to the other great dynasty teams, I don't think the Patriots have ever drafted that well. But the game has changed since Chuck Noll and Bill Walsh were drafting Hall of Famers on a yearly basis. Nowadays, it's much more about free agency and that's where I think the Pats have made their mark. Corey Dillon, Rodney Harrison, Randy Moss, Wes Welker, etc.. The Pats have always been about picking up veterans that everyone assumed were dead and then having them play well.

Most of those leaders on the great Pats defenses weren't even drafted by Belichick. Law, Milloy, and Bruschi were all Parcells picks. Even Adam Vinatieri was there before Belichick took over. Same with Mr. Patriot himself Troy Brown. The majority of the great Hall of Fame caliber players on the Pats this decade were not drafted by Bill Belichick.

[lonewolf371]

Quote: Originally Posted by CW McGraw

Compared to the other great dynasty teams, I don't think the Patriots have ever drafted that well. But the game has changed since Chuck Noll and Bill Walsh were drafting Hall of Famers on a yearly basis. Nowadays, it's much more about free agency and that's where I think the Pats have made their mark. Corey Dillon, Rodney Harrison, Randy Moss, Wes Welker, etc.. The Pats have always been about picking up veterans that everyone assumed were dead and then having them play well. Most of those leaders on the great Pats defenses weren't even drafted by Belichick. Law, Milloy, and Bruschi were all Parcells picks. Even Adam Vinatieri was there before Belichick took over. Same with Mr. Patriot himself Troy Brown. The majority of the great Hall of Fame caliber players on the Pats this decade were not drafted by Bill Belichick.

?

This post is quite confusing. You say the Pats never drafted well, then just say the best players were drafted before Belichick got there. In the Belichick era, particularly from 2000-2005, you ignored Tom Brady, Richard Seymour, Matt Light, Deion Branch, Jarvis Green, David Givens, Ty Warren, Eugene Wilson, Asante Samuel, Dan Koppen, Vince Wilfork, Ben Watson, Logan Mankins, Nick Kaczur... That's a lot of quality players, possibly 2 Hall of Famers (Brady and Seymour), and 4 All-Pros. I don't know what your definition of good drafting is, but I'd like to see a team that does it. By the way, Seymour was the best player on that defense the past decade and Wilfork might be the best player right now.

[CW McGraw]

Quote:

You say the Pats never drafted well

No, I didn't. I said compared to the best teams ever, the Pats aren't that great at drafting. Has Belichick drafted as many HOFers as the 70s Steelers, 80s Niners, or 90s Cowboys? Of course not. He's not as good at drafting as those teams were.

Quote:

In the Belichick era, particularly from 2000-2005, you ignored Tom Brady, Richard Seymour, Matt Light, Deion Branch, Jarvis Green, David Givens, Ty Warren, Eugene Wilson, Asante Samuel, Dan Koppen, Vince Wilfork, Ben Watson, Logan Mankins, Nick Kaczur... That's a lot of quality players, possibly 2 Hall of Famers (Brady and Seymour), and 4 All-Pros. I don't know what your definition of good drafting is, but I'd like to see a team that does it. By the way, Seymour was the best player on that defense the past decade and Wilfork might be the best player right now.

Brady-HOF
Seymour-Great
Light-Good
Branch-Average
Green-Average
Givens-Average
Warren-Good
Wilson-Average
Samuel-Good
Koppen-Good
Wilfork-Good
Watson-Average
Mankins-Good
Kaczur-Average

If you're comparing that to the modern NFL average, that's great drafting, but that wasn't at all what I was attempting to argue. I said that Belichick isn't as good as drafting as the older dynasties.

[lonewolf371]

Yeah, Belichick hasn't gotten the HOFs every year like you see in the older dynasties, but part of that is because the draft process is a lot more developed now. In the '70s, most teams didn't do nearly the amount of scouting and research that's done today, so I think if you were the only team that had a great scouting department it would be easy for you to snag all the great players.

Now, with the money riding on these rookies it's a lot harder to find the best players and hide them from other teams, since everyone knows how to find them. You actually see that a little bit in the dynasties you just mentioned; the Steelers drafted more HOFs in 1974 (4) than either of the other dynasties did for their entire period. And considering the 49ers and Cowboys both look like they may have drafted three, the Patriots with 1 or 2 (if Seymour makes the HOF) aren't that far off.

[Cardot]

Quote: Originally Posted by CW McGraw

Compared to the other great dynasty teams, I don't think the Patriots have ever drafted that well. But the game has changed since Chuck Noll and Bill Walsh were drafting Hall of Famers on a yearly basis. Nowadays, it's much more about free agency and that's where I think the Pats have made their mark.

I agree. Free agency and the salary cap have made it a different ball game. In fact it might be a strategy to downplay the draft and avoid the hassles that come with the high picks.....Hold outs and distractions for players that haven't proven themselves and could end up as busts.