Guys, One player I hope the Pats take a look at from the Rookie F.A. class is Danny Amendola out of Texas Tech. He had over 100 catches last year, but was probably over looked because of the success of Michael Crabtree. He's right out of the Wes Welker mold and would be a great special teams player and another slot option for the Pats. Looking forward to your thoughts.Tim Guinard

Tim, Amendola signed with the Dallas Cowboys shortly after the draft ended. I do agree that he's a solid addition as an undrafted free agent but I would say there is a reason Crabtree overshadowed him. Crabtree may be the highest rated receiver to ever come out in the draft next year (He'll be eligible in 2009 and will probably declare). The guy is a monster.
-Tom Casale

First off I think we did an ok job with the first three draft picks maybe the fourth. But I'm a little confused about the last three. I think we could have chose better prospects. We don't need a KR and Bo Rudd might turn into something but probably not. But my main question is do you think Jerod Mayo and Terrence Wheatley will fight for starting jobs.Zack Ross

I don't think Wheatley will be in the mix for a starting job right away but he will contribute on special teams and as a slot corner as a rookie. Mayo, on the other hand, will have a big role from Day 1. I don't think Mayo will be the starter on opening day but it won't surprise me if he's named the starter by the end of the season. Mayo knows the game of football and makes plays all over the field. It's hard to keep guys like that on the bench.
-Tom Casale

Why would the Patriots take a quarterback in the third round? They still had a glaring need at cornerback even though they selected Terrence Wheatley in the second round. Justin King was available at that time and Justin king was listed as going in the first round in some mock drafts. Matt Cassel is an OK backup and they can just renew his contract. What is the reason for this pick?
Joshua Benadiva

First of all, I think Justin King stinks so I wouldn't have drafted him in the seventh round, much less the third. Second, I love the O'Connell pick. I say all the time that teams don't put enough stock in tutoring young quarterbacks. I'm a believer that once a quarterback reaches 30 like Tom Brady, it's time to think about the future because you never know what is going to happen.

I use the 49ers as a great example of this. They groomed Steve Young to be Joe Montana's eventual successor and refused to trade him away to another team. Then, Montana hurt his back and San Fran made the decision to go with Young. God forbid, but what if in a couple of years Brady suffers a career-ending injury? Now the Patriots could have a guy ready to step in and lead the offense. Hey, if the Pats had a lot of holes to fill and took a quarterback in Round 3, I might complain. But this is a team that went 18-1 and has a loaded roster. One of the few weaknesses was depth at the quarterback position and they upgraded it. I have no problem with that.
-Tom Casale

I am a little confused as to why the Patriots took a QB in the 3rd round. We already have Brady, Cassel and Gutierrez. Another pick I am concerned about is Wheatley I know he obviously has to be good because he is a 2nd round pick, but I am worried about his height. I know he probably won't start the first season, but if he eventually does it concerns me having 2 CB's that are 5'9 (Hobbs and Wheatley). Which brings me to my question what are the chances they sign Ty Law? I know he is not the man he once was, but his experience could help the CB position. Lastly 6th round when I saw Mike Hart was still on the board I was rooting for the Patriots to draft him. I know there are many concerns around him, but it's a 6th round pick and he seemed like a hard runner that could eventually compliment Maroney.
Michael Hobbs

Well Michael, I already talked about O'Connell above, so I'll answer your other two questions. I'm all for signing Ty Law to a reasonable contract. However, the words "Ty Law" and "reasonable contract" rarely go together. If the Patriots can get Law at the right price, that would be a great addition. He may not be the Ty Law of old but he's still better than most.

I thought the Colts were the perfect fit for Mike Hart. I don't think he's ever going to be a back that can line up and pound the ball 20 times a game from a power formation. However, he can run those draws and stretch plays that the Colts employ. I wouldn't have minded if the Patriots took him but they really didn't need another running back. The Colts, on the other hand, needed a solid to back up to Joseph Addai, and I think Hart will fill that role nicely.
-Tom Casale

ESPN selected the Pats as one of the first day losers due to drafting Mayo too high and having to pay him a top 10 draft pick salary that is higher than many players currently with the Pats. What is your take?
Moses Ip

I had Mayo rated as the top inside linebacker in this draft. The Patriots needed a young inside linebacker. Case closed. Let me ask you something. Where would Mayo have been drafted if the Patriots didn't take him? Probably in the 15-18 range, right? So does that make him a reach? To me a reach is Chris Johnson. He went a round too early in my opinion. But when I hear Mayo is a reach or the Jaguars reached for Derrick Harvey (Who probably would have gone one pick later to the Bengals) I chuckle. Those aren't reaches. That's a team picking a guy they like because they don't have the 17 pick in the draft. What did they want the Patriots to do? Pass on Mayo because they thought he should be drafted at 15 and take a player they didn't need or want instead? That's ridiculous.
-Tom Casale

Okay, I think I may have missed something during the draft. The Patriots had 2 third round picks before the draft started. They traded their 1st round #7 pick with the Saints 1st round #10 pick. Now I heard the Patriots got a 3rd round pick in the trade, yet they still only had 2 third round picks. What did I miss? Was the 3rd rounder for next year? Was there another trade that I missed?
Raymond Boulay

The Patriots received a third round selection from the Saints but then traded one of their three third round picks to the Chargers for a second rounder in 2009.
-Tom Casale

What's the lure of Wilhite? Do you have any info on him that's not in the profiles you see online (none of which are all that flattering)? Hey what does anyone know- just went to the archive of a popular "draftnik" site and it had Samuel as the 20th ranked cornerback in 2003.
A Stebbins

That's the one pick I really don't like. I watch Auburn play a lot and Wilhite was abused by opposing teams. Whenever you watch Auburn play, No. 24 is getting killed. I actually remember thinking to myself when watching an Auburn game last year, "Man, this guy is awful." Hey, I don't pretend to know more than Bill Belichick or Scott Pioli, so obviously they saw something in Wilhite that I didn't by just watching games in TV. However, if you ask me to give you my honest opinion on this guy from what I know about him, I would say Wilhite is going to have a tough time making the 53-man roster.
-Tom Casale

Excuse me while I don't get excited about this draft....again. I think Scott and Bill are losing it. Since the 2003 draft all the picks after the first round have been crap. And they keep overdrafting guys. Why do they trade up for players that have no chance of getting drafted? Why do they take players who have little chance of making the team? What the heck is going on here?Roger Lowe

Roger, I wanted to post this e-mail because you obviously have a different opinion than the majority of Patriots fans. The one thing I will say is the Patriots set their own draft board and don't subscribe to any outside scouting services. So while some of the picks may look like reaches based on national perception, they weren't reaches according to their draft board. Having said that, I have no idea why they traded up to get Matthew Slater. I can't imagine that another team was looking to draft Slater in Round 5, but you never know.
-Tom Casale

Let me start off by saying I love what you guys do, and I thank you for your opinions and insight. I can't remember when it was, but an e-mailer asked if BB was no longer the coach of the Pats who would you guys like to see as the coach. The reply was Jeff Fisher. Now, who ever replied to that, WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? This guy could be the worst drafter in NFL history. Did you see what he has (or has not drafted) the past 3 years? Man I hope they never put you in charge of anything.
Jesse M

Jesse, I agree with you that the Titans draft stunk this year. Having said that, let me present you with a couple of facts:

FACT: Fisher is considered one of the top coaches in football by almost everyone who follows the NFL. He showed what kind of coach he was last year by leading a young Titans squad into the playoffs over teams that were much more talented on paper.

FACT: The Titans have a GM named Mike Reinfeldt who is actually in charge of the draft. While I'm sure Fisher has a lot of say in who the team drafts, he doesn't make the picks all by himself.

FACT: The Titans drafts over the last three years compare favorably to the Patriots. So if you are saying the Titans are the worst drafting team over the last three years, what does that make New England?

Do me a favor and do a little research next time before writing in and asking us what we're talking about. Thanks.
-Tom Casale

Ok a lot of people were dissing Matt Slater and why the Patriots traded up to get him. But after I read about him I think I know why the Patriots got him. He reminds me of Troy Brown. He can play WR, return kicks, and he played CB a little at UCLA. What do you think of him?
Zack Ross

That comparison is a slap in the face to Troy Brown. Brown is the franchise's all-time leading receiver. Slater will have to fight just to make the team and if he does, it will be as a kick returner and gunner. I doubt he'll ever even line up at receiver. I would say Slater is much more comparable to Willie Andrews than Brown.
-Tom Casale

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