Patriots Draft Worst

Seattle draft best! Walter Football (www.walterfootball.com), my top rated NFL draft site, has the bad news for Pats fans and equally bad news for the rest of the league as Walter Football ranks super bowl champ Seattle number one. Here you get Walter Football’s in depth ranking for every NFL team including yours. Enjoy, these guys are truly the best!

New England Patriots: D Grade
Goals Entering the 2014 NFL Draft: The Patriots were able to upgrade their roster in free agency, but they have a few things they must take care of in the draft. They need to add at least one defensive tackle, find a new center, obtain a speedy linebacker and acquire a replacement for Aaron Hernandez. Bill Belichick may also want to add another running back because he doesn’t trust anyone on his roster to carry the load.

2014 NFL Draft Accomplishments: The Patriots have to win now. I think we can all agree on that. Tom Brady is 37 in August, so he has limited time remaining in his career. The Broncos have recognized this with their own aging signal-caller, so they’ve done everything in their power to give themselves the best shot at a Super Bowl. The Patriots appeared to be mirroring their actions in free agency, but they went a completely different route during the draft.

Taking Jimmy Garoppolo in the second round was the worst decision in the 2014 NFL Draft. I’m not saying Garoppolo will bust, but how is he going to help Brady win another Super Bowl? Using a major resource on him could cost the Patriots the Super Bowl. What if they need a key depth player or a potential starter that they could have acquired at that juncture? It was an awful decision.

Furthermore, how are New England’s other picks supposed to help the team win now? Dominique Easley could be dominant in the future, but he won’t be 100 percent in 2014 because he’s coming off his second torn ACL. Bryan Stork, meanwhile, may not be able to win the starting job. He was a reach in the third round. James White was taken too early as well.

The Patriots had one goal in the 2014 NFL Draft, and that was to acquire a couple of pieces to help them claim another Lombardi Trophy. They failed to do so, and that’s why they are getting the worst grade of any team in this class.

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Seattle Seahawks: A Grade
Goals Entering the 2014 NFL Draft: The Seahawks obviously don’t need to deviate from their strategy. They’ve drafted highly athletic players under this regime, and that has worked out perfectly thus far. Seattle will take the same type of athletes, focusing on the offensive line, as well as the cornerback, receiver and LEO positions.

2014 NFL Draft Accomplishments: I asked this earlier: Can one pick spoil an entire draft class? For the Dolphins, absolutely, because we were talking about their first-round acquisition. Seattle’s mega reach came at the end of the second, so it’s not nearly as bad. I don’t quite get why Seattle thought anyone else would select Justin Britt prior to the fifth frame, but the team has had luck with perceived reaches before.

I loved all of Seattle’s other choices. Paul Richardson and Kevin Norwood should give Russell Wilson some potent weapons to work with. Cassius Marsh is a quality pass-rusher who provided solid value at the beginning of the fourth round. Kevin Pierre-Louis was a sound selection later on, as he is the type of athletic linebacker the Seahawks love.

In addition to these quality picks, the Seahawks did a masterful job of wheeling and dealing, moving down on multiple occasions. Considering that they entered the draft with only two choices on the first two days, they came away with a very impressive haul. That’s why they’ve earned my highest grade.