Tag: Jace Sternberger

The 300s NFL Draft Day 2 Patriots Wishlist

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Rounds 2 and 3 of the NFL draft will take place on Friday night, and the Patriots are currently slated to pick five times across the two rounds. I highly expect the team to complete some type of trade (or two) involving those picks, per usual, but Belichick & Co. are obviously still going to be selecting a few guys at some point tonight.

Myself and Joey B already gave you our very disparate yet equally insightful takes on the team’s selection last night in Round 1, N’Keal Harry. Personally, I am a HUGE fan of the pick, and I’m glad the Pats were able to immediately help alleviate what was easily the team’s biggest need. However, there are still a few positions (TE, OT, DL, LB, QB, S) which could use some reinforcements as well.

Before things kick off again tonight at 7 p.m., here’s my quick wishlist of some potential players who I’m hoping the Pats might be able to snag on Day 2:

Dre’Mont Jones (DT, Ohio State): This is a guy who I’ve been all over for a while now. A true athlete, Jones is perfect for the 3-technique. Much like guys such as Quinnen Williams and Ed Oliver, who were both top-10 picks last night, Jones uses incredible first-step quickness and motor to push the pocket and disrupt opposing backfields. Certainly no run-stuffer, Jones would give the Pats an interior pass-rusher (8.5 sacks last season) to pair alongside Lawrence Guy and under-the-radar free-agent signing Mike Pennel. He also has the ability to chase down running backs out of the backfield as well. I think he truly could be one of the biggest steals of the draft, and he is being slept on BIG TIME by the entire league right now.

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Nasir Adderly (S, Delaware): Of the team’s top outstanding needs, I’d say that safety falls toward the bottom…for now. Let’s not forget, though, that Devin McCourty – who toyed with the idea of retirement this offseason – is 32 years old AND on the final year of his contract. Adderly is still very raw and may not have played against top competition in college, but the talent and ball skills are there, with 10 picks and 23 passes defensed over the past three seasons. He could learn how to become a true single-high, center-field stud from one of the game’s very best, and then ultimately replace him when McCourty does actually move on for good.

Jawaan Taylor (OT, Florida): I am literally shocked that this dude is still on the board. (I had him going top 10 in my mock, as did many others!) While he may not be the best pass-blocker, he is truly a mauler who can set the tone in the running game. And with the team expected to continuing relying heavily upon Sony Michel and the ground attack moving forward, Taylor is a perfect fit. And honestly, as good as Marcus Cannon was a couple years ago, I feel like he’s regressed significantly and is no longer worth his $7 million-plus salary. Taylor could allow the Pats to move on from Cannon and lock down the right side of the line for years to come. (The team will likely need to move up within the first 10 picks of Round 2 to get him, though. He’s not going to last out there for much longer.)

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Jaylon Ferguson (DE, Louisiana Tech): Joey B has already been vocal about his love for the FBS’s all-time sack leader (45), who may be falling down draft boards due to a minor altercation he got into as a freshman – which resulted in a deferred sentence, $189 fine, and no further issues since. No I wasn’t there, but it seems like what happened pales in comparison to some of the off-field concerns associated with other current and potential NFL stars lately. On the field, there should be no concern. Besides holding the aforementioned record, this is a guy who dominated in college, as 27% (!!!) of his tackles went for a loss. So almost a THIRD of his tackles prevented dudes from even getting past the line of scrimmage. Belichick could have a ton of fun shaping and molding a guy with his potential, and after losing Flowers the team could use some immediate pass-rushing help.

Will Grier (QB, West Virginia): I keep going back and forth on how high I want the Pats to draft a QB – or if I even want them to draft one at all. But with the amount of capital the team has this year, I think it totally makes sense. I already said in my mock that Grier might be the most underrated signal-caller in this class, who could truly be better than any of the guys already selected ahead of him, and apparently the Pats love him. Besides a shaky Senior Bowl performance, Grier was one of the nation’s most efficient passers, completing over 67% of his passes last season to go along with 37 TDs. He doesn’t have the biggest arm in the world, but he’s got the confidence and leadership of a lion, and word is he is absolutely adored by teammates. He’s exactly the type of presence who could step in for Brady once he’s all said and done, and he also possesses the same type of football I.Q. It would be really fun to root for this kid.

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Jace Sternberger (TE, Texas A&M): Also another one of Joey B’s guys, Sternberger is smart, can run, and catches well. Many even think he’s athletic enough to play in the slot as a receiver. He does struggle in pass protection and didn’t play in a pro-style offense, but he would give the team some more explosiveness. Already lacking in that department anyway, the Pats didn’t really gain much in that regard with the Harry pick, as good as he is. Sternberger can give the Pats a true move tight end that can help Brady stretch the field and make some big plays.

Other guys I really like: Dalton Risner (OT, Kansas State); Zach Allen (DE, Boston College); Anthony Nelson (DE/LB, Iowa); Deebo Samuel (WR, South Carolina); Lonnie Johnson (CB, Kentucky); Taylor Rapp (S, Washington); Sean Bunting (CB, Central Michigan).

(I’d also love a good sideline-to-sideline linebacker with speed, too, but there really aren’t many great ones left, or at least they really don’t stand to be a Day 2 pick.)

Tune in this evening to see if any of my wishes come true, as Day 2 of the 2019 NFL Draft continues Friday night at 7 p.m. Also, be sure to check in with The 300s all weekend long for all the best Patriots draft coverage.

Final Predictions On Who the Patriots Will Draft (By Need)

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So here we are folks. The eve of the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft. A little more than 24 hours until we begin the selections of 200+ young, hungry players to new teams, additions that will either breathe new lives into those franchises or rip them apart like an affair to a marriage.

But here at El 300s, we care mostly about around 10 of those selections, the ones belonging to the Patriots of House New England**, and I am here today to talk about specifically the first one of those picks. The first round is, obviously, where the perceived best players go. The Pats unfortunately have the last pick (32nd) of that round, owing to the fact that they are very good at professional football. Quite the catch-22. With Tua T. coming out next year, maybe they even tank this year before winning banner number eight, but I digress.

I come to you today as a relapsed draft nerd to make a handful of predictions related to the Pats’ 32nd overall pick in the draft and what they will do with it if they address one of their four major needs: Defensive Tackle, Wide Receiver, Tight End, and some sort of Defensive End/Elephant Backer (from here on out we’ll just label this position EDGE as a lot of sites do now although it seems to be an acronym that stands for nothing and sends my OCD into a tailspin). I am going to eschew things like the Pats trading up down left or right in this one and simply concentrate on the above, grave areas of need. Let’s do it.

Scene: Roger Goodell glides on stage smiling and waving, get’s hit in the face with a brick thrown from the gallery. He is immediately pronounced dead and Chris Slade rushes on stage to read the Pats pick, just in the nick of time…..

Defensive Tackle
With the 32nd pick of the 2019 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots select…
Dexter Lawrence (6’4, 342lbs), DT, Clemson
In Lawrence, the Belichick might finally find the gigantic lane-clogger he’s long since desired post-Vince Wilfork. Like Wilfork, Lawrence is not only powerful at the point of attack, but sneaky-nimble and athletic. Most years I am not sure Lawrence would last, but with the league getting more and more pass happy and at least three DTs (Wilkins, Williams, Oliver) slated to go above him, the Pats could get their man.

Wide Receiver
With the 32nd pick of the 2019 NFL Draft, The New England Patriots select…
AJ Brown (6’0. 226lbs), WR, Ole Miss
Like a lot of years, it is going to be a crap shoot in terms of what receiver is taken when. D.K Metcalf will be the first off the board because he lifts a lot and runs fast so who cares about anything else (don’t hate him, just the ignorance in loving him to death is unparalleled). After that who knows, honest to God. With all of that said, here is to hoping AJ Brown is still around. He has a thick frame and can get down the feel better than a lot of people think he can. It’s been a badly kept secret for years that Belichick loves Anquan Boldin, and although not tough as Q, seemingly, YET, with his build Brown could be a successor to the Man From Miami.

EDGE
With the 32nd pick of the 2019 NFL Draft, The New England Patriots select…
Brian Burns (6’5, 249lbs), DE/OLB, Florida State; Zach Allen (6’4 280 lbs), DE, BC
This is the one and only position I am going to put down two names for. It is also, not coincidentally one of the more fluid positions on the Pats’ D. As I’ve said before, we are blessed with a team that runs its D by what personnel it has, not vice versa. So this pick depends on the Pats looking at what they current have and laying an egg on what they want to do. Burns, size and skillset-wise, is like a wealthy, aristocratic man’s John Simon. From day 1 the team could send him off the edge on passing downs, either from a three-point stance or from a 3-4 LB type positioning. Eventually, with his 4.53 speed, there’s a chance he can learn to cover backs in the flats and what not. Maybe. It’s important to lastly note Burns is the kind of guy who could shoot up draft boards and go Top-15 by Thursday. Zach Allen’s game, on the other hand, is a lot like Trey Flowers. He could immediately cause problems off the end and probably could be popped in the middle a la Flowers on passing downs. Another nifty thing about the former Eagle, and we know Belichick loves nifty things, is he has a knack for swatting passes as well.

Tight End
With the 32nd pick of the 2019 NFL Draft, The New England Patriots select…
Jace Sternberger (6’4, 250lbs), Tight End, Texas Agricultural & Mining
This probably appears to be a reach, I know, but the Pats are not as reach-averse as legend has it (Dominique Easley, Isaiah Wynn). But would this even be a reach? Allow yourself a quick history lesson….

Twice in American history, most notably right after WWI, there occurred something called the “Red Scare”. Basically society saw Russia, and more to the point, communism, as some sort of boogeyman and so we all started calling each other communists and locking everyone up. Legit if you shared something and got caught you’d go to jail. My whole kindergarten class minus that asshole Kevin would be in the clink.

My point is this: I could see one of the two Iowa TEs getting picked high and teams suddenly FREAKING OUT that they’d lose out on the remaining Iowa TE or Irv Smith Jr., resulting in all three going a little higher than expected, say 9, 12, 18. That gives 13 picks where teams try not to freak out about their TE need as well, knowing there are guys like Caleb Wilson and Kahale Warring out there, allowing the Pats to land Sternberger. He has good size and length and runs really fluid routes. Most importantly, to our blood pressure and to Coach Belichick, he has excellent hands. He won’t be the blocker Gronk was, right now, but hell maybe with a few more pounds of muscle and a couple of 1-on-1s with Scarnecchia and who knows.

So that wraps it up folks. I have a bagel with my name on it. In my opinion this is one of the most important drafts for the Pats in awhile as they need depth in a number of key areas to continue contending. Buckle up.

P.S – They’re just gonna trade back 6 times and we’re going to have 12 5th round picks in 2023.

**This is how I’ll be naming things for four more weeks.

-Joey B