They dealt down twice with the first of those picks, moving from 22 to 24 to 27, and picking up third- and fourth-round selections for their troubles. Bill Belichick said McCourty was going to be the pick, regardless of whether it was exercised where they started or ended up.
And that’s fine. I get it. A guy they thought much of, playing a big-dollar position, and someone they could get a lower slot. Good.
The trouble is that McCourty isn’t going to come screaming off the edge and tilt offense’s protection in his direction, opening things for pass rushers to make plays. He’s certainly not going to help bridge the gap at receiver, with Randy Moss a good possibility to be out the door after 2010. He’s also not going to give Tom Brady the security blanket a good tight end could over the middle.
Point is, the Patriots entered last night with a plethora of needs. They left without the biggest ones addressed.
Belichick himself said, “We have good depth at that position. I think they’ll all contribute.’’
So let’s look at the Patriots’ investments over the last 24 months at a position that’s been such a trouble spot.
They drafted Terrence Wheatley 62d overall and Jonathan Wilhite 129th overall in 2008. They signed Shawn Springs to a three-year, $11 million deal last winter. Around the same time, Leigh Bodden signed a one-year, $2.25 million deal, and has since been re-signed to a four-year, $22 million deal. Then, they took Darius Butler with the 41st pick in 2009.
That’s five players, two of whom were drafted in the first two rounds, and two who got multiyear commitments. And that’s without including McCourty.
Now, it’s obvious Wheatley is on the outs, and Wilhite could be too, but Bodden and Butler are considered major parts of the team’s future, and those players should have given the team the flexibility to address other needs early in this draft.
One general manager told me two weeks ago that there were 31 draftable corners this year, which he called “unheard of.’’ So it’s not like they couldn’t have added at the position later on.
