NFL: Pats will draft OT or trade back
INDIANAPOLIS >> The NFL Combine as it’s known on TV, a four-day event where draft prospects run, jump, throw and catch before team evaluators, is half over.
The combine as it’s known in league circles is all but finished.
NFL coaches and frontoffice members here have concluded most of their business, where private meetings were held around virtually every corner of downtown starting Sunday night. Like every other team, the Patriots worked to gather intel for the draft and free agency by conferring with other clubs, player agents and prospects.
Simultaneously, the Herald spoke with several league sources about where the Patriots stand at a critical juncture of the offseason and learned the following:
The Patriots don’t know yet what they’ll do with the 14th overall pick, but league sources expect them to make an obvious choice come late April: draft an offensive tackle or trade back. The Pats currently roster one starting-caliber player at tackle and none are under contract past next season. Bill Belichick has spent his first pick on an offensive lineman five times, including twice in the last five years (Cole Strange in 2022 and Isaiah Wynn in 2018). Belichick is also famous for trading down, and in a draft with few blue-chip prospects at the top, he may see value in sliding back 10-12 spots to select a player of similar caliber later in the first round, such as Ohio State’s Paris Johnson Jr., Tennessee’s Darnell Wright or North Dakota’s Cody Mauch.
Belichick did not attend the combine this year, but he did watch prospects interview via video conference, according to source. The Patriots’ coaching contingent in Indianapolis consisted of Joe Judge, cornerbacks coach Mike Pellegrino, special teams coordinator Cam Achord and special teams assistant Joe Houston. Wide receivers coach Troy Brown was also expected to attend.
There is no internal clarity yet on what Judge’s role will be next season, per sources. Bill O’Brien replaced Judge as the team’s quarterbacks coach after one year, and Judge has assisted in a variety of areas during the draft process.
After Patriots director of player personnel Matt Groh led the team’s primary front-office group into town on Monday, director of scouting Eliot Wolf shouldered some of the traditional GM duties during the week. Wolf, whose background in pro scouting and contract negotiations balances Groh’s college scouting experience, met with representatives for college and pro players at the combine, per sources. Patriots director of college scouting Camren Williams and director of pro scouting Steve Cargile were also in Indianapolis, among other scouts.
In a deep draft for cornerbacks and a light one for linebackers, the Patriots are rumored to have serious interest in several lateround prospects at both positions, including some that did not attend the combine. The Pats are also spending extensive time with special teams prospects.
The Patriots came close to hiring former Bills assistant Ryan Wendell to be their lead offensive line coach, as MassLive reported. Wendell, a former Patriots player, may have worked in concert with new Pats O-line coach Adrian Klemm had he accepted the job. Instead, the Rams hired Wendell to coach their offensive line.
Matt Patricia’s future with the Patriots remains uncertain, per a source. After a trying year as their first-year offensive line coach and de facto offensive coordinator, there is empathy for Patricia in certain league circles. The belief is Belichick put him, a career defensive coach with great loyalty to Belichick, in a near impossible position.
Broncos coach Sean Payton said Monday he intended to meet with Patricia about a possible role on his defensive staff.
BC’s Flowers set to impress
Could it really be this simple for the Patriots?
Draft the receiver up the road, a third-team AllAmerican with the quickness to devastate defenses from the slot and the speed to beat them deep? Maybe so.
Boston College wide receiver Zay Flowers talked with reporters Friday at the NFL Combine and brimmed with confidence about his game. Flowers is projected to be drafted in the late first round or early second next month. He answered questions about his playing weight — he’s up 11 pounds to 183 — and journey to BC, where he caught 1,077 yards and 12 touchdowns.
“I wanted to go somewhere different where nobody really had momentum and come out. That was a big reason I came to Boston College is to create my own story,” he said.
Flowers’ story now, as a 5-foot-9 receiver, is how quickly he can make an impact in the pros. His separation and ball skills are considered some of the best in a weaker receiver class. Flowers insisted he can also play all across the formation, something that would appeal to the Patriots, who worked with him at the East-West Shrine Bowl.
“I’m not just a slot (receiver),” he said. “Seventyfive percent of my snaps were played outside, and I think I can move around and play any position that they put me at.”
As for the added weight, Flowers said it hasn’t impacted his speed. He’ll run every drill on Saturday at the combine. In recent weeks, Flowers has worked out in his home state of Florida. So far, he said he’s met with the Steelers, Bucs, Cowboys and Saints, among other teams.
Mac tutoring likely top pick
Alabama quarterback Bryce Young is the odds-on favorite to be the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft. As he prepares for the pros, he’s getting help from a former teammate: Patriots quarterback Mac Jones.
Young backed up Jones in 2020, the latter’s only season as a starter at Alabama. After he led the Crimson Tide to an undefeated championship season, Young won a Heisman Trophy and reached the national title game in 2021, then fell just short of making the College Football Playoff last year. On Friday, Young detailed the help he’s received from Jones and others during the draft process.
“I talked to a good amount of guys to prepare myself as much as I can for the next level and for this process,” Young told reporters Friday at the NFL Combine. “I was talking to Mac earlier this week. He gave me a lot of great advice about how to carry yourself, things that he’s learned from the years there.”
Extra points
The Patriots waived offensive guard Hayden Howerton on Friday. Howerton signed to the practice squad last November and was a long shot to make the team … According to NBC Sports Boston, Patricia helped design the layout of the team’s new headquarters that are part of the ongoing $225 million renovations to Gillette Stadium. The Patriots’ football operations departments will occupy the first two floors of the four-floor building newly attached to the east-facing side of the stadium and feature a new weight room and training room for players. … Wide receiver prospects who reportedly met with the Patriots at the NFL Combine include Ohio State’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Cincinnati’s Tyler Scott and BYU’s Puka Nacua … Quarterbacks and wide receivers will work out Saturday in Indianapolis.