Everyone knows it: Bill Belichick loves to trade down. Life,
death and Belichick trading down. Other things people know include that he is
as good at drafting wide receivers as Tom Brady is at dancing,
he is good for one “wild card” pick per draft and his drafts have been
noticeably worse since Scott Pioli, the former vice president of player
personnel, departed.
I will be addressing each of those Theories of Belichickian
Drafting in detail.
Up first: Belichick loves to trade down.
The first round of the 2013 NFL Draft took place on April 25th
with the Patriots sitting at the 29th overall pick, but with only
four picks throughout the following six rounds. That would be the fewest
selections for the Patriots in their existence (the draft was shortened to
seven rounds in 1994 and was as long as 17 rounds in ’76). Since joining the
Patriots in 2000, Belichick has averaged almost nine selections per draft.
Everyone knew he was trading down. Nevertheless, the inevitable decision to
vacate the 29th pick caused reactions like this one by ESPN’s Bill
Simmons:
I wish Tom Brady was on Twitter so he could tweet, "I'm gonna be 36 this season, why the F do we keep trading backwards????"
— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) April 26, 2013
A logical argument, considering only two receivers, Tavon
Austin and DeAndre Hopkins, had been taken at that point in the draft. The
Vikings jumped in and took a wide receiver of their own, Cordarrelle Patterson.
But the argument falls apart upon closer inspection.
Belichick is shrewd and has always shown an ability to look ahead while remaining
very competitive, one-play-from-another-ring competitive. True, Tom Brady does
not have that many years left. But is he retiring after next season? No. This
was not a trade for a future pick – it was a trade for four, four picks in the very same draft. These draftees will be spending a few years with Brady at the helm.
