The Patriots' history proves that the latter rounds of the NFL Draft can be crucial to a team's future. In fact, the bulk of the draft picks on the Patriots' roster today were selected in the sixth round, a list that of course includes franchise quarterback Tom Brady.
FOXBORO – The first round is over, the marquee players – the biggest “name players” – off the board, so your immediate reaction is to turn away from the NFL Draft.
As ESPN college football analyst Lee Corso would say: “Not so fast.”
There are still plenty of good reasons to tune in as the second and third days of the draft unfold (rounds two and three begin at 7 p.m. Friday; the final four rounds start Saturday at noon).
Surely, you’ve heard the story of a man named Brady – a quarterback the Patriots somehow managed to scoop up with the 199th pick in the 2000 NFL Draft – but as a sixth-round choice, Tom Brady has plenty of company on the team’s current roster.
In fact, with eight, the Patriots entered this year’s draft with more players who were selected in the sixth round on their roster than they have from any other round.
As for the opening round, well, the Patriots entered this year’s draft with seven first-round choices on their roster and two – wide receiver Demaryius Thomas and offensive tackle Isaiah Wynn – didn’t play a down for them during their 2018 Super Bowl championship campaign.
A first-round pick of the Denver Broncos in 2010, Thomas, a recent free-agent pickup following his release from the Houston Texans, spent last year with those two teams, finishing the year on the injured reserve list with a torn left Achilles suffered late in the regular season. The Patriots’ top pick in 2018, Wynn spent his rookie year on IR, also tearing his left Achilles tendon, his injury sustained in the team’s second preseason game.
By comparison, the Patriots currently have seven fourth-round picks on their roster, the eight from the sixth round, five from the draft’s seventh and final round.
So while the name recognition may drop, it could be argued that the importance of the draft only rises as the three-day marathon goes on.
And it doesn’t end there.
While the majority of the Patriots’ roster heading into this draft consists of draft picks (40), it includes 29 players who broke into the league as undrafted free agents.
The list does not include wide receiver Josh Gordon, a second-round pick of the Cleveland Browns in the 2012 supplemental draft, who remains suspended indefinitely by the NFL for his latest violation of the league's substance abuse policy.
The breakdown, as provided in a press release from the team:
First round (7) – wide receiver Phillip Dorsett (selected by Indianapolis), cornerback Stephon Gilmore (Buffalo), linebacker Dont’a Hightower, safety Devin McCourty, running back Sony Michel, Thomas (Denver), Wynn
Second round (5) – safety Patrick Chung, cornerback Duke Dawson Jr.,safety Obi Melifonwu (Oakland), linebacker Kyle Van Noy (Detroit), tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins (Tampa Bay);
Third round (4) – safety Terrence Brooks (Baltimore), safety Duron Harmon, defensive end Derek Rivers, guard Joe Thuney
Fourth round (7) – wide receiver Bruce Ellington (San Francisco), place-kicker Stephen Gostkowski, guard Shaq Mason, offensive lineman Brian Schwenke (Tennessee), defensive end John Simon (Baltimore), running back James White and defensive end Deatrich Wise Jr.
Fifth round (4) – linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley, offensive tackle Marcus Cannon, long snapper Joe Cardona, wide receiver Matthew Slater
Sixth round (8) – wide receiver Braxton Berrios, Brady, running back Rex Burkhead (Cincinnati), safety Nate Ebner, offensive lineman Ted Karras, cornerback Jason McCourty (Tennessee), linebacker Elandon Roberts, linebacker Christian Sam
Seventh round (5) – cornerback Keion Crossen, wide receiver Julian Edelman, quarterback Danny Etling, defensive tackle Lawrence Guy (Green Bay), tight end Ryan Izzo
Undrafted free agents (29) – punter Ryan Allen, tight end Stephen Anderson (Houston), center David Andrews, defensive end Michael Bennett (Seattle), running back Brandon Bolden, defensive tackle Adam Butler, offensive lineman Cole Croston, defensive end Keionta Davis, fullback James Develin (Cincinnati), center Jake Eldrenkamp (Los Angeles Rams), offensive lineman James Ferentz (Houston), Maurice Harris (Washington), defensive end Trent Harris, defensive tackle Frank Herron, tight end Jacob Hollister, safety A.J. Howard (Arizona), quarterback Bryan Hoyer, cornerback J.C. Jackson, cornerback Jonathan Jones, defensive end Ufomba Kamalu (Houston), linebacker Brandon King, tight end Matt LaCosse (New York Giants), offensive tackle Cedrick Lang (New York Giants), offensive tackle Ryker Matthews (New Orleans), linebacker Calvin Munson (New York Giants), defensive tackle David Parry (Indianapolis), wide receiver Damoun Patterson (Pittsburgh), defensive tackle Mike Pennel (Green Bay), offensive tackle Dan Skipper.
The pace of the draft picks up on Friday and Saturday.
After being allowed 10 minutes per selection in Thursday night’s first round, teams are cut back to seven minutes per pick in the second round, five per choice in the third through the sixth rounds and just four minutes in round seven.