There have been plenty of questions regarding the value, fit and potential of the Patriots’ picks from last weekend’s 2022 NFL Draft.
One thing that wasn’t previously questioned was who made those picks. Despite the “collaborative” description of the New England draft process over the last year-plus, newly-promoted Patriots Director of Player Personnel Matt Groh declared in his pre-draft press conference that Bill Belichick still runs the personnel department.
“Obviously, coach is the General Manager, coach is in charge,” Groh said in mid-April.
Now, though, after witnessing New England’s 10 picks in this year’s draft some around the NFL aren’t so sure.
According to NFL Network, an assistant coach with ties to New England believes the “variances” in some of the 2022 picks at wide receiver and cornerback point to an interesting possibility: “My belief is that a majority of this draft was run by Matt Groh.”
The NFL Network source notes that second-round receiver Tyquan Thornton, third-round cornerback Marcus Jones and fourth-round cornerback Jack Jones “aren’t prototypical Bill picks.” The assistant coach is likely referring to Thornton’s slow 3-cone time and the Jones’ lack of size and length.
While those around the league may feel like the 70-year-old Belichick is ceding some of his long-standing control over the Patriots personnel department, Groh certainly didn’t indicate that during his press conferences following the second and third days of this year’s draft.
“This year is very similar to what last year was,” Groh said of his role after the second and third rounds, looking back to when Dave Ziegler was in the Patriots Director of Player Personnel role before moving on to the Raiders. “Working with Dave and Eliot Wolf last year, and this year working with Eliot Wolf and Cam Williams here this year. So, it hasn't been a huge departure from what it was last year.”
Later in the same press conference Groh was asked about the Patriots “collaborative” draft process and he pounced on that description.
“That's the word. It's collaborative,” Groh said. “We've been putting in a lot of hours as a large group, dwindling that down to a smaller group. But it's a group, and we're all working together trying to see the differences, respect each other's differences, if those differences are really going to hinder the player from having a role on our team, and it's been great to have players where we're on a consensus opinion.”
But in the end someone has to have the final say. From the day he took over in New England back in 2000 that was obviously Belichick.
Now?
Is Belichick still running the Patriots drafts and responsible for all of New England’s picks? Some around the NFL apparently aren’t so sure anymore.
