1. Part of being a NFL head coach is taking chances, and Bill Belichick has done that plenty of times over the years. Arguably his biggest gamble was going with Tom Brady over Drew Bledsoe in 2001 and a decision coming up in the next few weeks could rival that — trading up into the top 10 for a quarterback. Many teams are seeking quarterbacks and in order to guarantee one of the top five, the Patriots might need to trade up as high as No. 4 overall. In order to do that, they would need to give up multiple first-round picks and at that point they would be all-in on whatever quarterback they select -- Justin Fields, Mac Jones or Trey Lance. That’s where the risk comes in: there’s no sure thing with any of these three players and Belichick would be risking losing multiple first-round picks in order to trade up to get them. Those players aren’t the best at the position this year either, as that’s Trevor Lawrence and Zach Wilson. The quarterback position is the most important one in sports, but it’s almost better not to have a long-term answer than the wrong long-term answer. Because of this, Belichick would need to be absolutely certain the player selected would be a solid starting option for the next at least five or so years. If the player did not live up to expectations, that would be all on Belichick and would only add to his poor drafting track record in recent years. If a trade up is made and the quarterback turns into the quarterback of the future, it would likely be marked as one of his best decisions during his time with New England. If a trade up is made and the quarterback turns into a bust, it would be viewed as arguably one of his worst because of all the repercussions. Belichick went with his gut in 2001 and it paid off, we’ll soon see what will happen 20 years later.
2. Following Julian Edelman’s retirement, the debate of whether or not he’s a Hall of Famer was resurfaced with passionate arguments from both sides. It’s worth pointing out that just because someone says they are a no on the Hall of Fame, it isn’t a criticism or a knock on his career. He had an outstanding career as one of the toughest players to play during his time and made some incredibly clutch plays that led to championships. But, there are others who simply put up better numbers. How many years was Edelman one of the top five receivers in the game? It’s hard to say any. Edelman was a terrific player, but falls a tad short when it comes to being a Hall of Fame player.
3. We keep saying the Patriots are in need of a No. 1 wide receiver as it feels like they have all No. 2s and 3s currently on the roster. All the best free agent wideouts are off the board, so the only way left to add a No. 1 is via the draft (a trade seems very unlikely). This is said to be another terrific class, but the question becomes how many of the top three at the position go in the top 10? This is something the Patriots will be paying close attention to.
4. Along the same lines, it feels like there’s going to be a run on offensive players in the top 10 of the draft, obviously starting with the quarterbacks. As it relates to the Patriots, this could mean one of the better defensive players in the draft could fall to them at No. 15 overall if they do stay put. Positions to keep an eye on are cornerback and linebacker as those are certainly two of the bigger needs on the roster besides quarterback and wide receiver.
5. Not much came from Belichick’s pre-draft press conference, but one piece of information that stood out was him acknowledging Dave Ziegler, Eliot Wolf and Matt Groh’s work relating to the draft. It seems these three are leading the way when it comes to that area of the organization. It’s no surprise with Ziegler, but shows Wolf impressed enough last year to get more responsibility and Groh is elevating through the organization and potentially could be in line for a promotion.
6. While it’s easy to see why a good majority of teams have had players say they will not attend voluntary offseason workouts, it’s worth pointing out they are probably a lot safer being at NFL facilities than their individual training facilities around the country. It’s worth pointing out the Patriots’ statement was different than the other teams, as it said “many” players will not be attending, while the others said all players won’t be attending.
7. Looking ahead to next week’s draft, while the Patriots' “war room” likely will be at Gillette Stadium and not virtually like last year, the media will be covering the event offsite once again. Belichick is scheduled to speak to the media after each day via video conference. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him get asked over the course of the three days about the offseason moves, as not much information came from his pre-draft video conference this week.