Patriots Combine Meetings/Facility Visits/Private Workouts

RedOctober3829

RedOctober3829

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So far, the Patriots have met with the following players at the Combine. Let's also use this as a catch-all for when players are reported to visit Foxboro.
 
Arizona State OL Jamil Douglas
Florida State OL Bobby Hart
Hobart(NY) OL Ali Marpet
Duke OL Takoby Cofield
Minnesota TE Maxx Williams
Florida State TE Nick O'Leary
Duke G Laken Tomlinson
Florida State G Tre Jackson
Central Arkansas WR Dezmin Lewis
Iowa OL Brandon Scherff
Mississippi State RB Josh Robinson
 
RedOctober3829

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ZMart100

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Doug Kyed has been keeping track of these as well, some additions from Day 1 and Day 2.
 
Louisville OL Jamon Brown
Notre Dame K Kyle Brindza
Rutgers TE Tyler Kroft
South Carolina RB Mike Lewis
Louisville RB Michael Dyer
Florida RB Matt Jones
Ohio State TE Jeff Heuerman
UMass TE Jean Sifrin
 
From the Senior Bowl
Michigan State ATH Tony Lippett
Fresno State WR Josh Harper
 
ElcaballitoMVP

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Papelbon's Poutine said:
Is it at all possible that Maxx Williams falls to us? That would just be an unfair pairing with Gronk as well as insurance.
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It's certainly possible, but I'm not sure if it's likely. He's the best 2 way TE in the draft and everyone's looking for the next Gronk (he isn't Gronk, but he's still good). A lot will depend on interviews and how he performs at the combine, but I think he'd be a great fit on the field with Gronk. Matchup problems all day when those two are on the field they can go from a power running game to a spread offense the very next play without allowing the defense to make substitutions. I see Maxx as more of a Jason Witten/Greg Olsen type than a monster like 87, but that's not to say those guys weren't excellent TE's in their prime. 
 
I could see any number of teams picking in front of the Pats having interest (DEN, GB, SEA, BAL, CAR, ARI). I don't think there's any way he falls to the Pats in round 2, so they'd have to jump on him if he was still on the board in round 1. 

Personally, I'd be excited if the Pats took him but I also think they'd be better off using their 1st pick on OL (AJ Cann, E. Flowers) or DL (M. Brown, A. Armstead). 
 
SMU_Sox

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Jason Witten is a future (I'd argue first ballot) HoFer. If you draft someone with his production you've done well. Healthy Gronk is a once in 25 years kind of talent but don't underscore Witten who was either the best all around TE or at least top 3 in the league for years.
 
Morgan's Magic Snowplow

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I was maybe the first guy on this board on the Maxx Williams bandwagon but I'm not sure he's a truly elite TE prospect.  I haven't really seen anybody claim that he is a better prospect than a guy like Tyler Eifert, for example.
 
ElcaballitoMVP

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SMU_Sox said:
Jason Witten is a future (I'd argue first ballot) HoFer. If you draft someone with his production you've done well. Healthy Gronk is a once in 25 years kind of talent but don't underscore Witten who was either the best all around TE or at least top 3 in the league for years.
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Oh, I wasn't trying to downplay Witten and his accomplishments at all. If Maxx turned into Witten, I think everyone would be thrilled. I just see a guy who's a smooth, fluid pass catcher who doesn't have elite physical tools (top end speed or Gronk's size). Maxx isn't the blocker that Gronk is and is more of a useable run blocker like a Witten or Olsen, someone who is more dangerous in the passing game working the middle of the field. 
 
Kenny F'ing Powers

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RedOctober3829 said:
Wish they didn't sign Cannon. I'm watching TJ Clemmings from Pitt and he's a physical specimen. Very athletic and quick feet in the wave drill.
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I don't think Cannon hampers their willingness to draft a tackle.

Either way, Clemmings ain't making it to the Patriots at 32.
 
nazz45

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South Carolina RB Mike Davis will be in for a private workout with the Patriots according to NFL Draft Scout.

Recently watched a few games with an eye on AJ Cann. Davis stood out for his vision and burst. They run mostly a power/gap scheme but he can make things happen when the blocks breakdown. Also thought he was working with an SC OL that was pretty mediocre (at least in the handful of games watched).

https://twitter.com/nfldraftscout/status/582194754038964224
 
ElcaballitoMVP

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nazz45 said:
South Carolina RB Mike Davis will be in for a private workout with the Patriots according NFL Draft Scout.

Recently watched a few games with an eye on AJ Cann. Davis stood out for his vision and burst. They run mostly a power/gap scheme but he can make things happen when the blocks breakdown. Also thought he was working with an SC OL that was pretty mediocre (at least in the handful of games watched).

https://twitter.com/nfldraftscout/status/582194754038964224
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Davis isn't getting much buzz, so he could probably be had later in the draft. 
 
I'm interested though, what were your thoughts on Cann? I think he gets taken somewhere between the Pats 1st and 2nd pick, and he's a binkie of mine. But I'd be interested to hear what you have to say about him. I think he's much more athletic and better in space than a road grader like Laken Tomlinson. 
 
nazz45

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Overall, he's steady but limited. That's mostly because of the blocking scheme the Gamecocks employ.

Not a lot of pull blocking but he looks athletic enough in short areas to be consistent; not very fluid when cut blocking; not sure if he had even one combination block with a finish at the LB level - again, that's more of a scheme issue but probably limits his NFL appeal.

He's ok when on a straight path into the second level on runs and screens but his lack of elite athleticism starts to show the further he gets away from the LOS.

I think he's ok in pass pro despite scouting reports to the contrary but noticed he's the last to fire out of his stance a little too often when pass setting. It never happened in head up situations so it may be nothing but would like him ready to engage a tad quicker.

I'll have a more in depth profile with video on insidethepylon.com in the next week or so. Want to see how his Pro Day goes after being limited at Combine (and hurt for Senior Bowl).

Edit - I realize I didn't say much positive but I think being steady and relatively mistake free is a huge positive. This is also based on five games with one more to go so it's tough to judge.
 
Edit 2 - And then I just watched his game against Texas A&M and it's easily his best one I've seen. Showed off his short-area athleticism on lots of pull blocks and he finished well at the second level.
 
ElcaballitoMVP

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nazz45 said:
Overall, he's steady but limited. That's mostly because of the blocking scheme the Gamecocks employ.

Not a lot of pull blocking but he looks athletic enough in short areas to be consistent; not very fluid when cut blocking; not sure if he had even one combination block with a finish at the LB level - again, that's more of a scheme issue but probably limits his NFL appeal.

He's ok when on a straight path into the second level on runs and screens but his lack of elite athleticism starts to show the further he gets away from the LOS.

I think he's ok in pass pro despite scouting reports to the contrary but noticed he's the last to fire out of his stance a little too often when pass setting. It never happened in head up situations so it may be nothing but would like him ready to engage a tad quicker.

I'll have a more in depth profile with video on insidethepylon.com in the next week or so. Want to see how his Pro Day goes after being limited at Combine (and hurt for Senior Bowl).

Edit - I realize I didn't say much positive but I think being steady and relatively mistake free is a huge positive. This is also based on five games with one more to go so it's tough to judge.
 
Edit 2 - And then I just watched his game against Texas A&M and it's easily his best one I've seen. Showed off his short-area athleticism on lots of pull blocks and he finished well at the second level.
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Thanks for your input, I look forward to checking out the in depth preview when you finish it up. 
 
I was a bit surprised at your review of Cann not being athletic enough, but I suppose everyone looks athletic when they're lined up next to the massive Corey Robinson (who I saw miss more blocks and fail to get to the second level more times than I could count in the game I watched- no thanks on him). But I'm happy to hear he looked better in the A&M game; sounds more like the guy I'm looking for. Thoughts on where you'd draft him? 2nd/3rd round? 
 
nazz45

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ElcaballitoMVP said:
 
Thanks for your input, I look forward to checking out the in depth preview when you finish it up. 
 
I was a bit surprised at your review of Cann not being athletic enough, but I suppose everyone looks athletic when they're lined up next to the massive Corey Robinson (who I saw miss more blocks and fail to get to the second level more times than I could count in the game I watched- no thanks on him). But I'm happy to hear he looked better in the A&M game; sounds more like the guy I'm looking for. Thoughts on where you'd draft him? 2nd/3rd round? 
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I think he's more than quick enough in tight spaces, but there are some incosistencies when he tries to block a linebacker in space. I think there's only about 5 pure guards worth drafting in the first three rounds (Tomlinson, Kouandjio, Tre Jackson and Marpet - the only guy I can't find any actual tape on) but there are a lot of possible tackle-guard converts that could push Cann back toward the end of round two.
 
Buster Olney the Lonely

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I thought that this from Pats Pulpit was pretty interesting. Can we expect the Pats to draft anyone in this thread? 
 
 
The Patriots differ from the average team, though, and have drafted zero of the players they've had in for an Official Visit over the past two seasons. While the team did bring defensive tackle Cory "Porkchop" Grissom into camp in 2013, and did the same for running back Stephen Houston in 2014, New England didn't use a draft pick on either player.
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Sure it's a minuscule sample (two seasons), I just thought it will be fascinating to track going forward. 
 
http://www.patspulpit.com/2015/3/22/8275269/do-official-nfl-pre-draft-visits-mean-anything
 
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