New Orleans Saints Forums - blackandgold.com

Look it is simple. if you draft for need other teams will not view as a threat to take a player based on the skills and the scouting department's listings. This is what the pats have done. It works. They could care less what Mel or any other draft guru has to say. They pick the best player there. Then work that player into the mix. When you get a player asking for a ton of money at a postion you let them walk and replace them from FA or the bench. Then you collect your supplemental pick for that player. but in order to cash in supplemental picks you need depth. Or they just trade them away for picks. Picks are the key.
Once again this year the Pats are sitting as one of the main power brokers in the draft. They have picks in the first 3 rounds of the draft that are better than any 17-1 team has ever had. Year after year it is the same thing. They know what they are doing. hate them or not you have to admit they know what they are doing.
Round 1, pick 7
Round 2, pick 63
Round 3, pick 68, 95

I have the Pats trying everything to trade down from 7. They have a no need to pick a player this high and take on the salary demands of a top 10 player. If they can not they will pick a player they want based on their ranking system from scouting. They will some how try to use the second and 2 third round picks to make it happen. In the end they will probably come way with multi picks in next years draft along the way.
This is how they got there in the in the first place. Picking a player based on scouting. Not on media Ranking. Needs have nothing to do with it. Long term planning is key. They took a step back three years ago and Start to rebuild again. WRs left the team or were traded. They did not panic. They addressed other areas of the team for the next two years and then, last year raided the FA at WR and took on Moss. They waited 2 years to address the area of need. They did draft players at WR but they did not panic pick them out of need. They picked them because they fell into the pats laps. IE Chad Jackson in 2006. Who just had his rookie season this year. He dropped becuase of his knee and played only part of 2006 before getting it rebuilt. The Pats are high on him still. But they will trade him if the offer is right. If Moss gets tagged watch for him to step into the 3/4 position next year. Donte is done.
Look OT is not a bad move but I believe in what we all have been told here, The saints are happy with OT picks from the last two years. They may not be as far along as they had hoped but they are happy. I see Stinch being involved in some kind of trade this year. Either in the draft or before camp starts. Brown will move back to RT next to Evans and the pair will become one of the best OT and OG combos in the NFL. Evans will get a long term contract also. Who steps in at LT and LG is the question. Will the saints promote from within or draft that player. LT are hard to find. Harder than any other postion in the NFL besides a shut down corner. If one is there you have to take him and guggle your line to make it work. If not you trade down and target another player. But get picks that are a bit over valued for the move because it is a LT. I would rather trade a player than pass on a true LT. Brown would bring a king ransom dispite the knee issues. But you better be sure it is the right player you are picking. Because in two years the fans will hang you. I do not see that happening. Brown will stay a saint till his contract expires. I am just saying, thats all. Stinch is my player this year as our best trade bait. Followed by Grant. Now that opens up whole new can of worms.
No one really knows. This is all quess work.

BUT SCOUTING IS THE KEY.