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Draft Preview: Patriots pick 28th
Posted: Tuesday March 23, 1999 02:33 PM
The Patriots have the New York Jets' first-round pick, the 28th overall, as a final piece of compensation for coach Bill Parcells leaving for New York two years ago. They've had modest returns on the other picks they received from the Jets for their coach -- tailback Sedric Shaw, taken in '97, was exposed to the Browns, who opted against him; guard Damon Denson, another '97 pick, started four games this season; and receiver Tony Simmons, taken in the second round last year, showed promise in limited playing time last season. With the 28th pick and their own, the 20th, New England has an opportunity to fill in the holes left by free agency and upgrade to keep pace in what was the best conference in the NFL last year with four playoff teams. Best bets for No. 28 The potential career-ending injury to tailback Robert Edwards has dramatically changed the Patriots' priorities in the off-season. With no solid free agents on the market, they'll have to find their every-down back through the draft for the second straight year. That doesn't necessarily mean the Patriots have to use a first-rounder on a running back. After Ricky Williams and Edgerrin James, there's a perceived dropoff at the position, and the Patriots could hold off until their second-round pick, the 53rd overall, to take a tailback. There's a fair chance that a second-tier runner like local hero Mike Cloud of Boston College, Mississippi State's James Johnson or West Virginia's Amos Zereoue would be available then. The Patriots have done this before -- they plucked Curtis Martin out of the third round in 1995. What they can do instead is address some other needs -- they lost center Dave Wohlabaugh, linebacker Todd Collins and defensive tackle Mark Wheeler to free agency and haven't signed anyone away from other teams. The draft's best center prospect is Boston College's Damien Woody, but if New England wants him, they'd better take him with the 20th pick. They could go with a linebacker like Clemson's Rahim Abdullah or an interior lineman like Iowa's Jared DeVries or Florida's Reggie McGrew.
Another possibility has the Patriots using their higher pick for the most immediate need and taking a chance at 28. Injuries depleted the Patriots' receiving corps so badly last year that the team brought veteran Henry Ellard out of retirement. The draft's top two receivers -- N.C. State's Torry Holt and Ohio State's David Boston -- will be top-15 picks, but the Patriots might be able to pick from the rest. That could be Tennessee's Peerless Price, Northwestern's D'Wayne Bates or Louisiana Tech's Troy Edwards. Given that this is the last compensation for Parcells, the Patriots might take a bit more risk than normal and take a player with a big upside like Edwards, who caught 140 passes last year for 1,996 yards and 27 touchdowns. By pairing Edwards with a healthy Terry Glenn and a rising Simmons, New England could quickly go from a decimated receiving corps to one of the league's best. Edwards won't put up numbers like he did last year, but he could make an immediate difference in Foxboro.
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