Ryan Mallett found the perfect team to go to when the New England Patriots couldn’t resist drafting him in the third round of the N.F.L. Draft.
The Patriots make a bold, but quality move grabbing Mallett in the third round. The Patriots can keep him and flip him for a higher draft pick later, or develop him behind Brady until Brady retires (coming sooner than later). This draft seems to be heavy on character. Two youngsters added to a group of old running backs. One potential successor to Tom Brady.
The New England Patriots stuck to their traditional draft strategy on Friday – focusing on their ratings of players and not their positions of need and stocking up on draft choices.
The Patriots made two trades on Friday. Mallett played 11 games as a freshman at Michigan – Brady's school – before transferring to Arkansas when new coach Rich Rodriguez brought in an offense not suited to Mallett, a pocket passer.
We've all seen what happens," Belichick said.
In one season at Michigan and two at Arkansas, Mallett threw for 69 touchdowns and 24 interceptions.
The Patriots had only Brian Hoyer as a backup quarterback last year, so the addition of Mallett could give Belichick an option if Brady, who underwent surgery on Jan. 20 for a stress fracture in his right foot, is injured again.
Someday, though, Brady's career will end. Can Mallett be his successor?
"I don't know," Belichick said. The running backs of the future could be Vereen, a quicker, third-down style back, and Ridley, a bigger rusher who is most effective running inside.
"They're very different players," Belichick said.
Vereen started 19 games in three years, running for 2,834 yards for 29 touchdowns on 556 carries, an average of 5.1 yards per rush.
Ridley started only nine games in college but was their primary back last season when he gained 1,147 yards with 15 touchdowns on 249 carries, an average of 4.61 yards per run.
"He's a bigger, physical back," Belichick said. "Good running style. Bill Belichick and Ryan Mallett seem to be an odd coupling.
Belichick isn’t one to draft quarterbacks in the early rounds. But on Friday, Mallett was taken at No. 74, in the third round, the highest quarterback selection in the Belichick era. (Kevin O’Connell was chosen with the 94th pick in 2008). And Mallett is an off-the-field enigma whose character concerns would seem to be unappealing to the no-nonsense Belichick.
But as these Belichick responses on the Patriots’ Web site showed, the two do have something in common: Mallett’s father is a football coach, as was Belichick’s.
Q: You said you enjoyed your conversation with Ryan Mallett. Is that in regard to his football knowledge or his personality?
BB: He’s definitely a football guy. He’s a great kid to talk to, and he’s very into football.
