Bill Belichick talks Patriots 2019 draft strategy, wide receivers, coaching staff, and more

FOXBOROUGH -- A few takeaways from Bill Belichick’s Wednesday morning pre-draft session with the media at Gillette Stadium.
If you’re a team with a pick right before or right after, Belichick is watching you.

The coach said Wednesday he and the rest of the franchise pay attention to the needs of the teams around them — that way, they can better anticipate a draft deal move.

“We track it the best we can,” he said. “A lot of times, it’s not the team right in front of you; it’s a team somewhere else. A team that could be, depending on what round you’re in, at a location behind you, that may be looking at a certain position or a certain player that could affect your draft strategy as well. The team in front of you might not have any need for or you know they wouldn’t even want a type of player — maybe players — that you’re considering, but that doesn’t really mean anything because anybody could move up into that spot and take that player. It’s all relevant.”

The Patriots have tinkered with their draft position before — most notably when they dealt up two spots to land Rob Gronkowski in 2010 ahead of a Baltimore team that might have been looking to replace Todd Heap. That year, it worked out for them. (Belichick referenced the selections of Matt Light and Eugene Wilson as other cases where they were able to move up the board a bit and get their guy.) With that understanding, it’s important to note that if they feel the need to move into the 20s, they have two long-time trade partners in Seattle (No. 21) and Oakland (Nos. 24 and 27) who might be getting a call if the Patriots want to make sure they get their guy.

“We usually have a decent amount of time between our picks to identify, ‘OK, here are the players that we’re considering. Here are the teams that are around us.’ If one of those teams is actively trying to trade out, then that means somebody is going to trade in,” he said. “Who could they be coming up for? How would that affect us? Do we want to get ahead of that team? Do we care?”

Belichick opened up a bit on the subject of veteran NFL receivers vs. college receivers.

An inability to draft and develop wide receivers has been an Achilles’ heel for the Patriots over the years, and Belichick touched on a few possible reasons why.

“I’d say the issue in college football is it’s just not the same passing game in college football as there is in the NFL, period,” he said. “It’s harder to evaluate the receivers, it’s harder to evaluate the quarterback, it’s harder to evaluate the offensive lineman, it’s harder to evaluate the pass rushers, and it’s harder to evaluate the coverage players.

“We’re all looking at the same film, so all the teams in the league, we all see the same games. But the college passing game is very different than the professional passing game, so when you’re looking at it, you’re looking at a lot of it’s really projecting all of those positions a little bit differently. To a certain degree, it’s different in the running game too, but probably less different in the run game than in the passing game, in my opinion.”

One thing to keep in mind here -- the comp pick deadline is May 7. There are a few wide receivers who are still on the free-agent market. And in the context of this conversation, there are still some genuine trade possibilities out there. Big picture? I'd expect some movement soon.

There are no updates on the coaching staff or who might be the next Patriots' defensive coordinator.

Belichick was asked about the role of the coaching staff throughout the pre-draft process, and if anything had changed because there’s been so much turnover on staff this offseason.

“I mean, we’re not talking about an unprecedented event here,” said Belichick, alluding to the turnover in previous years New England has gone through. “We’ve dealt with changes before, and we’re going to continue to deal with them.”

One thing Belichick did share? The coaches are “probably a little less” involved with pre-draft prep than normal.

“(They’re) doing it, but (with) less activity,” Belichick said.

De facto defensive coordinator Brian Flores, wide receivers coach Chad O’Shea, cornerbacks coach Josh Boyer, defensive line coach Brendan Daly and assistant quarterbacks coach Jerry Schuplinski all left for other teams. While the team has yet to announce any moves, Jerod Mayo, Mick Lombardi, Carmen Bricillo and Bob Fraser are expected to officially join the staff this offseason, with Mayo serving as the new linebackers coach.

In some ways, there will be two sets of rookie classes on the field this spring — the newcomers, as well as last year’s group that didn’t see much action because of injury.

Belichick alluded to the fact many members of the Patriots 2018 draft class didn’t see a lot of time because of injury. It’s a group that includes linebackers Christian Sam and Ja’Whaun Bentley, wide receiver Braxton Berrios and offensive lineman Isaiah Wynn.

“Obviously, many of our 2018 draft choices had partial seasons or minimal in some cases. We’re excited to see how those guys will do this year, obviously,” he said. “It’s a hardworking group. Those guys are here on a very consistent basis and hopefully, we’ll be able to get a much longer look at the 2018 draft class than we were able to get last year.”