The New England Patriots kicked off Day 2 of the NFL Draft in the fourth round when they selected Logan Mankins' Fresno State teammate, safety James Sanders 133rd overall. Sanders was first team All-WAC honorable mention his freshman year and first team All-WAC his sophomore and junior seasons before declaring after his junior year. This guy was damn good at Fresno State and Rodney Harrison is getting older, makes perfect sense to have depth at the safety spot.
The Patriots had no regular fifth round pick since they sent it to the Arizona Cardinals in the Duane Starks trade. The Cardinals took Oklahoma linebacker Lance Mitchell 168th overall. The Patriots did have a fifth round pick in the supplemental draft and they used it to take UNLV linebacker Ryan Claridge 170th overall. Claridge had a relatively modest career at UNLV so this was essentially the first pick in years most Patriot fans are going "Who??" Then again, most late round picks contribute something to the team either on special teams or specific game plans so who knows, maybe Ryan will be a hidden gem. Time will tell.
The Patriots also traded their extra fifth round pick along with their sixth round choice to the Detroit Lions for their fourth round pick in next year's draft. The Lions selected Marshall linebacker Jonathan Goddard with the 206th overall pick. The Patriots traded their sixth and seventh round picks to the Green Bay Packers for Green Bay's sixth round pick at 175 overall. The Patriots then traded that pick to the Oakland Raiders for a seventh round pick in this draft and their fifth round pick next year. The Packers used their seventh round pick in New England's slot to pick Michigan State offensive guard Will Whitticker. The Patriots did have the Mr. Irrelevant pick with the last pick of the draft and took William Penn University tight end Andy Stokes. Stokes was a good tight end for William Penn posting All-MSFA honors his senior year for making 42 catches for 753 yards and five touchdowns. He probably has no chance to crack this roster with Jed Weaver, Christian Fauria, Ben Watson and Daniel Graham in the way but you never know. Who thought the 6th round pick back in 2000 would be a two time Superbowl MVP?
255th overall - Andy Stokes
The Patriots only had three picks on the second day and who knows if they'll pan out. Bottom line was the 3 time Superbowl champs are loaded already and didn't really have big holes to fill. Plus you know Belichick is going to bring in rookie free agents after the draft and SOMEONE is going to bring something to the team. Stokes, Claridge and Sanders may not make a roster or they'll be starters, anything is possible come training camp.
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