2016 NFL Draft: Inside the Mind of Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick

Ever since Bill Belichick arrived in Foxboro, the New England Patriots have been one of the most difficult teams to project draft picks to. One reason why is how they evaluate and grade players.

The Patriots love versatile players, however they also look for players who fill a very specific need. That’s why they are rumored to have a very small (some years about 50 prospects) draft board.

So how can we project which prospects will make it onto the Patriots board? The answer is one of the few subjects Belichick has been known to talk at length about…history.

Doug Kyed of NESN.com dove into some of that history prior to the Scouting Combine by compiling a list of previous picks from the Belichick era. The lists, which can be found here, breakdown the measureables and athletic traits the team looks for at each position in the draft. For example, this highlights how the Patriots prefer size over athleticism on the front seven of the defense, while athleticism is much more valued than size at every offensive position besides quarterback.

The following slides use this information and apply it to this year’s draft class. The size and workout data from the Scouting Combine and Pro Days provides insight as to who the Patriots may target in the draft as well as which rookies may be brought into camp as free agents. All prospects are graded on a scale of -10 to +10 with +10 representing a prospect who exceeds what the Patriots look for in every measureable and workout drill. Each measurement and drill is weighted based on the importance the Patriots place on each category.

Next: Quarterbacks