Even if you valued him as a 1st rounder, you don't take him there if you are the only team that feels that way. That's simply poor use of draft picks...

Luck: When opportunity and hard work meet.

This.

 

Did it turn out to be perhaps the greatest value pick of all time? Very possibly, but it was luck. No way you go into a draft thinking. "This is the guy who's gonna take us to the Promised Land and keep us there for two decades. Let's roll the dice and see if he drops to #199."

 

Yeah...if you think like that you draft Johnny Football.

Even if you valued him as a 1st rounder, you don't take him there if you are the only team that feels that way. That's simply poor use of draft picks...

 

Yeah but if you know he's going to likely be the greatest QB of all time you don't wait until the sixth round to grab him either. That's simply a poor use of draft picks...

Brady seems like he's spent every day since signing with the Patriots trying to prove he was worth even the 6th round. And after reading the article UKM linked, it seems someone recognized that quality and pushed for him. Maybe it wasn't just dumb luck. Maybe it was calculated shrewdness. Not saying anyone could have guessed he'd be what he is today, except maybe himself. But the Patriots organization aren't exactly spendthrifts.

Yeah but if you know he's going to likely be the greatest QB of all time you don't wait until the sixth round to grab him either. That's simply a poor use of draft picks...

 

Not when you get him at 198...

Meet Tom Brady's First Believer

 

Sorry, UKMustangFan, I did not read the article until now. I didn't recognize that it was a hyperlink and thought you were referring to either yourself or the person in your avatar (Brady) as the "first believer in Brady."

 

That article is terrific. I stand corrected. There was one talent evaluator who thought Brady would be a great QB in the NFL--even compared him to Montana.

 

Belicheck thought he might make a good backup. Apparently, nobody else on the Patriots thought much more of him either or they would have drafted him higher. Boy, did Brady come through for them! I would classify that as luck (for the Pats). If it was smarts, they would have recognized him as a franchise QB and taken him in the 1st round.

 

Great article about Dick Rehbein who was the guy who convinced the Patriots to take a chance on Brady.

 

Thanks for posting the article.

Why would they waste a 1st round pick on a guy they knew they could get much later?

Why would they waste a 1st round pick on a guy they knew they could get much later?

 

If they believed he was a game changer they wouldn't have waited until round 6 though. A guy like that who has tons of folks believing he is the next Montana would grab him in round 3, round 4 at the latest.

Why would they waste a 1st round pick on a guy they knew they could get much later?

 

That's a stretch. Let's see... Andrew Luck is the next Payton Manning so let's wait as long as possible to draft him. No, you take him #1. Look at the conversation now about who will draft Mariota and who will try to trade up to get him. When you "know" a QB is that good or when you suspect he could be that good, you take him as soon as possible and even mortgage a future draft by bundling a future 1st round draft pick with a current pick to get your man.

 

Dick Rehbein knew but no one else on the Pats believed him. Belichick thought Brady might make a good backup QB and asked Rehbein to evaluate him and decide between Brady and Tim Rattay of Louisiana Tech. Even then the organization wasn't very high on Brady because they only used a supplemental pick in the 6th round for him.

 

You don't show how smart you are by out-waiting every other franchise and then selecting the QB you know will be a future hall of famer. That kind of strategy will put you in the unemployment line.

 

You never know you can get a guy in the 6th round unless he isn't a very good player and it is a throw-away pick. The Pats picked Brady without knowing how special he really was with the one exception of Dick Rehmein. Robert Kraft is counting his lucky stars that he hired Rehmein.

If they believed he was a game changer they wouldn't have waited until round 6 though. A guy like that who has tons of folks believing he is the next Montana would grab him in round 3, round 4 at the latest.

 

I agree with the principle of your argument here but if you know a guy is the "next Joe Montana" you take him in the first round.

I agree with the principle of your argument here but if you know a guy is the "next Joe Montana" you take him in the first round.

 

Exactly. You just prove my whole point.

I'm watching The Brady 6 on the NFL Network. I'm more convinced now it is dumb luck than ever before. Out of the 6 picks before him the best player was running back JR Redmond whose NFL career ended with less than 700 years rushing. The Patriots got super super lucky with Brady in round 6. If you believe other wise then I beg you to watch The Brady 6 where the Patriots pretty much say it was dumb luck.

For anyone to draft a Hall of Famer and "Greatest ever...." luck was involved because so few people ever ascend to that level. If you think it was some kind of strategic move to wait 6 rounds and draft maybe the greatest ever I don't know what to tell you. Let's put it this way. Had the Patriots gotten word someone was going to draft Brady in the 4th round, do you honestly think they would have traded up to draft Brady? We will never know, but my guess is no. And if they knew he would be half of what he became that would be a no-brainer. Like any other franchise drafting a guy that late in the game, the Pats were looking for a serviceable backup and hit the lottery.

The Brady 6 was on NFL Network last night. Just a nice little reminder on why Tom Brady is the greatest ever. How he fell behind some of those QB's I'll never understand.

 

Greatest quote is at the very end... "It's not really a chip on my shoulder, it's just that feeling that man maybe nobody wants you... That's what gets me up and motivates me. I always want to feel like I'm the best quarterback for this team. I wanna EARN IT every single day."

 

Fires me up just typing this. The GOAT wants to earn his spot every day...