Sticking with their 'best-player available' philosophy enabled New England to stockpile players at key positions.

09:52 AM EDT on Monday, April 26, 2004

BY TOM E. CURRAN
Journal Sports Writer

FOXBORO -- Viewed through a keyhole, the New England Patriots' 2004 Draft seems somewhat redundant.

Two more defensive linemen joining a group that was as young and talented as any in the league? Another tight end added after drafting one in the first round two years ago? Two safeties? A second "troubled" running back added six days after a first "troubled" running back added via trade?

Through the keyhole you can only see one player, one move, one narrow angle at a time. Through the keyhole is one way to look at it. But it's not the right way.

Decisions the Patriots make have to be seen through a panoramic lens. If your focus is too narrow, you won't realize that Player X may have been drafted not only because of what he can do, but how he'll also impact Players Y and Z.

One story of this Patriots draft is the effect the players they added will have on the players they already have. The rest of the story is the deals the Patriots made with two of their 2004 picks to land quality players for a relative song.

The first pick on Saturday, University of Miami defensive tackle Vince Wilfork, is an example of a selection with a far-reaching impact.

Why would they take Wilfork after selecting defensive lineman Ty Warren with the 13th pick overall in 2003? Several reasons, actually. First, the 300-pound Warren wasn't a perfect fit at nosetackle. Nor is third-year man Jarvis Green. And veteran Keith Traylor has no experience in the 3-4 at nose tackle. Dan Klecko's too small to play it. The only player who could approximate what departed nosetackle Ted Washington did for last year's team is Wilfork, who's massive, strong and nimble. Now Warren and Green can play where they play best and have their talents maximized. And Wilfork can be put in his best spot.

Adding Wilfork also prepares the team for the eventuality of losing Richard Seymour, if it comes to that. Seymour signed a six-year deal when he was drafted in 2001 and will have two years left after this season. If he can't be re-signed -- and the team will find it expensive to do so -- at least the defensive line won't be bereft of talent.

And it's all linked. The Patriots are getting older at linebacker. Their defensive line depth puts them in position to switch to the 4-3 alignment if necessary to cover a possible linebacker shortage. And the defensive line's power will prevent the secondary from A) having to cover for very long and, B) having to make too many tackles in the running game. It's all interwoven.

Which is why Belichick was puzzled that adding tight end Ben Watson with the 32nd pick could be seen as an indictment of Daniel Graham, the team's first overall pick in 2001.

"You're going to see Daniel Graham on the field plenty. Both Daniel and Watson run well and it's a big part of our thinking to have two tight ends who can threaten the defense in the passing game," said Belichick, who added that Watson can also play the H-back role for the Patriots.

And amid the annual chest-pounding for a tall wide receiver, the Patriots have quietly addressed the need for big targets by choosing fast tight ends. Graham isn't where he should be yet, but he is somewhat competent in the passing game. And Watson, who runs a 4.4 40 and was faster than many of Georgia's defensive backs and wide receivers, is 6-foot-3. Combined, the two give quarterback Tom Brady bigger downfield targets. The Patriots also added 6-foot-3 wide receiver P.K. Sam with a fifth-round pick yesterday (164th overall), and his chance to develop is enhanced by the fact that Watson, Graham and veteran Christian Fauria can all provide more immediate help in the passing game.

Belichick's multi-pronged role with the team makes this kind of decision-making possible. He sees the value of the player on the board, knows whether he can use him on the field and he also has a very good grip on what's coming personnel-wise next season. And because he's been a good coach, he knows he'll be here next season to reap the benefits.

This kind of security allows the team to be versatile on draft day.

"We almost always stay with the value of the pick and try to pick the guy we think is the best player. Rather than taking the 'need' pick and coming back the next year and saying, 'Well, you improved a little bit but now you're barely nudging ahead' versus getting two or three guys that are pretty talented at one position. With our scheme and (coordinators), we have enough versatility in our system to take advantage of players that have skill."

In addition to Sam, the team also added North Carolina safety Dexter Reid, Arkansas running back Cedric Cobbs and Illinois cornerback Christian Morton.

Cobbs could be a steal. He ran for 1,329 yards for Arkansas last year, averaging 5.8 yards per carry and scoring 10 touchdowns. He's 6-feet, 221 pounds and is a card-carrying bruiser. He slipped because of "character" issues (he was arrested for driving under the influence an possession of marijuana before his junior year) but sounded reasonably mature on a conference call yesterday, for what that's worth, and he had an incident-free senior year.

Football-wise, Cobbs is the insurance for Corey Dillon, who's under contract to the Patriots for two years. Dillon is nearly 30, and bigger backs like him have a tendency to slow down at that age. Cobbs and Dillon help take the Patriots' limited running back corps of a week ago and make it a strength.

Speaking of Dillon, he and defensive lineman Rodney Bailey are the rest of this draft story.

"Dillon and Bailey are definitely part of this draft class," said Belichick. "It's two less picks that we had but two significant players."

Dillon was had for a second-round pick. The Patriots got Bailey as a restricted free agent for a sixth-round pick

Every player the Pats added isn't a knockout. Where does Marquise Hill, the second round defensive end from LSU, fit in? He's said to be a project, and he'll have to get past Bailey, Warren, Seymour and Green to get on the field. Wouldn't adding a cornerback, like Oklahoma's Derrick Strait, have made more sense at that spot?

As for the two safeties added by the Patriots, Guss Scott (third round) and Dexter Reid (fourth round), can they take the field if either Rodney Harrison or Eugene Wilson get hurt in '04? Because that's really all that's there right now.

But the Patriots set themselves up for success in this draft last April with the multiple deals they made. At first blush, it looks like the plan played out the way they wanted it to.