New England wide receiver Chad Jackson, snapping pictured prior to Super Bowl XLII between the Patriots and New York Giants, was pretty much a bust from start to finish.

The Providence Journal/ / Bob Breidenbach

NFL teams spend hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars every year researching college players. Coaches watch film until their eyes glaze over, and scouts and personnel officials crisscross the country, hitting dozens of campuses until they can forget which city they’re in and what their own beds look like.

And for all of that time and money spent, the draft is still essentially a crapshoot. Under Bill Belichicks, the New England Patriots have had resounding success with their first-round choices, which is undoubtedly a plus given the amount of money top picks command.

But their other picks … have been mixed, as one would expect. New England has had particular trouble in the second round over the last nine years, as you’ll see.

Here’s one opinion on the 10 worst draft picks of the Belichick Era:

1. Chad Jackson (second round, 36th overall, 2006): The Patriots made no secret of their fondness for the big Florida receiver, a physical specimen whom the team traded up to snag. But Jackson had issues from the outset, with a hamstring injury in the preseason of his rookie year. It’s believed he had a hard time grasping the playbook and never gained Tom Brady’s trust. He injured his knee in the 2006 AFC Championship Game playing special teams, and played three late-season games in 2007. By then, he wasn’t trying to mask his anger at his situation and his displeasure with the team. He was released during the 2008 training camp.

2. Bethel Johnson (second round, 45th overall, 2003): Another receiver New England moved up in the draft to secure, Johnson was supposed to provide Tom Brady with a speedburning downfield threat. While Johnson was a good kick returner for two years, the downfield-threat part never materialized. He caught 16 passes as a rookie and then became a head case with an outsized ego who complained that he was being asked to do too much. On a team that values versatility, that’s a no-no. Johnson was shipped to New Orleans for another disappointing former top-round pick, Johnathan Sullivan, in 2006.

3. Adrian Klemm (second round, 46th overall, 2000): The first selection of the Belichick-Scott Pioli regime (New England sent its first-round pick that year to the Jets to get Belichick), Klemm was never healthy enough to stay on the field for any length of time. In five seasons with the Pats, he played in just 26 games. From a dislocated elbow during his rookie training camp to season-impacting leg, elbow, ankle and foot injuries, he had just 10 career starts. His ability to play either guard or tackle likely contributed to his staying around as long as he did.

4. Guss Scott (third round, 95th overall, 2004): This wasn’t the best draft class for New England. Scott’s issues began when he and agent Drew Rosenhaus decided to turn down a five-year contract with a $500,000 signing bonus and have him play his rookie season for minimum salary. Scott blew out his knee and spent the entire year on injured reserve. He was re-signed to another minimum contract in ’05, played in three games and blew out the other knee. One late-season game in 2006, and that was the end of Scott’s career with the Pats.

5. Brock Williams (third round, 86th overall, 2001): Williams never played a down for the Patriots. He tore his ACL in offseason passing camp before his rookie season and spent 2002 out of football. He would play 10 games for Chicago in 2003 and two with the Raiders in ’04. The Browns selected cornerback Anthony Henry 11 picks later. He had a league-best 10 interceptions as a rookie and has had a solid career with Cleveland and Dallas. He has since been traded to Detroit.

6. Dexter Reid (fourth round, 113th overall, 2004): Reid and Scott were supposed to be part of New England’s future in the defensive backfield. Reid did make a quick impact, playing in 13 games during his rookie season, but was released in training camp the next year. He was signed by the Colts, but was released after 26 games over two seasons as a reserve.

7. Greg Robinson-Randall (fourth round, 127th overall, 2000): The other offensive lineman from the 2000 draft who couldn’t stick. Robinson-Randall played a reserve role as a rookie and then started all 16 games at right tackle his second season. But he failed the conditioning test heading into training camp in 2002 and lost his spot to Kenyatta Jones and Klemm.

8. P.K. Sam (fifth round, 164th overall, 2004): At 6-foot-3, 210 pounds, Sam was supposed to be the big, physical receiver the Patriots didn’t have. He wasn’t. He played in two of New England’s first five games his rookie year, with no catches, then went on IR with a groin injury. He was cut out of camp in 2005.

9. Benjamin Watson (first round, 32nd overall, 2004): To this point, the only first-rounder under Belichick who could be considered a miss (though Laurence Maroney may be the second). Watson has been serviceable, but he hasn’t been spectacular, as he was expected to be as an athletic pass-catching standout coming out of Georgia. It says something that the plays he’s most remembered to this point for chasing down Champ Bailey in Denver in the 2005 postseason and the Steelers’ Lawrence Timmons last season during interception returns.

10. Jeremy Mincey (sixth round, 191st overall, 2006): A college defensive end, Mincey was supposed to make the transition to outside linebacker, but he didn’t even make it to his first regular season. He was cut at the end of camp after being beaten out by undrafted Pierre Woods, who clearly had fewer problems going from college DE to New England OLB.

Dishonorable mention: Kenyatta Jones (fourth round, 96th overall, 2001) and Willie Andrews (seventh round, 229th overall, 2006): Both of these players were contributors for the Patriots and threw it all away with stupid decisions. Jones was arrested for assault in 2003 for throwing scalding water on a roommate and was released a few days later. Andrews was given a second chance despite being arrested two days after New England’s Super Bowl XLII loss with a half-pound of marijuana and a large sum of money in his unregistered car. Then less than five months later he was arrested again, this time for allegedly pulling a gun on his live-in girlfriend.

smanza@projo.com