If the Patriots are looking for pass-rushing help, many draft experts believe that this is a good year for the outside linebacker/defensive ends who are traditionally coveted by Bill Belichick.
 
But even if the Pats don’t go after those hybrids, with four of the first 53 picks, New England appears to be well-positioned for the possibility of bringing an instant jolt of youth and depth to its defensive front seven this April.
 
“This is a very deep draft for defensive linemen, and Bill Belichick loves to invest high picks there. The Patriots desperately need depth and options on the line,” said Mike Tanier of Football Outsiders.
 
“According to our stats, opponents finished third in the NFL in runs up the middle against the Pats and 28th in runs to the defensive right side. I think Vince Wilfork and Jarvis Green were asked to do too much, and they both had some injuries.”
 
“I think adding to the defensive front seven makes a lot of sense for New England,” said draft expert Wes Bunting of the National Football Post. “Defensive end and a pass-rushing outside linebacker are both needs for the Patriots.”
 
Tanier, who says this draft is “full of 3-4 defensive end types,” mentions Michigan’s Brandon Graham as a potential target of the Patriots at No. 22. Graham, a defensive end from Michigan, earned MVP honors for the North team at the Senior Bowl when he recorded three tackles for losses, including two sacks, as well as a forced fumble.
 
Described by ESPN draft expert Todd McShay as “a Bill Belichick type of guy,” the 6-foot-1, 263-pound Graham had 20 sacks over the last two seasons for the Wolverines.
 
“That's a guy with 10 sacks at Michigan last year and 260-some pounds,” Tanier said. “He’s about the sixth- to 10th-best defensive lineman available this year — that's how deep the draft is. And he’s a natural end in the Patriots scheme.”
 
Bunting characterizes Penn State defensive end Jared Odrick and Clemson's outside linebacker/defensive end hybrid Ricky Sapp both as “potential fits in round one” for the Patriots.
 
Daniel Jeremiah — a former scout for the Ravens and Browns who is now the editor of Move the Sticks — agrees with Bunting when it comes to Sapp, who has battled injury problems over the course of his collegiate career but would still appear to be a good fit for New England.
 
“It will be interesting to see how far Sapp drops in this draft,” Jeremiah said of the 6-foot-4, 245-pound Sapp, who had five sacks with Clemson last year. “He was a first-round talent as an underclassman, but injuries have probably dropped him into the second round. When healthy, he is a very talented edge rusher that would fill an immediate need for the Patriots.”
 
On the other side of the ball, the consensus seems to be that New England needs to tweak the running back position, as well as add depth at the wide receiver spot. Bunting believes the Patriots need to be “more dynamic in the run game,” and in his latest mock draft has them taking Cal running back Jahvid Best at No. 22.
 
Best is a 5-foot-10, 195-pounder who had 2,668 yards rushing, 62 catches for 533 yards and 35 total touchdowns in his career at Cal but suffered a concussion at the end of last year that cut short his season.
 
“All their backs are so blah,” Bunting said of New England’s running game. “Therefore, a guy like Jahvid Best from Cal or C.J. Spiller from Clemson would both make a lot of sense. Both guys are dynamic athletes who are great in space, can run out of the gun and will catch the ball out of the backfield.
 
“Honestly, I think the Pats need a guy who can take some pressure off that pass game, and both Best and Spiller make a lot of sense.”
 
Belichick never has been shy about listening to former assistant coaches who are running college programs — between 2002 and 2005, seven of the 31 players the Patriots drafted came from schools where a Belichick assistant or a close friend was the head coach.
 
And this year, Jeremiah says that if the Patriots are going to focus on offense, Belichick would be wise to listen to two collegiate coaches he’s tight with — Florida’s Urban Meyer and Fresno State’s Pat Hill — because they have two players who could make an immediate impact with New England in running back Ryan Matthews and wide receiver Riley Cooper.
 
“Ryan Matthews of Fresno State is a dynamic running back that would immediately upgrade the position,” he said. “And everyone has been speculating that Belichick's relationship with Meyer would be a factor in the Pats selecting Tebow. I have a different opinion.
 
“Tebow doesn't fill a need, while a guy like Cooper would provide young legs and size to an older wide receiving corps. He would make sense with one of their extra second-round picks.”
 
In that same vein, Jeremiah says the Patriots could surprise with one of their three second-round selections, taking offensive tackle Brian Bulaga out of Iowa.
 
“Iowa is another program that is run by a former Belichick assistant in Kirk Ferentz,” Jeremiah said. “Bulaga isn’t going to get picked as high as all these mock drafts have him projected. He most likely will wind up in the second round, and could be in the Pats thinking with one of their picks in that round.”