The New England Patriots raised some eyebrows with their decision to draft cornerback Christian Gonzalez No. 17 overall in April’s NFL Draft. But head coach Bill Belichick doesn’t mind.
In an interview with The 33rd Team, Belichick explained that his draft philosophy doesn’t center around targeting any one prospect. He made it clear that his preference is to find good football players rather than ones who fill a specific need and cited the Giants’ 1984 pick of pass rushing linebacker Carl Banks when they already had Lawrence Taylor on their roster. Banks turned out to be an elite player who helped his Giants win two Super Bowls.
“When we go into the draft, we don’t really target one guy,” Belichick said during a recent interview with The 33rd Team. “Especially when you’re drafting at whatever point. Need isn’t as big of a criteria as good football players. I learned that at the Giants in [1984] when we took Carl Banks. We had Taylor, obviously, and it was kind of like, ‘Why are we taking another outside linebacker?’ As it turned out, that was probably one of the better picks that we had at the Giants…” Belichick said.
As far as Gonzalez goes, he was thankful that he was there at 17 after they traded down with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Belichick said he likes what he’s seen from him so far and looks forward to having him in training camp.
“I don’t think it’s about where you need a player. If you’ve got a good football player, nobody’s ever gonna regret that. I’m glad Gonzo was there. I think when you just go and look for one guy and then he’s not there, there’s other players in the draft that can help us, as well. But he’s been great to work with, and I look forward to getting him ready to go for training camp,” Belichick said.
Given the recent issues with Jack Jones, Christian Gonzalez may wind up having an even bigger role with the team faster than the team anticipated.
Belichick is always one step ahead.