The Patriots moved down seven spots from #22 to #27 in the first round via two trades. At #27 they selected Devin McCourty, a cornerback from Rutgers. McCourty finished with 231 tackles, 2 forced fumbles, and 6 interceptions over his four year career.
The numbers don't look great, but McCourty looks like a versatile cover corner who's going to be a nice depth pickup for New England. It's interesting that they traded down and ended up missing Dez Bryant, the draft's best receiver who could help soften the loss of Wes Welker.
The Pats also passed on linebacker additions in Jerry Hughes of TCU and Sergio Kindle from Texas. I thought the secondary was solid for most of last season and an emerging Darius Butler combined with Leigh Bodden would make for a reasonable 1-2 combination. However, it is a deep draft and it's likely New England can find front seven help in their three second round picks.
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