Nov 18, 2012; Foxboro, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots defensive end Brandon Deaderick (71) during the fourth quarter against the Indianapolis Colts at Gillette Stadium. The New England Patriots won 59-24. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

In 34 games with 14 starts, Deaderick produced 51 total tackles, five sacks and two forced fumbles. In six postseason games, he added 11 tackles and one sack, and last season, he played in 14 games with five starts recording 14 tackles, one sack and two forced fumbles. But with a more enhanced list of defensive lineman in place such as Rob Ninkovich, Vince Wilfork, Tommy Kelly, Chandler Jones, Justin Francis, Kyle Love, Jermaine Cunningham, Jake Bequette, Armond Armstead, Marcus Forston, Michael Buchanan, and Jason Vega, I think this move allows Armond Armstead to take Deaderick’s spot higher on the depth chart. It also makes interesting to speculate how Belichick is planning in utilizing our 2013 second round pick Jamie Collins as defensive lineman and/or linebacker.

Although guesses can run high as to the reason Deaderick was suddenly released, I can only think it might had something to do with a lack of fitting the Patriot way. Back in 2011, Deaderick was suspended by the team and reasons where unknown as Belichick, of course, maintained the situation between the player and the team. But rumors were that Deaderick had missed several meetings. It could very well be that roster competition just got tougher and coach Belichick was just not going to have team personnel distractions and lack of work ethic.

At least Deaderick was cut early in the season and for him it’s still in time to land on another club. Given that the Oakland Raiders was in need to draft defensive lineman, but waited until the sixth round to draft Stacy McGee and David Bass, Deaderick could be a good and inexpensive addition to their roster – sort of close to fill in the hole left by the departure of free agent Tommy Kelly to the Patriots, but not enough to supplement the departure of Desmond Bryant and Richard Seymour. During this year’s UDFA, the Raiders signed just one defensive tackle – Kurt Taufa’asau, but it’s worrisome as Taufa’asau had little play time due to hand and knee injury. We’ll see if the Raiders see value on Deaderick because I think his stats were relatively good.

Follow Celia Westbrook on Twitter @celiawestbrook

Dec 16, 2012; Foxboro, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots wide receiver Deion Branch (84) reacts during the first quarter against the San Francisco 49ers at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

This is the third installment of a multi-part review and grading of the previous drafts of the New England Patriots in the Bill Belichick era.  With little free agent news and rookie mini-camps quietly running, the Patriots and other NFL teams are in a quiet period until training camp kicks off in July; therefore, this is an excellent period in the NFL schedule to look back and re-grade the previous drafts of the Bill Belichick led New England Patriots. As a note, these draft grades take into account the player’s impact in New England weighed against the other players who were available at the time, as well as the the strength of the draft as a whole that season.  Below is the revisit and re-grading of Bill Belichick’s first draft as a Super Bowl champion in New England:  the 2002 NFL Draft.

The Patriots completed the 2001 season with an improbable run to the Super Bowl beating Oakland in the “Snow Game (in New England)/Tuck Rule (everywhere else) Game” with the controversy of the officials using replay to make the correct call (there had been a similar situation where a turnover was overturned against the Patriots defense in a regular season game earlier that season, so coach Bill Belichick was aware of the rule and how it could apply in that situation). They followed that with an exciting victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Championship game. Then came the amazing Super Bowl victory over the two-touchdown favorite St. Louis Rams behind second-year 6th round draft pick Tom Brady, who had come off the bench to replace local legend Drew Bledsoe at quarterback earlier in the season and never relinquished the job.

The Patriots headed into the 2002 draft with their usual assortment of picks (other than their 6th round pick which was traded in 2000) and an extra 5th round pick from Jacksonville on a draft day trade in 2001.  However, this draft was dominated by the news of the trade the Patriots made with division rival, Buffalo, where they sent their quarterback who had rescued the franchise back in the early 1990s to the Bills for their 2003 first round pick.

As hard as it may be to recall after all the years of excellence from quarterback Tom Brady, there was a big split between the fan base as to keep the quarterback in jersey #11 or #12.  At the time, it was clear that the team could not keep both: Brady had won the Super Bowl and Drew Bledsoe had signed a then-record contract and no team was going to have the highest-paid player in the league as a back-up.  Remember, in the AFC Championship game, Brady had left the game with a leg injury, and Bledsoe had come off the bench to throw the touchdown before half-time that was the difference in the game and sent New England to the Super Bowl.

Because of the 9-11 terrorist attacks that year, there was no usual two-week break between the championship games and the Super Bowl. The local and national media were able to rehash the entire Brady or Bledsoe debate that had lingered all season with the added caveat of Drew Bledsoe having come off the bench to lead the team to victory, had played in a Super Bowl, and was not injured like Tom Brady.  Fortunately, the Patriots made the right choice in the Super Bowl–as they had made during the season–and on the second day of the draft, the Patriots made the correct decision to trade Bledsoe to Buffalo.

1st Round #21: Daniel Graham, Tight End:

The New England Patriots wasted no time moving around the draft, as they packaged their 1st round pick (#32) with their 3rd round pick (#96) and 7th round pick (#234) to Washington for the #21 pick in the first round.  With visions of an offense built around two tight-ends percolating in the brain of Bill Belichick a decade ago, the Patriots grabbed Daniel Graham, a big, athletic target out of Colorado.  Graham was intended to be the big, red-zone target the offense was looking for over the next few years. While the team benefitted from his in-line blocking skills in winning two more Super Bowls, and he did once contribute 7 touchdowns in a season, there is no doubt that Graham did not exactly fill the niche that the Patriots had in mind for him when they traded up to get him.

Should have drafted: On one hand, the Patriots could indicate that at least they did not take linebacker Napoleon Harris (#23), or cornerback Mike Rumph (#27) and at least Graham did not bring the head-aches that the other 1st round tight ends, Jerramy Stevens (#28) and Jeremy Shockey (#14), brought to Seattle and the New York Giants respectively.  However, when looking at the draft that year, the best pick of the draft that year was at #24 overall, so other than Carolina at #2 (hard to argue with picking an athletic freak like Julius Peppers), and Indianapolis at #11 (Dwight Freeney was a controversial pick at the time) 20 teams–including the Patriots–passed over a safety from the University of Miami named Ed Reed.  Denver wasted it’s 1st round pick (#19) on wide receiver Ashley Lelie; Dallas took defensive back Roy Williams over Reed at #8 overall instead of Reed; Arizona took Wendell Bryant #12 overall, and he was out of the league in three years; Cleveland took Boston College running back William Green at #16 and Atlanta took running back T.J. Duckett at #18: this draft had a lot of misses in the 1st round. However, for Bill Belichick, it must hurt thinking how close he was to adding Ed Reed to a defensive back-field with Lawyer Milloy and Ty Law in the 2002 draft.

Grade: B

2nd Round #65: Deion Branch, Wide Receiver:

The New Patriots continued to add weapons for their young quarterback early in the draft, grabbing Louisville wide receiver Deion Branch.  Putting aside the contentious contract negotiations that led the Patriots to send Branch to Seattle before bringing him back as a veteran safety-blanket on the outside, Branch was a home run in New England and played a huge role in the Super Bowl victories after the 2003 and 2004 seasons.  Branch never had a 1000 yard season (although 998 yards in 2005 is close enough), but his ability to step-in to the lineup and step-up in big games (4 100-yard receiving games in the playoffs) was key for the Patriots.

Should have drafted: As the last pick of the 2nd round, there were few players taken in the 3rd round that had that kind of impact. Carolina grabbed linebacker Will Witherspoon at #73 and San Diego grabbed linebacker Ben Leber at #71, and Philadelphia got running back Brian Westbook at #91, but compared to the players taken after him, Branch was the best player there.  Seven other receivers went before Branch in the second round (Jabar Gaffney, #31, Josh Reed #36, Tim Carter #46, Andre Davis #47, Reche Caldwell #48, Antwann Randle El #62, Antonio Bryant #63) and none had the impact that Branch had in his first four years (plus value from the trade to Seattle for their 1st round pick in 2007) in New England.

Grade: A

4th Round #117: Rohan Davey, Quarterback:

The Patriots traded up in the 4th round, sending their pick (#131) with their 5th round pick (#144) to move up and get their back-up quarterback of the future in Rohan Davey, the strong-armed LSU product.  Unfortunately, Davey did not pan out in New England, or in the league.  Out of the NFL after the 2004 season, Davey never made the next step in his development.

Should have drafted: Two very good linebackers came off the board after Davey, Larry Foote went to the Steelers at #128 and Scott Fujita went to the Chiefs at #143.  That said, getting ahead of the Dolphins in the fourth round at #114 would have gotten the team the most productive tight end of the draft, Randy McMichael and Jacksonville grabbed quarterback David Garrard a few spots ahead at #108 in the 4th round.

Grade: C-

4th Round #126, Jarvis Green, Defensive End:

The Patriots obtained this second 4th-round pick from Green Bay for mercurial receiver Terry Glenn (along with another 4th round pick in 2003).  In the middle of round four the Patriots snagged another LSU product in the pass-rushing specialist Jarvis Green.  Not a starter in New England, Green did well as a third-down pass rush specialist and contributed on special teams.

Should have drafted: Three of the next five picks in the draft never played a down in a regular season game.  Defensive tackle Rocky Bernard went to Oakland at #147 and would have helped on the interior of the line, but Green was overall a good fit on the championship defense and likely would have been a starter for another team in his peak seasons.

Grade: B+

7th Round #237: Antwoine Womack, Running Back:

The Patriots traded their second 5th round pick to Dallas for a 2003 5th round pick and snagged a 7th round pick in 2002 as part of the deal. The Patriots had no sixth round pick, having traded that years earlier to the Rams for wide receiver Dane Looker. Looker never panned-out in New England, nor did Womack, who failed to make the team and never played a down in the regular season in the NFL.

Should have drafted: Pittsburgh snared bearded defensive end Brett Keisel at #242.

Grade: D

7th Round #253: David Givens, Wide Receiver:

Givens, taken only 8 picks ahead of the so-called “Mr. Irrelevant” as the last player selected, came out of Notre Dame and–after using his rookie season to earn a roster spot playing special teams–contributed on the 2003 and 2004 Super Bowl teams as one of the regular starting wide receivers. After a strong season in 2005, Givens was lured away in free agency by Tennessee.  Unfortunately, injuries derailed his career.  In his four years in New England, Givens was a steal considering his draft position.

Should have drafted: The only other player in the draft after Givens who contributed was Rock Cartwright, fullback and special-teams player for Washington.

Grade: A

The 1st round pick was solid, but not spectacular.  The 2nd and 7th round picks, Deion Branch and David Givens, remain the only two wide receivers the team drafted and developed into contributors. For three years, the Patriots had their two draft picks regularly lined up outside on a championship caliber team. Round 4 had one wash-out (Rohan Davey) and one solid contributor (Jarvis Green). The other 7th round pick never played.  With only 6 picks, it seems light for a Bill Belichick team; however, the Patriots got some serious bang for their buck with three starters on offense and a solid contributor for the defense.

Overall Draft Grade: B+

New England Patriots tackle Matt Light. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

This is the second installment of a multi-part review and grading of the previous drafts of the New England Patriots in the Bill Belichick era.   With limited breaking news about football and the Patriots in particular until training camp kicks off in July, this is an ideal time to look back and re-grade the previous drafts of the modern New England Patriots. As a note, these draft grades take into account both the player’s impact in New England, weighted against the other players available at the time and the strength of the draft year as a whole.  Below is the revisit and re-grading of Bill Belichick’s second draft in charge of the war room in Foxboro, MA for the 2001 NFL Draft.

The Patriots completed Bill Belichick’s first season in charge of the New England in 2000 with a 5-11 record as the team worked to clear out the dregs of the former Coach Pete Carroll and former General Manager Bobby Grier team and integrate the quality defensive players remaining into the former defensive scheme that was in place when Bill Parcells was coaching in New England and under Bill Belichick as assistant head coach in 1996 led to a Super Bowl trip; meanwhile, the offense was being retooled as franchise quarterback Drew Bledsoe signed a long-term extension with the team.

The Patriots headed into the 2001 draft already down their 4th (#101 overall) and 7th (#206 overall) round draft picks as the additional compensation that went to the New York Jets for the rights to sign head coach and executive Bill Belichick.  This draft introduced the Patriots fan base to the Bill Belichick Draft Shuffle as “Trader Bill” traded up, down, and out. With their #39 pick in the 2nd round, they traded it for #5 and #112 to the Steelers, then moved from #50 to #48 with their 6th round pick (#173). Then they sent their 3rd round pick (#69) to Minnesota for another 3rd (#86) and a 4th (#119).  Also, they sent their original 4th (#112) and a 5th (#139) to the Chargers to move up to #96 in the 4th.  That was just the middle rounds, as there was plenty of wheeling and dealing later in the draft.

1st Round #6: Richard Seymour, Defensive End:

Seymour arrived in New England and was the linchpin of the defensive line throughout the Super Bowl run by the Patriots.  An obvious favorite of Belichick early in his career, Seymour was stout against the run, had some pass rush skills, and was deployed up and down the defensive line.  After a falling out personally with Belichick and professionally (the big money contract for the defensive line was allocated to nose tackle Vince Wilfork),, Seymour was shipped to Oakland where he failed to replicate his success in New England and is currently still on the free agent market after Oakland let him walk when his hefty contract expired. In New England in the early 2000s, however, he was arguably their most valuable defensive player (cornerback Ty Law may have some votes) and the rock in the middle of the defensive line who allowed their linebackers to have space to make big plays. This draft year had busts in the first round like wide receivers David Terrell (#8), Koren Robinson (#9), Rod Gardner (#15), Santana Moss (#16), and Freddie Mitchell (#25); tackle Kenyatta Walker (#14); defensive backs Adam Archuleta (#20), Will Allen (#22), Jamar Fletcher (#25), Derrick Gibson (#28); and especially defensive end Jamal Reynolds (#10); so this draft was important for the Patriots to pick the right player for the team..

Should have drafted: Future Patriot defensive end Andre Carter went one pick after Seymour, but in a re-draft the option would be a big body in the middle like defensive tackle Marcus Stroud (#13) or Casey Hampton (#19).  The sixth receiver taken in the first round was the best, as Reggie Wayne (#30) has had a great career in Indianapolis.  All good picks, but Seymour was the perfect player at the perfect time.

Grade: A

2nd Round #48: Matt Light, Offensive Tackle:

Matt Light was a rock at left tackle for New England for ten years, and for a second round pick, that is great value.  Arizona took tackle Leonard Davis at #2 overall, and it is impossible to fathom that the Patriots would have traded Light straight up for Davis at any time in their careers.  Light was a steal in the 2nd round, as a cornerstone left tackle is hard to find, and this draft was a weak year and was short on impact players. Grabbing Light turned out to be a great deal for New England.

Should have drafted: Hard to argue against Light, but Carolina snagged wide receiver Steve Smith at #74 overall in the 3rd round. Current Patriot free agent signing, safety Adrian Wilson, also went #64 overall in the 3rd round.

Grade: A

3rd Round #86: Brock Williams, Defensive Back :

Again, this draft was not deep.  By this point of the draft, the impact players were gone, and no team was drafting any difference makers. That said, as a 3rd round pick, Williams was a total wash-out, only getting into 12 NFL games in his short career.

Should have drafted: The Dolphins snagged Morlon Greenwood at #88 in the 3rd round, who at least was a serviceable NFL player, which is what all teams are looking for once the draft gets to this stage.

Grade: D

4th Round #96: Kenyatta Jones, Tackle:

Another non-impact player, having played only 21 NFL games and out of the league after 2004, the choice of Kenyatta Jones looks worse each year with Atlanta grabbing guard Roberto Garza three picks later at #99 overall. Garza, who is still contributing in Chicago–and stealing and wearing quarterback Jay Cutler’s jersey in an NFL merchandise TV commercial–after switching to center. Of course, other higher-profile (but limited positive impact) players like linebacker Monty Beisel (#107), quarterback Chris Weinke (#106) and quarterback Sage Rosenfels were drafted around this time along with total wash-outs like linebacker Brandon Spoon (#110), running back George Layne (#108) and the other Gramatica, Bill Gramatica (#98).

Should have drafted: The Colts snagged tackle Ryan Diem at #118, who would have been a better option than Jones, for sure.

Grade: D+

4th Round #119: Jabari Holloway, Tight End:

After striking out with Notre Dame alum Brock Williams in the third round, the Patriots went back to the Fighting Irish for their second 4th round pick. Unfortunately, the result was similar as Holloway contributed only 15 receptions in the NFL (all for the expansion Houston Texans) washing out of the league by the time the Patriots notched their 3rd Super Bowl in 4 years. Holloway never played in a regular season game in New England.

Should have drafted: The best player they did not draft in this spot was probably center Russ Hochstein (#151 overall) who ended up in New England anyway. Brandon Manumaleuna was a decent blocking tight end going at #129.  This part of the draft was pretty slim pickings. A lot of non-impact players were being picked at the bottom of the draft in 2001.

Grade: C-

5th Round #163: Hakim Akbar, Linebacker:

Akbar was the last pick of the 5th round, and played 10 games in the NFL and as out of the league by the end of training camp in 2003.

Should have drafted: Defensive end Ellis Wyms was taken by Tampa at #183 and he and his 19 career sacks make him the best player taken in that area.

Grade: C

6th Round #180: Arthur Love, Tight End:

Love never played for the Patriots, or in a regular season game.

Should have drafted: Green Bay tight end David Martin was a decent blocker and special teams player for a while in the league. He went at #198.

Grade: D

6th Round #200: Leonard Myers, Defensive Back:

Myers arrived in New England as the last pick of the 6th round out of “the U” (U of Miami, FL) and was originally hyped as a steal. He started one game in the NFL, playing 17 total and by 2004 was on the outside looking in.

Should have drafted: Wide receiver T.J. Housmandzadeh went to Cincinnati at #204 and had a decent run of years.

Grade: C -

7th Round # 215: Owen Pochman, Kicker:

Pochman gets credit for contributing just by coming into camp and pushing kicker Adam Vinatieri. If the pushing of Vinatieri resulted in his extra effort and helped in his being ready to kick the game winning field goals in the post-season, maybe this grade should be higher.

Should have drafted: Renaldo Hill, a defensive back taken by Arizona at #202, carved out a decent career starting at cornerback and switching to safety.

Grade: B-

7th Round # 239:  T.J. Turner, Linebacker

Turner did not really do much in New England and did not last the season on the roster.

Should have drafted: One of the best players to come out of the draft in 2001 was guard Stephen Neal who was signed by the Patriots as an undrafted free agent.  Neal was a mainstay on the offensive line for the 2004 season and through his retirement following the 2010 season.  The college wrestling star was a vital cog for the Patriots and an important part of their success.

Grade: D

Two impact  bowl players in the trenches with the first two picks in a weak draft is a good draft, no matter what swings and misses went on later in the draft. Those two picks of Seymour and Light more than make up for the weak players picked, especially since no other team was having any success in the last few rounds.  It wasn’t so much the Patriots missed in the last few rounds, but instead that there was no one any better to pick.  The middle rounds could have been a missed opportunity, as cheap depth players would have been welcome in 2005 and 2006 when these non-impact players started to hurt the team. Signing undrafted free agent Stephen Neal helped over time, but, overall, the two hits early made up for the misses down the line.

Overall Draft Grade: B