New England Patriots 7 Round Mock Draft 2.0

Sep 21, 2013; Blacksburg, VA, USA; Marshall Thundering Herd tight end Gator Hoskins (26) catches a touchdown pass during the first half against the Virginia Tech Hokies at Lane Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports

Round Six, Pick 198: Laurent-Duvernay Tardif (OT, McGill Canada)

One of the big risers of late in the NFL Draft, in fact given a few more weeks, he most likely will be going much higher than this, but until then, this is where Laurent-Duvernay Tardif will go. A relative unknown until recently, Tardif is a CIS (Canadian Interuniversity Sports) player coming from the McGill Redbirds, and a rare breed of Canadian University athlete to be in consideration for the NFL Draft, the last being University of Regina (My School!) DE Akiem Hicks now of the Saints. Tardif is a monster player, going 6’5 and a lean 300 pounds, who is an athletic freak. He’s a bit raw right now, but going to a place like New England where he would haven pressure to start, would be very beneficial, and he could end up turning into a starter down the line.

Round Six, Pick 206: Gator Hoskins (TE/FB Marshall)

I figure that the Patriots will most likely grab two tight ends in this draft, and the best way to do that is grab two vastly different players. Where Fiedorowicz is a big body, and excellent blocker, Hoskins is much smaller, shiftier, and a better playmaker in space. Hoskins is 6’1, 240, and although he doesn’t have the prototypical size of a tight end, he won’t necessarily be playing in the traditional sense of a tight end. He could fill the Aaron Hernandez role, one who can play as an H-Back, even split out and play in the slot. He’s the versatile tight end the Patriots offense severely missed last year.

Round Seven, Pick 244: Brock Vereen (S, Minnesota)

Yes, this is indeed the brother of current New England Patriots player Shane Vereen, but Brock Vereen isn’t even close to the same kind of playing style that Shane brings to the table. While Shane is a finesse player, using shifty speed, Brock is a safety who’d much rather hit you in the mouth. The Patriots could still be in need of some safety depth, and even though they did just sign Patrick Chung earlier this week, he’s definitely not a lock to make the team. Vereen brings the power, and toughness to the secondary and good be a valuable special teamer, and even could eventually be a decent backup one day.