Some key dates in the Patriots' offseason:
April 16 -- Bill Belichick pre-draft press conference
April 18 -- Deadline for teams to sign restricted free agents
April 26 -- NFL Draft (rounds 1-2, starting at 3 p.m.)
April 27 -- NFL Draft (rounds 3-7, starting at 10 a.m.)
May 1 -- Voting begins on Patriots.com to select 2008 Hall of Fame nominee (finalists to be announced later this month)
May 2-4 -- Patriots rookie minicamp (closed to the public)
June 6-7 -- Patriots full-team minicamp (closed to the public)
June 9 -- Patriots Charitable Foundation Golf Tournament
Late July -- Training camp opens (date TBA)
Aug. 2 -- Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrinement for Andre Tippett
The Patriots also have some organized team activities as part of their offseason program. In May, media members will have access to a few days of those activities.
why is the draft starting at 3pm? did it not start at 11 am last year? Also a quick question for you Mike, was Brandon Meriweather one of the visits before last years draft?
I thought they did the 3rd round on the first day?
Hi Big Boy and MarkZ. The draft is starting at 3 p.m. to accomodate television. I don't believe Meriweather visited before the draft last year, but I recall Bill Belichick working him out privately on Miami's campus. The third round will now be on the second day. It used to be on the first day.
--Mike
Thanks Mike ! So just because they did not bring Harvey in for a visit, does not mean they are not interested in him right ?
Big Boy, the visits can mean a lot of things, but just because a player has not visited does mean there is no interest (e.g. Logan Mankins had not visited the team). This has been how I have summed them up:
"NFL teams are allowed up to 30 in-house visits with prospects before the draft. The visits do not include workouts, so they are basically final interviews and medical re-checks. In some cases, the visits are based on genuine interest, and in other cases they can be a smokescreen. The visits can also confirm concerns a team might have about a player for various reasons, and ultimately lead the team to determine it is not interested."
Wait, a Belichick press conference counts as a big date?
"Um, we're going to try to get the best players. Players that we think will fit and help us win."
"Er, we're looking for guys to help us win ball games. Those are the guys we want to draft. Good ones."
Yeah, sounds like a blast. I have my TiVo set!
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