Patriots trade Le Kevin Smith to Denver

I guess that means they like the looks of their rookies. Mike, thanks for the tip- what do you think the trade brought back? (Hopefully a fifth to give to Oakland to get our fourth back- thought the idea of Denver and Oakland trading picks, even indirectly, makes me chuckle.)

This must mean Mike Wright is healthy and/or Kevin Carter is going to sign soon. Probably got back the third round pick BB gave away for Burgess.

5th round pick that will be used to go to Oakland for Burgess, Perhaps?

Let me guess...for a fifth-round pick?

for a 5th round pick... just a guess

Great call, Reiss! You didn't have Le Keeeevin making the squad. Nice to get something for him, whatever it ends up being...

Pryor played well and showed a good motor. Him and Smith became redundant. Maybe they replaced the pick they traded for Burgress?

I heard it was for Brandon Marshall

It would seem the Patriots have more roster worthy players than roster spots. I wouldn't mind seeing a couple other end of/off of the roster guys get shipped to KC and Den before the start of the season. A tight end and offensive lineman perhaps. Maybe even someone like Slater. While there are lot of 2nd round picks on the draft board for next year, I think we're lacking in the mid rounds. It'd be nice to replenish some of them

I would have rather kept him than Mike Wright

can we trade gick to Denver next? although admittedly, he isn't worth much...

Based on what, Gick?

Should be for Denvers fourth, which will be higher than ours.

Sweet to get something for him. How often do we get nothing in return for cuts?

PEr Fox's Alex Marvez: The Broncos acquired reserve DE Le Kevin Smith and a 2010 seventh-round pick from the Pats in exchange for Denver's 2010 fifth-round selection.

There have been a lot of comments on the blog about the downside of having people on other teams who are very familiar with the Pats' players. This is one case where it was to our advantage.

Le Kevin is in the last year of his rookie deal, while Wright recently signed a long-term deal. Tougher to get anything for Wright.

Is Le Kevin the same as Le Bob or Le John or Le Jim?

Think McDaniels would take gick and a 5th for the ghost of Barrel Man?

This is for a 5th round pick that saves them a 4th round pick. Good move

They have been sniffing at Vonnie Holliday, he could be the replacement.

Hey Mike, what's your opinion on why they picked up another RB? Is anyone injured? It appeared that law firm had an impressive game against Philly (hit the holes, ran hard, unlike Maroney)

Question for you Pats fans, is this guy any good? He will probably start for us since we have such thin DL talent. He must not be to bad if he started for you the other night. What position will he play in the 3-4? Thanks,

Good luck this seeason

Well, there goes another middle Georgia (Macon) connection to the Pats. Is Mike Richardson (Warner Robins) next?

Well, I can actually see what gick's point if you want to make argument that the bigger Smith has more upside than Wright. Recall, Wright is undersized for a modern DT - he often over-matched in place of injured Ty Warren last year.

But the guy who knows better than us re-signed Wright, seemingly based on his value in 3rd down pass rush, kick return blocker, factoring durability/work ethic, too.

The bigger news is this move indicates Pats must really like the remaining crop of DL reserves like Green, Brace, and maybe most surprisingly Myron Pryor.

This DL personnel depth glut made Smith expandable. Also consider MikeR just reported the Pats had zero draft picks in the 2010 3rd - 5th rounds.

Bronco Fan, Smith was a bubble player for us, most likely getting cut. He played very little here, but knows the system that Mcdaniels is implementing and should give you some quality snaps in a reserve role.

Bronco Fan,
The truth is that none of us really know how good LeKevin is. When you have Richard Seymour, Ty Warren, Jarvis Green, and Mike Wright ahead of you, it's not necessarily an indictment of your skills when you don't get on the field. I think it's a good move for the Broncos. He has been taught by one of the best coaches of all time, has learned from some great veterans, and cost the Broncos very little when you factor in the 7th rounder they also received. I wish him luck. He made it onto a stacked roster at a stacked position for three straight years. Now he deserves a chance to shine.

Bronco fan: if I recall LeK Smith sometimes spelled Richard Seymour late in games, or be part of a sub package when they varied from the 3-4. Seemed to be progressing. He played in the SB, too. He's trained in 3 - 4 work 2 gap work, but the question is how we he perform on downs 1 - 3 on a regular basis.

FYI, I stayed up (too) late last night watching 1st half replay of pre-season Broncos opener. We've sure seen that offense before - how'd you like it vs. Shanan and Culter?

Big question is does Orton have the sufficient decision-making skills to make that Pats-style offense work? Sims? Not very appealing QB choices from a distance, but, it also occurred to me that Cutler may now have excelled in that offense, either. No wonder Josh McD made the play for Cassell.

I'd love to see them get rid of Maroney. We could get a new bundle of towels and a kicking tee for him! He still dances at the line and doesn't hit the holes. Someone needs to remind him that this is the NFL not college.

The Pats traded the French Silent Bob to the Broncos?

Thanks for the info on LeKevin (is that really his name). As for the offense, I am still getting used to us running all of these shotgun plays on 1st and 2nd downs. The first drive Orton looked great, minus the int in the endzone. I think he will be fine, this offense is so complex, and gives the WR's option routes ect, so I think it will take some time to get on the same page. McDaniels has been impressive so far, I think he will have much better success then some of Bill's other assistants.

The 3-4 defense Nolan and McDaniels are bringing to Denver was much improved, we had four sacks in the first game!!

Hey Kenny and Mikein NH,

Nice analysis guys. Well done.

Some of you may not know this but Le Kevin is French for "The Kevin."

Le Kevin. . . WTF kind of le name is that? Haha

It's ashame the Pats could use all the ex cornhuskers they can get.. Russ Hochstein has been money when called upon and he's a great back up... Same with Smith.. I'm watching Terrence Nunn and besides that bumbled kick off return he's been turning heads in practice...

I can't believe they got value for this guy. Granted, he's been a serviceable backup over the past couple years, can play both line spots (although seemed to exclusively play DE last year), and had a really good game Thursday. But still...to get ~5th round trade value for the guy is really an impressive feat by the Pats.

Note to Donkey fans--it is pronounced 'Le Kee-vin'...

LeKevin has a very good chance to start on the Broncos. Their starting 3-4 linemen are Ryan McBean, Ryan Fields and Kenny Peterson. Smith has shown flashes against 2's and 3's with experience playing in a reserve role. This looks like a good trade given the depth the team has on the D-Line. Good Luck to LeKevin.....

I'm not a Broncos fan, Ghost of Lombardi, and I don't care how it's pronounced, it's still effed up, haha!

I'm not a Broncos fan, Ghost of Lombardi, and I don't care how it's pronounced, it's still effed up, haha!

I'm not a Broncos fan, Ghost of Lombardi, and I don't care how it's pronounced, it's still effed up, haha!

Kind of like LeBron.

Anyone saying we should drop Maroney should stop watching football; he's the best back on the team easily. That 2007 season would have been 17 - 1 instead of 18- 1 if not for Maroney.

Somebody else must have wanted his number 90!

This is so unfair. Le Kevin is one of the nicest men alive and this is how the Patriots thank him for all of his hard work? At least the rest of the NFL may finally be able to see his greatness.

Mike D. - No, they thanked him by paying him every week.

Yes, BroncoFan, the first drive Orton appeared to see what he expected - he seemd in command. And yes, there's an increased responsibility on your receivers now to react to the coverage in sync with the QB. It will take patience and work thru the season, but ask Brady and Cassell how that system works for them.

Thanks, Rob Gordon, but MikeR's reporting provides all the insight a Pat fan could hope for, IMO.

Looks like marvcook is on the same wave-length, too,

This confirms it; the Patriots feel as if D-Line has the ample talent & hunger to be effective. I liked Smith alot as a player; he is a very good talent.

Well played Patriots! We traded a guy who wasn't going to play much and was drafted in the 6th round in 2006 for a 2010 5th rounder! A 6th for a 5th.

And that means the Raiders get our 5th rd pick in 2010 instead of our 4th rd pick. Well done. Plus we avoid just losing him next year when his 3 yr rookie contract expires....we likely wouldn't have signed him to an extension anyway, and got some value for him. I noticed he was playing in the 1st quarter Thursday night and figured something was up.

Well played Patriots! We traded a guy who wasn't going to play much and was drafted in the 6th round in 2006 for a 2010 5th rounder! A 6th for a 5th.

And that means the Raiders get our 5th rd pick in 2010 instead of our 4th rd pick. Well done. Plus we avoid just losing him next year when his 3 yr rookie contract expires....we likely wouldn't have signed him to an extension anyway, and got some value for him. I noticed he was playing in the 1st quarter Thursday night and figured something was up.

Le Kevin is Great talent and will excel in the Broncos 3 -4 defense all the guy need is more time to shine and sometimes Bill make trades with the idea of that same reason he knows the guy is a hard worker and has talent but the cards some times are stacked against him so he makes trades to allow them to excel and get the pay day he deserves to make eventually, to bad alot of the so called Pats fans can't read between the lines and understand some trades, without trying to bad mouth the players are short change them on talent. Know the game before you can discuss it. Good Luck Le Kevin true Pats fans wish you well and thanks for a great job while you were here.

Anyone want to shed some light on why Belichick is giving away players cheap to the competition in the conference? He gives away backup QB Matt Cassel (with no decent backup by the way) and now this. Seems like he is setting up his old comrades (Pioli, McDaniel) to be decent. I am sensing retirement soon for Belichick.

THHHHHAAAHHHH Kevin Smith

Assuming Carter wasn't going to make the team, the Patriots got a 5th in return for nothing which they promptly shipped to Oakland, making the deal with Oakland a 3rd and a 7th (to Denver) for Burgess. Not bad.

Good!

I long ago ~ in April ~ called for us to make at least two moves for additional Draft Picks, before Opening Day, and that's one. It seems a pretty fair price, and we can be sure that we won't get a better price than from guys ~ namely: Scott Pioli and Josh McDaniels ~ who've recently seen our bubble guys play, and best know their value.

I'd love to see a couple more moves. And I certainly haven't seen anything to make me doubt that we're going to be in a position to make them!

Some Potential Trade Candidates...

1 ~ RB BenJarvus Green

And, as I've said before, I wouldn't be shocked if they moved Maroney for the right price, which I'd consider to be a 3rd Rounder. Green seems more likely, quite possibly for a 5th or a 6th. We've got tremendous depth at that position, and I'd like to see us keep 4, not the 5 that Mike projects.

2 ~ TE Ben Watson

That's a bold pick, obviously, but I've been speculating about this one for a long time. Both he and Dave Thomas have been problematic, and Coach Bill didn't make the moves on Smith and Baker without the likely intent of playing them. Indeed, while most will consider this idea a crazy one, I wouldn't be surprised if it's been in Coach Bill's mind all along. Thomas I wouldn't expect more than a 5th for, and a 6th, more likely. But Watson could very well fetch a 4th, and I would dare hope for a 3rd. Again, while Mike calls for 4 Tight Ends on the Final, I'd rather see 3.

3 ~ RT Ryan O'Callaghan

I think there's a VERY good chance we make a move at Right Tackle, and Nick Kaczur certainly could be the one traded. And I could see a solid 4th Rounder coming for either, or even a 3rd. Better yet: Keep them both, and go with 9 O Linemen, giving us 2 fine Reserves at OG/C AND LT/RT!

*** Other Roster Notes ***

I'd like to see us go with 4 ILB's, not the 3 that Mike likes. No way in HELL we should cut Pat Lenon! With him, we have a nice, deep rotation. Without him, we are one step away from HELL. That would be an HUGE mistake, to cut him.

I like Aiken, but I think I'd rather see us keep Slater, thank you...or even Nunn!!

Teddy Ice Cold Bruschi is a GOD, but if ILB McKenzie hadn't got hurt, no way in HELL would it be smart to keep him, at this point!

I would LOVE to see a 56 Man Roster, so we could be assured of keeping Matt Slater, DT Darryl Richard, and Hybrid Tank Williams!!

Who will be the next Patriot headed to either KC or Denver? Will it be Tyson Devree TE/ST To Denver or will it Be Ben Watson to either Philly or KC??? There are other players on my list of tradeables,like either Hodel or Ingram will get traded,There are a couple of linemen that will have value to some teams,BB has a lot of manuevering too do....

French Silent Bob, well done, jay.

I must agree in large part with the fatman--Maroney was outstanding in the '07 playoffs. The AFC title game vs SD was very close--red zone D is what I recall as the pivotal factor, but LM was solid as well IIRC. The Jacksonville game sticks in my mind vis a vis (French for with regard to) Maroney.

Le Grande Royale...you know because of the metric system.

Mike R- Everyone expects this #5 pick to go to Oakland so we can recover our #4 from the Burgess deal. Do you expect Bill B will hold onto this pick until after the season/closer to draft day so that IF it is a high #5 (i.e. Denver does not do well) BB can then trade down in the #5 round, pick up something extra (such as trading with one of the best teams Denver's early #5 pick for a late #5 and next year's #7), then give Oakland the later-in-the-round #5 pick?