"Some of the best players on the Patriots' current roster have ties to Belichick in Christian Gonzalez (2023), Marcus Jones (2022), and Christian Barmore (2021). But the whiffs, especially in the early rounds, were painful and impossible to ignore over the last several years. Cole Strange. Mac Jones. Kyle Dugger. N'Keal Harry. Belichick's Patriots spent some premium draft capital on a bunch of players who are either no longer on the roster or barely still in the league."
"Patriots fans should thank their lucky stars that Gonzalez fell to the Patriots on Day 1 of the 2023 draft, which turned out to be Belichick's last with the team. Gonzalez has already established himself as one of the premier young cornerbacks in the NFL, and per some tapped-in NFL journalists, Belichick nearly botched the pick, which turned out to be one of his best of the 2020s."
Bill Belichick's draft history contains notable early successes but numerous costly misses in recent years. Early Patriots drafts produced Tom Brady, Richard Seymour, and Matt Light. Recent first- and second-round selections such as Cole Strange, Mac Jones, Kyle Dugger, and N'Keal Harry failed to stick or underperformed. Some recent Belichick picks remain valuable, including Christian Gonzalez (2023), Marcus Jones (2022), and Christian Barmore (2021). Mike Vrabel released or traded multiple Belichick draftees, including Strange, Dugger, and Keion White. Belichick reportedly preferred Keion White over Christian Gonzalez in the 2023 first round, while Gonzalez developed into a top young cornerback.
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