It has never happened before in the BB regime, but when you get a feel for the prospects available in this year's draft, the unthinkable might just happen. The Patriots might go WR in Round 1. Yes, I said it. Round 1.
At first blush, it is an unthinkable occurrence. And yet, I remember a time I thought BB would never draft a linebacker in the 1st round, just because it had never been done before. BB shocked us by drafting Mayo high in the 1st round in 2008.
BB also has not been shy about drafting wide receivers, in just about every other draft, BB has taken a WR in the 2nd or 3rd round. However he has not yet ever expended a 1st round pick on a wideout. The most famous incident would be his trade down to bypass Dez Bryant in the 1st. Then again although Dez Bryant had 1st round talent he also had character question marks which might have induced BB to pass.
This year the Patriots have two clear cut needs - DL and TE. However the depth at DL and TE is such that it becomes doubtful that they will drop all the way down to us in the 1st. And might be gone by our pick in the second. So what do we do? If the value is right, IE the right player is there, we might pick a 1st round talent at WR instead of taking a guy who is valued more as a 2nd round DE or DT.
And the reason we'd go for WR in the 1st is to hedge against the risk that there are no viable TE choices available by our 2nd round pick. By going wideout in the 1st, that allows us to take a development prospect at TE later in the 3rd, 4th, or 5th round. Because it is quite POSSIBLE that all of Ebron, ASJ, Amaro, Niklas, etc. are gone by pick #62. And after that you have a pretty big dropoff.
There is also the Julian Edelman/Amendola situation. If Edelman prices himself out of our market, ie he signs a big 7m+ per deal with another team - we LOSE our leading receiver in production last season, and our best kick returner last season. ON TOP of that, Amendola is a 50/50 proposition to even play in 75% of the games next season. Which means we COULD BE in huge trouble at the WR position!
Therefore it makes sense to sign a 1st round WR, if the talent, and the draft falls in a certain way. Because a 1st round receiver is more likely to make an impact early, which is what we will need. I'm not saying this is the most attractive scenario, because MOST rookie WRs take around 3 years to blossom into their prime. However, our hand might be forced.
That is why I would like to see the Patriots sign a veteran WR in free agency. A guy like a Golden Tate or a Hakeem Nicks to a short deal with not too many bonuses to hedge against the loss of either Julian Edelman to free agency or Amendola to injury. I am not sure that Brady could survive with a wideout core comprised entirely of young bucks - Dobson, Thomkins, and Boyce. Not to mention that Dobson's health and availability have now come into question due to a stress fracture in his foot that may/or may not require offseason surgery!!