C.J. Smith

AFC Notes: Patriots, Amendola, Broncos, Browns

By Ben Levine | at April 14, 2018 11:49 am

Similar to many draft pundits, Bill Belichick is also participating in his own mock drafts. Yesterday, the Patriots head coach provided some insight into the organization’s draft preparation to Jim McBride of the Boston Globe.

“Sometimes we do that, yeah,” Belichick said about mock drafts. “I’d say sometimes it just sparks a conversation. We might internally say, ‘OK, how about Player A and Player B? Player B and Player C?’ And if you did a mock draft where kind of each [staffer] has a team and, ‘OK, it’s your turn. You pick this.’ And now you look at the board, it’s our turn to pick, and ‘Gee, here’s a scenario we hadn’t really thought about. We hadn’t really pictured that this guy would be there.’ So that can kind of stimulate some [conversation].”

Belichick also explained the risks of not evaluating many of the potential prospects.

“Again, it’s just an exercise to, I’d say, just kind of complete the process of preparation,” he explained. “That’s the way it is on draft day, too. A lot of times you’re sitting there looking at players that I thought this player would be there and he’s long gone, or I didn’t think this player would be there and he’s still there…If you haven’t done enough work on the player and he’s still there but you really don’t know the player as well as you should because you thought he wouldn’t be there, then that puts you in a little bit of a dilemma.”

Let’s take a look at some other notes out of the AFC…

• Wide receiver Danny Amendola told ESPN’s Mike Reiss that the Patriots‘ offer didn’t come close to the two-year, $12MM ($8.25MM guaranteed) deal he took with the Dolphins. “I came in with an open mind,” Amendola said. “I understand Bill runs a tight ship, and he hasn’t been known to pay his players, really. I understood that I gave money back to him so I could play for him and play for my teammates and fulfill my side of the contract, and at the end of the day, I had faith that he was going to give me an opportunity to stay. When free agency broke, I came to the realization that he wasn’t going to really come close to any of the other offers I had. I had to make a decision for my family and go down to Miami and continue my career there.”
• The Broncos claimed C.J. Smith from the Browns yesterday, and Mike Klis of 9News in Denver writes that the team has had interest in the cornerback for some time. The organization had been eyeing Smith since his days at North Dakota State, and they expressed interest in him when he wasn’t selected during the 2016 draft. The 24-year-old initially joined the Eagles before signing with the Browns’ practice squad.
• The Browns have named Larry Jackson as their new head of strength and conditioning, reports Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. Jackson had previously served as Texas A&M’s director of football sports performance, and he also served as the school’s NFL liaison. He’ll be replacing Adam Beard, who will stick around the organization in an advisory role. The Browns have also added Dale Jones and Monty Gibson as assistants, and they’ve retained Evan Marcus and Josh Christovich.