The New England Patriots may be Super Bowl champions, but losing starting cornerbacks Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner in free agency didn't exactly help their chances of a repeat.
Bill Belichick is known to compensate for the loss of talent in one area by beefing up another. His signing of Jabaal Sheard points to an improved defensive line that will win the battle at the line of scrimmage more often, putting less pressure on the secondary. But even with progress made on the rest of the roster, the Pats still need to replace their departed cornerbacks. That's where the NFL Draft comes in.
New England has been linked to UCONN cornerback Byron Jones with the 32nd overall pick in the draft. But another possibility at the end of round one for possibly in round two is Florida State CB Ronald Darby.
"The 5-foot-10 5/8, 193-pound Darby runs well (4.38 tim in 40), which is an asset that counters concerns scouts might have from him being a bit undersized," ESPN Patriots reporter Mike Reiss wrote. "He enters the draft after his junior season and some media-based projections have him sneaking into the back half of the first round. He has played against top competition and practiced against it regularly (e.g. Kelvin Benjamin)."
Darby has also been mentioned as a possibility for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Both teams have big needs at the cornerback spot, but it's unknown if the Steelers would be willing to reach for Darby at No. 22. The Cowboys at No. 27 are another possibility.
The Patriots have signed cornerbacks Bradley Fletcher, Chimdi Chekwa and Robert McClain this offseason. Unfortunately, those three are coming from teams that ranked 31st, 16th and 32nd in pass defense, respectively, last season. Those poor team performances can't be hung on one player's shoulders, but their signings aren't quite the positive steps New England fans were probably hoping for in the secondary.
