Morning Sports Update
“With no deal in place right now, the Patriots are expected to stick and pick at No. 3.”
The latest report on the Patriots’ draft plans and Jonathan Kraft’s role: On Tuesday, NFL insider Diana Russini of The Athletic shared an update on the possible decision-making process behind the Patriots’ draft approach.
Noting that the Patriots are reportedly taking calls for the third overall pick, Russini included an interesting line regarding director of scouting Eliot Wolf and team president Jonathan Kraft.
“While Eliot Wolf is running point, I’m told Patriots’ President Jonathan Kraft is heavily involved in the decision making,” Russini said.
The mention of Kraft — and that he may have a major role — inevitably created a stir, harkening back to reports of his father, Robert, overruling then-Patriots head coach Bill Parcells regarding the first-round choice in the 1996 draft (New England ended up taking wide receiver Terry Glenn).
On Wednesday, a day before the high-profile first round of the draft gets underway, Russini provided a little more detail about Kraft and the Patriots.
“The team has yet to award the title of general manager to Eliot Wolf, who is running point, and it has shifted to a more collaborative process overseen by Jonathan Kraft,” wrote Russini in a larger piece about pre-draft reports. “Ownership is allowing the football decision-makers to make the calls while keeping open a constant line of communication. But make no mistake, the Krafts know everything that is going on, as they should.”
The additional context to the report—that “ownership is allowing the football decision-makers to make the calls”—may offer some reassurance to worried fans about whether or not the football professionals are in charge (as opposed to ownership).
Given that it’s the first draft for the Patriots without Bill Belichick in nearly a quarter-century, the team’s model will inevitably change. Exactly what that means in terms of decision-makers remains to be seen, though Russini also noted that New England currently seems likely to draft at the third overall spot as opposed to a trade.
“With no deal in place right now, the Patriots are expected to stick and pick at No. 3,” she explained.
On additional nugget: Russini added that should the Patriots pursue a trade, it likely won’t happen until it’s known who the Commanders will take with the second pick.
Trivia: Only one team in the NFL has an owner who also serves as team president and general manager. Can you name him?
(Answer at the bottom).
Hint: He was a co-captain of Arkansas’ 1964 undefeated college football team.
Scores and schedules:
The Red Sox lost to the Guardians 4-1 on Tuesday in the opener of a three-game set. The second game gets underway tonight in Cleveland at 6:10 p.m.
Tonight at 7 p.m., the Bruins face the Maple Leafs in Toronto in Game 3 of the first-round NHL playoff matchup. The series is tied 1-1.
Also tonight (and also at 7 p.m.), the Celtics host the Heat in Game 2 of the first round of the NBA playoffs. Boston currently leads the best-of-seven series 1-0.
In addition to the postseason games, PWHL Boston will be in action tonight on the road against Ottawa in a regular season matchup at 7 p.m.
More from Boston.com:
A look at the potential No. 2 pick: With the Patriots set to draft third, New England’s attention will initially be on who the Commanders pick second. Here’s the latest on what player (or move) Washington might do.
On this day: In 1983, the Bruins defeated the Sabres 3-2 in overtime of Game 7 of the NHL Division Finals after initially falling behind 2-0.
Also, the Celtics completed a three-game sweep of the Hawks in the first round of the NBA playoffs. Boston won convincingly, 98-79, but the dominant talking point from the game was a bizarre sequence in which Celtics guard Danny Ainge and Hawks center Tree Rollins got into a mid-game fight. The scuffle culminated with Rollins biting Ainge’s finger, forcing him to receive five stitches.
“Tree bites man,” read a famous Boston Herald headline the next day. The Globe also ran with the inevitable puns:
Daily highlight: Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky made the save of the NHL playoffs with a no-look spin and block to prevent a goal in the 3-2 overtime win over the Lightning to take a 2-0 series lead on Tuesday.
Trivia answer: Jerry Jones
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