New England Patriots Possible Target in the 2015 NFL Draft – Shaq Thompson, LB/S Washington
 Shaq Thompson is one of the most versatile players in the 2015 NFL Draft. He can play linebacker, safety or running back in the NFL (USA Today, Image) |
As the 2015 NFL Draft draws closer we’ll profile some of the players that may be on the Patriots radar. Some of these players have already been linked to New England as possible targets others, we feel would be a great fit.
Check out our earlier 2015 NFL Draft profiles on PatsFans.com:
DE/OLB Nate Orchard from Utah
WR Tyrell Williams from Western Oregon
DT Jordan Phillips from Oklahoma
DT Carl Davis from Iowa
RB David Johnson from Northern Iowa
CB Steven Nelson from Oregon State
OLB Zack Hodges from Harvard
CB Ronald Darby from FSU
WR Devin Funchess from Michigan
OG A.J. Cann from South Carolina
RB Mike Davis from South Carolina
ILB Benadrick McKinney from Mississippi State
OLB Hau’oli Kikaha from Washington
T Jeremiah Poutasi from Utah
OLB Kyle Emanuel from North Dakota State
RB Jay Ajayi from Boise State
WR Jamison Crowder from Duke
CB Kevin Johnson from Wake Forest
DT Eddie Goldman from Florida State
The Patriots have some specific areas of need heading into the 2015 NFL Draft, most notably at CB, DL and OL. But they also can use some depth at linebacker where Dont’a Hightower is recovering from off-season shoulder surgery and Jerod Mayo is rehabbing from a season ending injury he suffered in Week 6 in 2014.
During the season, the Patriots went mainly with the pair of Jamie Collins and Hightower and both of them turned in excellent seasons. However depth behind them especially after Mayo went down was an issue.
The team brought in both Akeem Ayers and Jonathan Casillas who played well but lost each of them during free agency. The Pats have a couple of intriguing young players most notably James Morris who they signed last spring but was lost to injury during training camp. They can use some added athleticism and speed at the position, while building some depth at the position.
Shaq Thompson from Washington is arguably the most versatile athlete in this season’s draft. Thompson played mainly outside line backer for the Huskies but also played running back gaining 456 yards on just 61 carries (7.5 avg), with two touchdowns. He also scored four touchdowns defensively and was awarded the Paul Hornung Award, as the nation’s most versatile player for 2014.
Undersized for a linebacker at 6’0, 228, Thompson doesn’t have the frame to add much more size and weight and would probably be best suited to remaining where he is physically to be his most effective.
Thompson is undeniably a most outstanding athlete but where will he fit in the NFL? A little bit of everywhere. Although light for the position, he will be a perfect fit for the LB/S hybrid role in the NFL. With the massive influx of athletic tight ends that can catch and run, defenses are going more and more with subpackages and they need a big defender that can physically match up with tight ends and be athletic enough to cover.
Thompson is extremely agile and can move all over the field to make plays with outstanding change of direction ability. He’s able to slip around blockers and is a reliable but not an explosive tackler, wrapping up ball carriers with very good technique.
Pros:
- Extremely versatile, can play offense, defense and special teams
- Can play the hybrid linebacker/safety role and cover tight ends
- Very active and aggressive, reads the play extremely well
Cons:
- Undersized for a linebacker at the NFL level, gets swallowed up at times
- Role would be undefined at first, is he a LB or a safety?
- Takes risky angles to beat blockers at times
Where can the Patriots can get him?: Where Thompson will land in the draft is as puzzling as what his actual role will be at the next level. While an elite athlete, Thompson will need to fall to a team that can utilize his talents. If he’s there at the end of the second round, then he’d be an attractive option for the Patriots.
Bill Belichick was ahead of the curve when it comes to linebacker/safety hybrids, it just didn’t work out at the time. He brought in John Lynch near the end of his career and more notably Tank Williams who was very similar in size to Thompson. Williams never worked out because of injuries, he just couldn't stay on the field.
Thompson would fit that 4-3 outside linebacker role in sub-packages and would have the ability to cover the more athletic tight ends, and blitz off the edge. He’s athletic and agile enough to move all over the field and still be stout enough come into the box to help in run support. With his RB skills, I imagine Belichick would experiment with him as the up-man in punt returns, similar to what Danny Amendola did in 2014.
However his lack of size for the position doesn’t make him an ideal early down outside linebacker. He’ll have to find the right system as many experts say with the right coach…. Bill Belichick has done this dance before, so this may be the guy who makes it work.
And Thompson is very intelligent on the field; he’ll pick up the calls seamlessly and know the defense inside and out. He’s also a high character player, something that can’t be overlooked in this era of so many red-flagged prospects.
**Interesting Foot-note** - Thompson was signed by the Red Sox as a centerfield prospect. But things didn’t work out for him with the Sox as he went 0-39 with 37 strikeouts before returning to football with the Huskies.
Here is a highlight film of Thompson courtesy of NFL Draft Geek:
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