Pats get back to their trading ways in Day Two
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Tavon who?
That seems to be the general consensus as the Patriots dipped into the 2nd round of the NFL Draft Friday night, and selected defensive back Tavon Wilson from Illinois.
Wilson is a 6-foot, 203 pound safety/cornerback taken with the 48th overall pick in the draft, and the first of two picks New England held in the 2nd round. The Patriots later traded the second of their two 2nd round selections at #62 overall to Green Bay, in return for a 3rd rounder (90th overall) and a 5th round pick (#163).
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTSimilar to the 2009 draft, where the Patriots took little-known offensive lineman Sebastian Vollmer out of Houston, Wilson was not invited to the NFL Combine. In fact, several draft publications did not even have him selected within the entire seven round 2012 draft. Wilson’s versatility – the ability to play either cornerback or safety – is seen as his strong suit, however…as is his ability to contribute to special teams.
Wilson was a team captain for his senior year with the Illini, had 81 total tackles and was named an honorable mention all-Big Ten selection.
"It was definitely motivating," Wilson said of his Combine snub to the media Friday night. "Anytime you don't get into something you feel you should be in you just .... I'm a competitor. I watched it and saw what those guys did and when I got my opportunity to show what I could do, I showed what I could do."
Wilson had both of his parents pass away at a very young age, and was raised by his grandmother. He said some of the adversity faced as a child has helped him – and should continue to help him – in his professional life. “Everybody has to overcome adversity. I overcame a lot of things in my life. That’s the reason I’m here today and the reason why I’m the person I am today. I never get too high or too low, I just keep working all the time.”
As for the 3rd round pick, #90 overall, the Patriots chose Jake Bequette, a 6-5, 274 pound defensive end out of Arkansas. Bequette informed scouts at last month's combine that he had injured a pectoral muscle during the workouts, and elected not to take part in measurable drills. At the request of scouts from 3-4 defensive alignment teams, Bequette did work out at outside linebacker. He was a four-year starter, and made second team all-SEC at defensive end as a junior. Even though he battled a hamstring injury most of his senior year, he still led the SEC in sacks with 10, and made 1st team all-SEC.
