Eliot Wolf talked Patriots’ draft strategy, quarterback evaluating, and who has final say on picking players
Wolf spoke to reporters ahead of the NFL scouting combine.
For the first time in decades, the Patriots approach the NFL Draft without Bill Belichick in charge. The changes made following Belichick’s exit in January will have a profound impact on the organization, including who New England might end up selecting with the highest draft pick the team has held since 1993.
Eliot Wolf, the Patriots’ director of scouting, spoke to reporters on Tuesday ahead of the annual rookie scouting combine in Indianapolis. He answered questions on a variety of topics, including the team’s approach to free agency, who has final say on draft picks, and what attributes New England might look for in a possible first-round quarterback.
“It’s going to be a lot of work,” he said of rebuilding the Patriots after a 4-13 season. “We’re really excited to get going here and try to help improve the team and get us back to respectability.”
What was said about free agents
New Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo said in January that the team has plenty of salary cap space and is “ready to burn some cash,” suggesting a potentially aggressive approach to free agency.
Wolf gave his own version of the response, walking a more neutral path.
“We’re going to aggressively try to help the team,” he said. “Take that however you want it, but we will try to do what’s right, whether that means spending or saving.”
New England has already had contract negotiations with two of the team’s primary free agents, guard Mike Onwenu and safety Kyle Dugger.
“We definitely want to keep Mike and Kyle,” Wolf acknowledged.
Onwenu reportedly recently fired his agent, though Wolf still sees a path for the 26-year-old offensive lineman to return to the Patriots.
“It doesn’t impact us,” Wolf said of Onwenu’s split from his agent. “Mike’s a core player for us. It’s no secret we want to try to keep Mike, and it’ll just be a little bit of a wrinkle dealing with him. Mike’s really smart, and he’s introspective, and he’s thoughtful. He knows what he wants, which is always good when you’re dealing with a player. He’s certainly someone we view as a cornerstone for us.”
After years of having the presence of Tom Brady to help recruit free agents, Wolf was asked what the updated pitch to possible signings might be in the offseason.
“I would say our pitch to free agents is this is a new program, and we’re heading in the right direction,” he said. “It’s a new era. We have leadership with Jerod Mayo that is going to be tremendous. He’s an unbelievable leader and developer of people, and I think that as we move forward with the new offense and defense, it’s going to be pretty special and exciting here.”
What was said about the new hierarchy without Belichick
Wolf retained his title as director of scouting after the changes made via Belichick’s departure (he was given the title in 2022). He was asked who will make the final call on draft.
“It’s going to be a collaborative effort: Coach Mayo, myself, [director of player personnel] Matt Groh, the whole staff,” Wolf explained. “At the end of the day, somebody has to make that pick, and that’ll be myself.”
With Belichick out, does he think the Kraft family ownership will play a more direct role in roster decisions?
“They prefer to stay out of football, but they’ve been very supportive of Jerod and myself, and Matt,” Wolf said. “Anything we need, we’ve got in a lot of ways. I think they have opinions — which they’ll share — but ultimately it’s down to Jerod and I.”
What was said about evaluating and (potentially) drafting a quarterback
Holding the third overall pick, the Patriots have a chance to get one of the higher-rated quarterbacks available in 2024. Wolf was asked several questions about rookie quarterbacks, as well as how he evaluates them.
At this point in time, he cautioned against jumping to conclusions.
“We’re pretty early the process,” said Wolf. “I haven’t met any of these guys. Jerod hasn’t met any of these guys, so as we continue through the process here, we’ll determine what’s best for the team.”
As far as what he’s looking for in a quarterback, Wolf shared some general attributes.
“First of all, being someone that can elevate his teammates, someone that your teammates want to play for,” he explained. “I think that’s an extremely underrated thing that people don’t talk about that much. Leadership’s important, and obviously physical talent. We wouldn’t be talking about these guys if they weren’t physically talented.”
What was said about the new draft grading system
Over the 24 years of the Belichick era, New England developed a distinct system of grading draft prospects. With the longtime coach now gone, some of the evaluating practices are being changed.
Wolf, whose father (Ron Wolf) was a longtime general manager of the Packers, and who himself worked for Green Bay in various personnel roles from 2004 through 2017, gave an overview of the differences in the old and new grading systems.
“We changed the grading system. It’s a little bit more similar to what we did in Green Bay,” he said. “The previous Patriots system was more ‘this is what the role is,’ and this is more kind of value-based. I think it makes it a lot easier for scouts to rate guys and put them in a stack of ‘this guy’s the best, this guy is the worst, and everything in between falls into place.’ Rather than sort of more nuanced approaches. I just think it accounts value better and also makes it easier for the scouts — in the fall as well as in the spring — to determine where guys will get drafted.
“To me, it’s a little bit less about the grading scale and more about the process that we put in place,” Wolf added. “This process is a lot more collaborative. We hear from the scouts more. We’re going to be able to determine, together, what is the best thing for the team at the end of the day.”
He distilled the offseason priorities for upgrading the roster to several specific points.
“In terms of just physical skills, we need to weaponize the offense,” Wolf said. “We need to be faster and more explosive on defense. Height, weight, speed, playmaking ability, there will definitely be an emphasis on those things.”
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