FanHouse EllisHobbs

Who moved to the head of the NFL class during the draft? Find out with FanHouse's team-by-team 2009 Draft Grades.

No team enjoys wheeling and dealing on draft weekend quite like the New England Patriots. The 2009 draft was no exception, as they made a series of moves resulting in 12 picks, and the stockpiling of even more selections in 2010.

As a result, the moves left the Patriots with no first-round selection for the first time since 2000, which is also the same year they selected some guy named Tom Brady.

Who moved to the head of the NFL class during the draft? Find out with FanHouse's team-by-team 2009 Draft Grades.

Earlier this offseason Donovan McNabb said he wanted to see how the Eagles upgraded the roster before he would talk about a contract extension. After last fall, when things got so bad that Andy Reid benched McNabb for Kevin Kolb, it looked as if neither head coach nor starting quarterback would be in Philly another year, much less long term.

Along with the 256 college players drafted last weekend, cornerback Ellis Hobbs also got a new home: the Patriots sent him to the Eagles for a pair of fifth-rounders. It was a surprising move, even for the trade-for-picks-happy Pats. Not only because cornerback was a liability last season in New England, but also because Hobbs is one of the best kick returners in the league.

The Patriots signed Shawn Springs and Leigh Bodden this spring, and '08 second-rounder Terrence Wheatley will compete for playing time with his '09 counterpart, Darius Butler. Which made it easier to jettison Hobbs, despite the fact that he started every game the last two seasons.

NEW YORK -- The New England Patriots drafted UConn's Darius Butler thinking he could replace cornerback Ellis Hobbs at cornerback and in the kick-return game. Today, they accelerated that process, trading Hobbs to the Philadelphia Eagles for a pair of fifth-round picks. The wheeling-dealing Pats immediately flipped both picks, trading up in the fourth round to take Penn State offensive lineman Richard Ohrnberger.

The Eagles, who actually had five fifth-round picks before this deal, sent New England the No. 137 and 141 overall picks in exchange for Hobbs. New England immediately traded both of those picks to Baltimore for the 123rd and 198th picks, and selected Ohrnberger at 123.

It wasn't long ago that Leigh Bodden was the best cornerback most people had never heard of. And then one bad season in Cleveland got him traded to the Lions where, predictably, he flopped.

But Bodden's one of the lucky ones; the new regime released him and now his fortunes have progressed from woebegone to promising. On Tuesday, the Patriots signed Bodden to a one-year deal, which means there's a very good chance that he'll win 11-14 more games in 2009 than he did in 2008. That is the reality of Lions football.

For the first time all season, LaDainian Tomlinson looked like his old, dominating self. Hampered by a toe injury for most of the year, LdT treaded the defense-less Broncos for 96 yards on 14 carries, including three touchdowns, as San Diego eked out a 52-21 win and the AFC West title.

Despite a strained groin that kept him on the sidelines for most of the second half, Tomlinson was understandably elated about his performance and the outcome.

"I was at a point where I was finally healthy, and finally had a chance to really show that I've still got it and can still be highly successful when given the opportunity," Tomlinson said. "It is gratifying to be able to come out here and prove (to) people all the naysayers and what have you that this old man can still run."

And he won't even have to worry about Ellis Hobbs disrespecting the game this January, either.

The Chargers will host the Colts next week, and just like last postseason, Tomlinson's health could be an issue. According to the North County Times' Jay Paris, LdT will undergo an MRI today on his strained groin. And hopefully, unlike a year ago, we won't be subjected to more of this.

I mean, if Philip Rivers can play without an ACL, certainly Tomlinson can suit up with a strained groin. On the upside, even if LdT can't go, there's always Jacob Hester.

Early on, it looked as if the New England Patriots were capable of scoring 100 points on the Raiders, but, then again, a 21-point deficit for Oakland might as well be a 100-point deficit. The Patriots used a dominant first quarter, and a strong performance from Matt Cassel to blast Oakland, 49-26.

Cassel, playing with a heavy heart, completed 18-of-30 passes for 218 yards and four touchdowns. He threw a pair of scores in the first quarter -- one to Kevin Faulk, the other to Randy Moss -- while also connecting with Wes Welker in the second, and once again hitting Moss for a nine-yard strike in the third quarter.

Moss, by the way, making his return to Oakland after two less-than-stellar years there, hauled in five passes for 67 yards and two touchdowns. But, hey, Oakland has John Bowie to show for that draft-day trade. Oops.

The most exciting moment of the game was a 20-second stretch in the second quarter that saw both teams combine for three touchdowns, two of which came on kickoff returns.

Brinson got the ball rolling Sunday night, but NFL FanHouse brainiacs put their humongous eggheads together to continue the discussion: is the Patriots dynasty in the books, or will everything be fine when Tom Brady returns?

Ryan Wilson: Watching the Chargers systematically dismantle the Patriots secondary sent a pretty clear message to the rest of the league: WHEN THROWING THE BALL, FIRST FIND DELTHA O'NEAL, AND THEN CHUCK IT. And while there's a good chance the Patriots would be undefeated (or, at worst, a one-loss team) with a healthy Tom Brady -- and arguably still considered the NFL's best club -- now they're barely ordinary.

Which I think just reinforces the point that great coaches need great players. Hardly original, I know, but a lot of people were interested to see what Bill Belichick would do to keep things going in New England. The answer, it seems, is "start going to church again."

The Patriots signed a free agent cornerback today, but it wasn't the guy Rodney Harrison was asking for. According to Mike Reiss of the Boston Globe, the Patriots announced the signing of free agent Deltha O'Neal this morning just two days after he was released by the Bengals.

After veterans Fernando Bryant and Jason Webster failed to make the final 53-man roster, the Patriots were looking as if they were going to head into the regular season with only Ellis Hobbs, Lewis Sanders and a pair of rookies (11 career interceptions for the group) holding down the cornerback spots on the roster. Not exactly the deepest unit in the league.

O'Neal has played in a pair of Pro Bowls in his career, and was tied for the NFL lead in interceptions just three years ago (with Ty Law!) when he set a Bengals franchise record with ten picks during the 2005 season. Obviously, he has pretty good hands and can come away with his fair share of interceptions, but he's quite the gambler and never met a pump-fake he didn't like.

Training camps are underway, the NFL season is right around the corner, and to get you ready for 2008, FanHouse previews all 32 teams, "heat index" style. We'll rate each club in 10 categories on a scale of 1 to 10, high score wins.

Quarterback: All Tom Brady, all the time. Honestly, he's got it all: a rocket for an arm, Madison Avenue good looks, dreamy eyes (that's what the ladies say, anyway), a few Super Bowl rings, Hall of Fame career, lingerie model girlfriend. He's living the American dream, and as he goes, the Patriots go. Unfortunately for New England, he hasn't played a snap this preseason, and as a result, the Patriots' offense has gone from a battleship that bombed opposing defenses into submission, to a rowboat missing an oar, aimlessly spinning in circles. A healthy Brady is the key to the season, because if the two Matt's (Cassell and Gutierrez) can't get it done in fake games, what's going to happen if they face defenses that have actually game planned and are trying to stop them? Brady will play on one leg, if he has to. Heat Index: 9