POD Community Mock Draft: Pick No. 23

Rd. # Player Pos. College 1 23 Vontae Davis CB Illinois General Manager: UKLion

With the 23rd pick of the 2009 Pride of Detroit Community Mock Draft, the New England Patriots select Illinois cornerback Vontae Davis.

Here is UKLion's reasoning for the pick:

The Patriots seem to be the only team close to attaining disgruntled Julius Peppers and I see this pick going to the Panthers. However, assuming this doesn't happen, the Patriots will still need help on the pass-rush. Clay Matthews is relatively popular amongst 'draft experts' but as of yet it appears the Patriots haven't hosted a private workout with Matthews. Louis Delmas has also been projected to go to the Patriots but I see his lack of size and upper body strength (demonstrated by his poor bench press at the combine) as a worry for his transition to the NFL. As well as the need at outside linebacker and safety, the Patriots require a bigger corner, especially now T.O. is in their division. Whilst Matthews and Delmas are available I don't see them as a great fit for the Pats. I see them taking Vontae Davis, the cornerback out of Illinois. The Patriots know they have holes in the secondary and have tried to address these issues with last year's draft and free agency. However, I'm not convinced they are comfortable with their cornerback personnel. Davis has great speed (40 time was sub 4.5), superb size and immense strength for a corner (he was the top performer at the combine with 25 reps). If his work ethic stays strong then he will become a dominant corner in the NFL.