Patriots owner Robert Kraft acknowledges

The captured headlines at the start of the new league year thanks to owner Robert Kraft opening up his wallet and shelling out a boatload of cash in free agency. While bringing in the likes of , , Matthew Judon and others should improve the club in a major way in 2021, the reason why New England needed to go on this spending spree is due to the club's poor drafting in recent years. These signings weren't made Vladislav Kolyachonok Kids Jersey to push the Patriots over the top, it was to get them to sea level, which isn't exactly the ideal way to build a championship club. Had the Patriots been able to hit on some of Aaron Ekblad Kids Jersey their recent selections in the draft, there likely wouldn't be as many holes as there were to fill via free agency.Luckily for the club, that doesn't appear to be lost on the Patriots bra s."Look, in the end if you want to have a good, consistent winning , you can't do it in free agency," Kraft told reporters on Wednesday, via . "You have to do it through the draft because that's when you're able to get people of great talent, whether it's Willie McGinest or you get them at a price where you can build a team and be competitive. Once they get to their first contract and they are Paul Thompson Men Jersey superstars, you can only balance so many of them. And so really the teams who draft well are the ones who will be consistently good."Building a core through the draft has been a struggle for the Patriots in recent years. In the first round specifically, New England hasn't been able to find a solid piece to its foundation since selecting (No. 21) and (No. 25) in 2012. However, this isn't just a first-round i sue for the team. Out of the 22 players selected from 2016-2018, only five remain in the organization."I don't feel we've done Colton Sceviour Men Jersey the greatest job the last few years and I really hope, and I believe -- I have seen a different approach this year," Kraft added. "In the end, it all comes out to what happens on the field and how well people execute. You really don't know a draft how good a draft is for at least two years. And especially in the environment we're in now where I am not quite sure what our offseason training and learning abilities will be. It's something we're working very hard with the union today and I think last year younger players were really disadvantaged because they didn't have the Aaron Ekblad Women Jersey time to come and learn and be part of it." During the pre ser, Kraft characterized the Patriots' 7-9 campaign in 2020 as "horrible" and noted that "we want to win, and when we don't, we're not happy." For New England to bounce back in a major way in 2021, it will need to have better succe s in the draft, starting with No. 15 overall where it could be targeting a quarterback to lead its franchise for the foreseeable future.