Bill Belichick trading for Mohamed Sanu is a reminder that he’s not perfect at everything
By John Buhler
Bill Belichick and the Mohamed Sanu trade, dare I say it, makes him…human?
Bill Belichick knows your players better than you do, expect when it comes to wide receivers.
Last fall, Belichick thought he was landing one of the best possession receivers in the NFL when he orchestrated a blockbuster deal for Mohamed Sanu with the Atlanta Falcons. Though Falcons general manager and former New England Patriots front office executive Thomas Dimitroff has his faults, he continually hits on evaluating wide receiver talent, while his mentor Belichick doesn’t.
Sanu shined as the Cincinnati Bengals’ No. 3 option on his rookie contract. Dimitroff signed Sanu as a free agent in 2016, becoming the Dirty Birds’ No. 2 wide receiver behind only Julio Jones. For 3.5 years, Sanu was a reliable pass-catcher for Atlanta, but was quickly slipping down the depth chart. Jones stayed at one, while Calvin Ridley became two and Russell Gage emerged as three.
In short, Sanu became expendable for the reeling Falcons last year. Had he stayed in Atlanta, Sanu would have been serviceable, but nothing more than the fourth or fifth option in the Falcons receiving corps that included perennial Pro Bowl tight end Austin Hooper. Desperate for playmaking ability, Belichick swallowed Dimitroff’s bait hook, line and sinker. He paid a price for it.
When it comes to wide receivers, Bill Belichick has no idea what he’s doing.
By trading for Sanu, Belichick thought he would be getting a No. 2 receiving option after Julian Edelman, like what Sanu was in his first two seasons with the Falcons in 2016 and 2017. Turns out, Edelman and Sanu were redundancies, as they are former option quarterbacks who were converted into slot receivers, carving out successful careers high-end secondary receiving options.
For Belichick to get Sanu, he had to give up the Patriots’ second-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Armed with the No. 55 overall pick, Dimitroff traded it to the Baltimore Ravens for former first-round pick Hayden Hurst to replace Hooper at tight end, who signed with the Cleveland Browns in his free agency. Baltimore used that No. 55 pick to land Ohio State star running back J.K. Dobbins.
Though it remains to be seen what Hurst will do in Atlanta and Dobbins in Baltimore, it will be better than what Sanu gave the Patriots in half a year of service. Matt Ryan makes every tight end he plays with look good, as he does with pretty much every receiver. It’s a big reason he will end up in Canton one day. Put Dobbins in the Greg Roman plus-one offense, and good luck with that.
While Sanu looks to join his fourth NFL team out of Rutgers University, the Patriots’ passing game will continue to search for answers. Edelman may be a proven commodity, but second-year pro N’Keal Harry definitely is not. Cam Newton is nowhere near the precision passer of Brady or Ryan, so maybe the 2020 Patriots offense resembles that of what the Buffalo Bills run for Josh Allen?
dark. Next. 3 potential landing spots for Mohamed Sanu
Either way, the Sanu trade at the deadline last year was a colossal failure. The Patriots gave up a top-60 pick they could have drafted a perennial Pro Bowler with. Would you be all that shocked if Hurst or Dobbins make it to a Pro Bowl in the next few years with their current team? Me neither. Would you be shocked if Sanu resurfaces and has a quality 2020 playing for someone else? Nope.
Belichick may be the best NFL coach of our lives, but the Sanu deal shows us he is human after all.