What to Know About Patriots' 2nd-Round Pick, Safety Kyle Dugger

There was a little bit of a surprise from the New England Patriots when they made their first selection in this year's draft. With the 37th overall pick, the Patriots chose Lenoir-Rhyne safety, Kyle Dugger.

While many expected New England to take an edge defender (like A.J. Epenesa or Zack Baun) or trade down, they elected for Dugger instead. For those who do not know, Dugger is a very exciting prospect, who will likely bring some cheers and awes to Gillette Stadium.

The Division II prospect absolutely dominated his competition and merits a second round selection. He is an outrageous athlete who clocked in the 90th percentile in several drills at the NFL Combine. He flies all over the field and is a very skilled returner, so much so that he was a primary returner in this year's Senior Bowl.

It will be really interesting to watch the Patriots work with everyone they have at safety this season, as both Dugger and free agent signing Adrian Phillips are both Swiss-Army knives in their own way. With Devin McCourty still here, Patrick Chung still here (for now), and Phillips, Dugger, and Terrence Brooks all in the picture, the defensive approach for New England will be really interesting moving forward

There was some talk of Dugger playing linebacker during the draft process because of his rather large size for a strong safety. It is yet to be seen whether the Patriots will utilize him in that way.

While it's hard to judge how Dugger will project to the pros because of his college competition, just know that he is outrageously athletic, flies all over the field, and will likely dethrone second-year receiver Gunner Olszewski for returning duties.

It should be fun to see the many different ways in which the New England coaching staff figure out how to use their new chess piece of a safety and how he plays with another chess piece like Phillips.

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