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Patriots Draft Arkansas QB Ryan Mallett, LSU RB Stevan Ridley in Third Round

Wow.

The Patriots drafted Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett with their second third round pick. A pick prior, New England took LSU running back Stevan Ridley.

Mallett was ranked as our No. 2 quarterback in the draft, and the Patriots reportedly had him as their top quarterback. Ridley, who rushed for 1,000 plus yards last season with LSU, was the second running back by New England.

We’ll talk in depth about both Mallett and Ridley later tonight in a column.

Per, FF Toolbox:

Mallett certainly has the physical tools to be a force at the next level. He stands at 6’6” and 238 pounds and–not surprisingly–has a rocket arm. The former Arkansas quarterback has drawn comparisons to Ben Roethlisberger and while those may be fair, he needs to improve in order for those sentiments to come to fruition. Mallett made strides in college, especially in the accuracy department. He completed 43.3 percent of his passes as a freshman, 55.8 as a sophomore, and 64.7 as a junior.

About Matthew Marcantonio - My Twitter

Matthew Marcantonio is the Patriots and college football editor at Sports of Boston. Marcantonio has contributed for two newspapers; the Sentinel & Enterprise (Leominster, Mass) and The Advocate (Baton Rouge, La) and held internships with The Bleacher Report and Sports Illustrated.

Tags: 2011 NFL Draft, New England Patriots, Ryan Mallett, Stevan Ridley