Uncensored Sound Off: Easley drafted in the first round
Despite his immense talent level, after suffering two ACL injuries during his four years in Gainesville, many projected former Florida Gators defensive lineman Dominique Easley to be drafted no higher then the second or third round.
However, he snuck into the bottom half of the first round when New England choose him with the No. 29 pick overall - becoming the seventh Gators player selected by the Patriots since 2004.
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Easley played in 32 games, starting 26 starts for Florida, recording 72 tackles and 5 1/2 sacks.
Check out what some of your favorite Gators and some well-known analysts had to say about the choice.
Spelling and grammar aren't high on the list of priorities when Tweeting. If it matters to you, you might want to skip over this feature altogether
Florida head coach Will Muschamp:
Congrats to @MR_ChUcKiE_2 - played with great effort and was the emotional leader of our team #GatorMade First rounder!- Will Muschamp (@CoachWMuschamp) May 9, 2014
Official New England Patriots Twitter:
With the 29th pick in the 2014 #NFLDraft, the #Patriots select DL Dominique Easley out of Florida. pic.twitter.com/fA3KoDeFkN- New England Patriots (@Patriots) May 9, 2014
Former Florida defensive tackle Damien Jacobs:
Easley >Clowney- Damien Jacobs (@HallUFameDame) May 9, 2014
Sports Illustrated:
Easley's a talented edge guy, but he's got problems with his knees. It's a boom/bust pick for the Patriots.- Sports Illustrated (@SInow) May 9, 2014
ESPN's Edward Aschoff:
When Easley was healthy he was so disruptive. Really underrated because of the time he missed. Keep an eye on him- Edward Aschoff(@AschoffESPN) May 9, 2014
New England Patriot's defensive tackle Vince Wilfork:
I'm lovin this pick !!- Vince Wilfork (@wilfork75) May 9, 2014
CBS Sports Pete Prisco:
Easley terrific pick for Pats. Top-10 pick if not for injuries to both knees. Will be star -- if healthy. GRADE: A http://t.co/KPxAyHqyNs- Pete Prisco(@PriscoCBS) May 9, 2014
(Unofficial) Patriots Salary Cap Twitter:
An educated guess on Easley's deal - fully GTD 4-year, $7,281,046 deal w/a $1,327,918 '14 cap #. His signing bonus should be $3,631,672- Miguel@PatsCap.Com (@patscap) May 9, 2014
ESPN's Doug Farrar:
If Easley stays healthy, the Pats just killed everyone else in the first round of this draft.- SI_DougFarrar(@SI_DougFarrar) May 9, 2014
Dave Matter:
Easley's the seventh Gator Pats have drafted since 2004.- Dave Matter (@Dave_Matter) May 9, 2014
Florida guard Jon Halapio before the NFL Draft:
Not that it matters what I think. But Easley should still go in the first round lolidcwhat anyone says. Fool is like a rare Pokemon#Film- Jon Halapio(@Jhalapio67) May 7, 2014
Former Florida guard Bradley Beal:
Ok big Easley !!! 🐊- Bradley Beal (@RealDealBeal23) May 9, 2014
Florida center Max Garcia:
Ayyys/o to the homieEasley!!! #GatorNation- Max G (@MGarcia_76) May 9, 2014