New England Patriots: Could RB Mark Ingram Be on The Pats' Radar in 2011?

As everyone already knows, the New England Patriots are a below-average running team.

They hardly run the ball, and when they do, it's average if anything. But with quarterback Tom Brady, can you blame them?

In the latest series of events, New England has shipped away running back Laurence Maroney to Denver and has lost Kevin Faulk for the remainder of the season, and maybe more, with a torn ACL.

So, with many issues at the running back position, could New England draft a stud back? 

They could. They have the draft picks to do it. 

New England not only has its first-round pick, but also Oakland's first-rounder. As we all know, Oakland is not a very good team and shows no signs of improving. The more Oakland goes downhill, the greater New England's pick grows. 

With New England's two first-rounders, could they possibly draft Alabama running back Mark Ingram, who will very likely leave college early?

I think so.

Ingram would be a perfect fit in New England.

The strong point of the Patriots offense is Brady, and he is getting older by the year. Yes, Brady is in the prime of his career, but he soon will be leaving his prime years.

Adding a stud back to this team's offense would be a wise move.

The draft is a long way away, and this is only speculation, so anything can happen. With New England's draft history, there's also a good chance they'll trade their first-rounders because Bill Belichick and the Pats draft for "value."

However, like I said before, adding a stud running back to this team would help the aging Brady along with the team's offense.

This article was first seen on Sports Haze.

Tony Santorsa is Sports Haze's AFC East Beat Writer. You can read more sports stories at www.SportsHaze.com.

You can also follow Tony via Twitter @ TSantorsa10