2011 NFL Draft Results: New England Patriots Draft Nate Solder at 17th Overall

It's official: the New England Patriots select with the 17th overall pick Nate Solder, offensive tackle, Colorado. 

Solder is a very physically gifted left tackle that stands in at 6'8" and weights 320 lbs.—the feeling from many draft scouts and experts is that the sky is the limit for Solder. 

With this pick, New England addresses one of their major needs: the offensive line. Solder could fill in immediately as the team's right tackle, which would force Sebastian Vollmer to switch over to left tackle, a place where he flourished at times in 2009.

The addition of Solder likely ends the Matt Light era in New England, as the left tackle currently sits at 32 years old and is turning 33 in June. However, there is a chance that the Patriots could re-sign Light to a short-term contract, which would enable New England to keep Vollmer at right tackle and would give enough time to groom Solder into their starting left tackle.

The upside with Solder is that he's already equipped with a very athletic frame and has no problem keeping up with speed pass rushers. However, Solder did struggle against powerful defenders at Colorado. So essentially, Solder already has the athleticism, which can't be taught, but put him in New England's off-season workout programs, he will definitely bulk up and gain some much needed strength.

While being athletic, Solder mixes in very good footwork and always keeps a quality balanced pass when protector the passer or driving defenders forward on the run. At the snap of the ball, Solder has shown great ability and plays with a good knee bend.

Overall, I don't hate this pick, but I don't necessarily love it.  

The Patriots still had cornerback Prince Amukamara still available and offensive tackle Anthony Castonzo still available—in fact, the majority of all experts and analysts had Castonzo higher on their draft board than Solder.

This pick was kind of a shocker, similar to last year's selection of cornerback Devin McCourty—and that ended real well. 

Let's put it this way, Bill Belichick and the Patriots' draft team hand picked Solder over the highly regarded Castonzo, that says a lot considering how well the Patriots draft.

In Belichick we trust, right?

This article was first seen at PatriotsPlus.net. Be sure to follow Tony Santorsa on Twitter @       TonySantorsa.