By John Sarianides

According to league sources, the Patriots have taken Oklahoma running back Joe Mixon off their draft board. Mixon struck a women in the face after an altercation at a bar in 2015. Video surfaced of the incident and it clearly showed Mixon punching the women.

Mixon is a first round talent but because of the violent nature of the video, he will more than likely not get drafted until late in day two or early in day three.

The irony in all of this is that the Patriots don’t have a first or second round selection and by the time they pick in the third round, Mixon could be off the board by then.

Why would they leak that they took Mixon off of their board to two different sources when they are not in position to draft him?

It is odd considering the fact that nothing leaves One Patriot Way when it comes to personnel. The Patriots are the most secretive organization in the league. Since when did they start telling the media that they are not going to draft certain players?

This story reeks of hypocracy. The Patriots are the same organization that drafted Christian Peter and Aaron Hernandez, signed Donte Stallworth and Albert Haynesworth and traded for Corey Dillon. Now all of a sudden, Bob Kraft has a conscience. Give me a break!

Kraft is yearning for a media mea culpa. Now that the Patriots have won two of the last three Super Bowls, they are once again the gold standard in the NFL. Kraft doesn’t want to “tarnish” the organization’s image.

It is too late for that. Thanks to cheating scandals and acquiring players with checkered pasts, it has already happened. Pretending to stand on moral high ground when it comes to Joe Mixon isn’t going to change that.

Bob Kraft and Bill Belichick are hypocrites and nieve if they expect us to buy this bologna. Taking Mixon off their draft board is a P.R move, plain and simple. They are  pissing in our ears and telling us it’s raining. We know why they don’t want to draft Mixon.

The Patriots had nothing to lose by taking Mixon off their board because they know he won’t be there when it is their turn. It is really is just that simple.