FOXBORO, Mass. (AP) – Tyrone McKenzie hopes the New England Patriots have gotten him out of the hotel business for good.

The Patriots drafted McKenzie, an outside linebacker from South Florida in the third round of Sunday’s NFL draft with the 97th overall pick. McKenzie had played at both Michigan State and Iowa before transferring to USF, where he became a consensus all-Big East selection as a senior.

It wasn’t your usual story of a vagabond athlete looking for playing time.

McKenzie had to leave Michigan State for a semester to work and take care of his mother after she was injured in an auto accident. The time away and working the overnight shift at a hotel gave him a new appreciation for football.

“I never want to work at a Hampton Inn again,” he said.

The challenges McKenzie endured – and overcame – impressed New England coach Bill Belichick.

“Of all the players I’ve talked to this year and through the years, he’s been among the most impressive,” Belichick said, citing McKenzie’s “maturity and intelligence.”

McKenzie was one of eight players taken by New England on the second day of the NFL draft, another year in which Belichick and company showed they aren’t afraid to make moves. The wheelin’ and dealin’ that started Saturday with three trades continued on the second day with four more trades.

New England got started Sunday by trading the 73rd overall pick in the third round to the Jacksonville for the Jaguars’ second-round pick in 2010 and their seventh-round pick in this year’s draft, which the Patriots used to draft Julian Edelman, a 6-foot, 198-pound quarterback from Kent State, who rushed for 1,551 yards this season and could fit into a wildcat offensive package.

New England also traded the 89th overall pick in the third round to the Tennessee Titans for a second-round pick next year.

In somewhat of a surprising move, the Patriots traded starting cornerback Ellis Hobbs to the Philadelphia Eagles for two fifth-round picks.

They promptly shipped the two Philadelphia picks to the Baltimore Ravens for a fourth-round pick, which they used to take offensive lineman Rich Ohrnberger of Penn State, and a sixth-round pick, which became long snapper Jake Ingram of Hawaii.

“The Ellis Hobbs trade was not anticipated,” Belichick said. “It was a combination of a lot of things. We felt, from a timing standpoint and for moving forward, it was the best thing for our football team.”

The Patriots kept the 83rd overall pick in the third round, obtained from Green Bay in a trade Saturday, to select Brandon Tate, a 6-foot, 210-pound wide receiver and kick returner from North Carolina who might assume the kickoff return duties of the departed Hobbs.

Tate set an NCAA record for combined kick return yards (punts and kickoffs) with 3,523, but missed the last seven games of his senior season after suffering a right knee injury in a game against Notre Dame.

It’s uncertain if Tate will be ready for mini-camp in June.

Tate also addressed his positive test for marijuana at the NFL combine.

“I made a mistake and I put it behind me. I’m moving forward,” he said.

Tate said he doesn’t know what New England has in mind for him, but said, “Whatever they want me to do, I’m willing to do it.”

“He’s a very versatile player, an explosive returner, a very productive player for North Carolina the past couple of years,” said Belichick. “It was a combination of factors – the injury -that led to him being available at that point in the draft. We felt that was good value at that point.”

Fourth-round pick Ohrnberger, 6-2, 291, was a first-team All-Big Ten selection and a third-team All-American.

“I never expected to get drafted in the fourth round, so it was a nice surprise when I got the call from Coach Belichick,” he said.

New England took Louisville tackle George Bussey in the fifth round. Bussey, 6-3, 306 pounds, began his career as a walk-on before earning a scholarship.

The Patriots bolstered their depth on the defensive line with two late picks, in the sixth round taking Kentucky’s Myron Pryor (6-1, 306) and in the seventh round grabbing Darryl Richard, a 6-4, 290-pounder from Georgia Tech.

“We drafted three offensive linemen and three defensive linemen and you can never have enough of those guys,” said Belichick.

The Patriots were one of the most active teams on the first day of the draft Saturday, ultimately trading out of the first round completely but taking four players in the second round: safety Patrick Chung from Oregon, with a pick obtained from Kansas City in the Matt Cassel trade; defensive lineman Ron Brace, a Springfield, Mass., native from Boston College; cornerback Darius Butler from Connecticut; and offensive lineman Sebastian Vollmer from Houston.

The Patriots emerged well-stocked for the 2010 draft with 10 picks, three in the second round.

AP-ES-04-26-09 2118EDT

Copy the Story Link