Bob Kraft (left) has put all of his trust in Bill Belichick to draft the right players. (AP)

The first-round hype is over. Like it or not, Devin McCourty is the pick.

The second round on Friday is where the Patriots likely will make the most improvements to their football team. With three picks, (44, 47, 53) in the second round, the Patriots will be one of the teams to watch — and probably one of the most active participants on the second day of the draft.

The second round has treated the Patriots well in the past, but it also has seen a few slip-ups along the way. Let’s take a look at the best and worst second round-draft picks the Patriots have made under Bill Belichick.

(Note: We will not include the draft class of 2009. It is too early to tell just how Patrick Chung, Ron Brace, Darius Butler and Sebastian Vollmer will fit on this list. If Vollmer keeps improving, he may top the list at some point in the future. Chung and Butler showed flashes, but Brace had a rookie season that was left to be desired. That being said, the 2009 class will need a year to realistically be included, because Belichick has always said that Year 1 to Year 2 is a very strong barometer for how a player will pan out.)

Here is the list, starting with the best:

1. Matt Light (2001): With the 48th pick, the Patriots picked up their starting left tackle for nine seasons. Enough said. Light has been a key member of the Patriots offensive line since he arrived in Foxboro. He has helped guide the Patriots to three Super Bowl titles and has started every game in six of his nine professional seasons. Stability and accountability is all you can ask for in a left tackle, and the Patriots got that in Light.

2. Deion Branch (2002): Twenty-one catches, 276 yards and a touchdown. Those are Branch’s numbers in two Super Bowl appearances. Throw in a Super Bowl MVP trophy, and you’ve got the No. 2 spot on the list. With the 65th pick, the Pats found a gem in Branch. While his durability in the regular season came into question — he did miss 11 regular-season games in four seasons — there was no denying Branch would come up big for Tom Brady and the Patriots when it counted. Branch could have been tops on this list, but with the ugly divorce and the fact Light is still on this team, it puts Branch at No. 2.

3. Eugene Wilson (2003): Wilson’s first three years in a Patriots uniform were very good. Wilson teamed up with Rodney Harrison to form a dynamic, hard-hitting safety tandem that would leave opponents quivering every time they went over the middle. Wilson also showed off his ball skills with nine interceptions in that three-year span, which led the team. But hamstring and leg injuries would hamper him in 2006, and he would only last one more season after that with the Pats.

4. Terrence Wheatley (2008): The 62nd pick was playing well in his rookie season, before he suffered a season-ending wrist injury against the Colts. The jury is still out on Wheatley. He needs to see the field before he can either climb or drop down on this list.

5. Bethel Johnson (2003): The 45th pick wasn’t much of a receiver, but he could sure return kicks in his rookie season. He had a 28.5 return average in his rookie season with a touchdown, and followed that up with another decent season — amassing 1,000 return yards with a 24.5 average in his sophomore year. But he wasn’t diverse enough and couldn’t provide enough out of the receiver position to keep him around.

6. Marquise Hill (2004): Hill was seen as a project when he was selected 63rd out of LSU. Hill showed signs in the preseason games, but never made a mark in games that counted. An unfortunate jet skiing incident in 2007 cut his life short.

7. Chad Jackson (2006): Jackson is in this spot because he was touted as the next playmaker for the Patriots. The Patriots traded the 52nd pick to move up to take Jackson at 36, something that the Patriots are weary of doing now. Jackson’s stats in a Patriots uniform: 13 receptions in two seasons. What stings more is the 52nd pick turned out to be Greg Jennings. Jennings has turned himself into a playmaker for the Packers and Jackson is not in the league.