Patriots Nation, we made it!
Football is back in New England, and with it is something that has been in scant supply since 2019: hope.
The dissolution of the Brady-Belichick partnership is a permanent black mark on the Hall of Fame case for Robert Kraft. Trying to play both sides, he ended up with Brady winning a Super Bowl in Tampa while Belichick was left with Mac Jones and empowered to make one of the worst decisions ever by employing a defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator as offensive coordinator.
Kraft made his bizarre decision to bring in an overmatched protegee with no league connections and incapable of building a staff. The result was an absolute disaster and he hastily pulled the plug when he was fortunate enough to have Mike Vrabel fall into his lap.
Now, with a real head coach and competent coaching staff (Doug Marrone and Thomas Brown both have head coaching experience in the NFL) the Patriots have the chance to be disciplined and tough, a huge difference from the lackluster squad that took advantage of the "player's coach" last year and was mediocre (or as they call the situation around the NFL, a Mike McDaniel and the Miami Dolphins situation).
Quick side note: Offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt was the only adult in the room last year and his work with rookie quarterback Drake Maye should result in Van Pelt getting a statue outside the stadium. Van Pelt, who was fired in Cleveland after his offense carried the team to 11 wins and the playoffs with five different starting quarterback and six different starting offensive tackles. Then fired in New England this offseason. Fortunately, in a sign of intelligent people in the NFL recognizing his skill, he was scooped up by Sean McVay and the Rams.
With the Washington Commanders (sans Terry McLaurin) in Foxboro for joint practices and the Friday night preseason game, both teams have welcomed the chance to hit someone other than their own teammates. While neither team is expected to play their starters much--if at all--it always fun to watch the back end of the roster and hope to see a breakout player emerge.
There's not much to do for analysis as the game planning is minimal and the coaches want to see the players operate in the framework of the offense and defense. What's important to look for are players who make plays under the bright lights.
Remember, Julian Edelman burst on the scene in the preseason. So did David Andrews, excelling in the preseason before locking down the center position for near a decade. Undrafted free agent Malcolm Butler emerged as the sixth and final cornerback on the roster after making play after play in the preseason.
Here are some under-the-radar players I am excited to see in game action against the Commanders:
- Efton Chism III received a ton of attention in mini-camp but has sunk into obscurity in training camp. The preseason games should be an excellent opportunity to put some plays on tape to earn a shot to back-up Pop Douglas in the slot.
- Marcus Bryant was a seventh round draft pick out of Missouri. He has left tackle size and physical tools, but is inexperienced and a project. He could earn a roster spot with a strong preseason since expected swing tackle Vederian Lowe has been injured.
- Jahvaree Ritzie is a long and strong undrafted free agent defensive tackle from North Carolina. While fourth-round pick Joshua Farmer is expected to add depth, Ritzie had one of the best plays last season with an 84-yard thicc-six against Virginia picking off a tipped pass, a vicious stiff-arm, and outrunning everyone down the sidelines. Gotta root for that guy!
- Brandon Crossley is a cornerback who was undrafted out of SMU but had 66 games of experience in college. He is 24 years old as a rookie but played inside and outside and on special teams and could be a sleeper for a final roster spot with a strong preseason.
So not much more to say other than to have a good beer, get back into working on your sauces for the chicken wings (always add more garlic to the buffalo sauce--that's the secret shy some are "OMG" and most are "Eh") and start adding some memories while watching what could be the debut of a hidden gem.
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