Bill Belichick explains why Malik Cunningham chose the Ravens over the Patriots

Few players, if any, in the history of the New England Patriots practice squad have gotten more attention that Malik Cunningham. His standout drive in the preseason left many wanting to see more of him at quarterback, as the Patriots worked to convert him to a wide receiver. Throughout the season, reports and statements from coaches seemed to indicate Cunningham's quarterback work in Foxborough was minimal.

On Tuesday the Baltimore Ravens signed Cunningham off the Patriots' practice squad to their 53-man roster, ending his time in New England. Cunningham is expected to work mostly if not exclusively as a quarterback with the Ravens - something that may have contributed to his decision to leave.

READ MORE:

--Patriots host local quarterback, two others for free agent workouts
--Bill Belichick answers questions about his future
--Positional coach leaves New England for college job

To clarify the practice squad signing rules, players on any teams' practice squads are - in a way - free agents. They're eligible to sign with any other team at any time, assuming the new team is adding them to the 53-man active roster (players can't be signed from one practice squad to another).

Just like regular free agents, practice squad players don't have to sign with a team that offers them - they can remain on the practice squad of their current team if they want (although the bump to the 53-man roster almost always includes a significant raise). So in this instance, Cunningham chose to leave the Patriots for the Ravens.

On Wednesday morning, Bill Belichick was asked if the Patriots made a push to keep Cunningham in Foxborough. Based on his answer it sounds like if they did, that push didn't come with any sort of increase in workload at quarterback.

"I think they sold him on the opportunity, the offense, he and Lamar [Jackson]," Belichick said, referencing the fact that Cunningham and Jackson already have a relationship from their time together in college at Louisville. Cunningham took over as the starter for the Cardinals when Jackson left for the NFL. Jackson was supportive of Cunningham on social media this summer during his strong start to training camp.

"Certainly their offense suits Malik better than probably any other offense in the league does," Belichick said, before adding the qualifier "as a quarterback, it does," seemingly differentiating the Patriots' approach of handling him primarily as a wide receiver.

Cunningham does project to have a chance to earn a backup quarterback role in Baltimore, if not this year then next year. Behind Jackson the Ravens currently have 37-year-old Josh Johnson and 25-year-old Tyler Huntley. Huntley has started games for the Ravens in the past when Jackson was hurt, but his contract is up at the end of the year. If the Ravens want to move on from him, Cunningham would be a logical fit as a backup on a very affordable UDFA contract. By signing him now, the Ravens can let him start learning their system early so he hits the ground running for spring practices and training camp next year.

Read more...

Welcome to the Week 15 edition of the 98.5 The Sports Hub New England Patriots Mailbag. We're back after a Patriots win on Thursday Night Football, followed by a short week.

Since the last mailbag, the long-assumed fate of the Patriots' 2023 season became official. Despite their win on Thursday night, Sunday's results mathematically eliminated the Patriots from playoff contention.

READ MORE:

--Patriots host local quarterback, two others for free agent workouts
--Top quarterback prospect officially declares for 2024 NFL Draft
--Positional coach leaves New England for college job

With that reality, the offseason remains a main focus. As expected, this week's mailbag is as much or more about the offseason than the 2023 team.

With that, let's get started. Here's what you guys were asking about this week...

Marte Mapu was always going to be somewhat of a project player for the Patriots, but what's exasperated that is the fact the Patriots are having him change positions from linebacker to safety. If they were going to play him at his drafted position - where he spent time this summer - he may have been able to make more of an impact. I wrote more about this and Bill Belichick's comments on Mapu last week. You can find that here.

For those who don't know, Jay is asking about the top two tackles in this year's draft class - Notre Dame's Joe Alt and Penn State's Olu Fashanu. Both are projected to be top 10, and potentially top 5 picks.

Right now I go Alt by a slight margin, for three reasons. One, he has a size advantage on Fashanu in terms of height and weight (6-foot-8, 322 pounds for Alt vs. 6-foot-6, 317 pounds for Fashanu) and I'm guessing his arms will measure longer once they get to the Combine. Alt also has more experience (despite being a year younger) with 33 starts to Fashanu's 21. Finally Alt has an edge against top competition, with Fashanu allowing six pressures against Ohio State this year.

Keep in mind this is nitpicking. These two are very close and things can certainly change as we learn more during the pre-draft process. For now, this is where I have them heading into the process.

I think it's certainly possible, when you look at the number of true star receivers that have been openly upset with their teams this year. That group includes Davante Adams, Stefon Diggs, A.J. Brown, and D.K. Metcalf at the top.

Will they all be available? Probably not. But no position has more high-level players become available in surprise fashion than wide receiver. We can't rule anything out.

Honestly, not that much. The Patriots need wide receiver help but they should be aiming higher than Cooper Kupp. The drop off for wide receiver production is historically steep after age 30, and Kupp turns 31 in June. That, combined with his recent injury history, don't make him seem like a big-picture answer to the Patriots' wide receiver woes. He still has skill and would be good in a secondary role, but he shouldn't be viewed as an alternative to players like Tee Higgins, Marvin Harrison Jr., or any of the wide receivers named in the answer above should they become available.

This is a big question - too big for a mailbag answer. Last year, I laid out my 10-point plan for how I would handle the Patriots' offseason. Look for something similar once the regular season comes to a close this year.

It wouldn't surprise me if the Patriots add another quarterback to their practice squad, if not just for scout team purposes. Their workouts with E.J. Perry and Kendall Hinton on Tuesday seem to suggest that may be in the cards.

Whoever the coach is next year - whether it's Bill Belichick, Jerod Mayo, or somebody else - is going to have to build back up the culture in the locker room. That coach will have a few players in place to help with that.

Assuming he doesn't retire, David Andrews is a player who can carry the torch on offense. Hunter Henry, a captain this year, is another player who seems like a strong leader (assuming the team re-signs him in free agency).

On defense, Jabrill Peppers is an obvious choice to set the tone and build an identity around. There are other veterans on that side of the ball who also are important voices in the locker room, including Deatrich Wise (a captain this year), Jahlani Tavai, and Jonathan Jones, who are all under contract for 2024.

Good question. Generally teams overpay to move up in the NFL Draft, so yes the value is always with the team moving back rather than with the team moving up. That being said, the team moving up gets the better player.

When it comes to trading up for a quarterback, the deal is only as good as the evaluation of the player. When the Chiefs moved up for Patrick Mahomes in 2017, people called it an overpay at the time. Not anymore. Conversely, the move the Jets made to move up for Sam Darnold in 2018 was seen as a solid deal, but that didn't end up mattering much when Darnold flamed out.

Trading up in the NFL Draft is always inherently a risk. So is drafting a quarterback. Doing both only compounds the risk. But it's also the price of doing business in the NFL, and a risk the Patriots likely will need to take.

I wouldn't count on a pending rule change when it comes to roster building. Plus, the talent available at tackle this offseason both in free agency and the draft is relatively thin.

The NFL definitely has a shortage of tackles right now. Answering that by investing less in tackles isn't a great idea. The Patriots should look to use at least one premium asset (a top-50 pick or a starting-caliber contract) on the position this offseason.

Alex Barth is a writer and digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Looking for a podcast guest? Let him know on Twitter @RealAlexBarth or via email at abarth@985TheSportsHub.com.