Zolak & Bertrand: Joe Milton hasn’t been that impressive in camp

Zolak & Bertrand respond to an observation from Ben Volin in The Boston Globe that quarterback Joe Milton has had a better training camp than 3rd overall pick Drake Maye:

Beetle: I said yesterday I'm not a Zappe guy and I would cut Joe Milton if the roster were being made today and put Zappe on. Zappe and Joe Milton out. Milton has clearly been the 4th best quarterback in this camp. To say that he has been better than Maye is outrageous to me. 

Zolak: Yeah, if my job is on the line tomorrow and I'm running a football team and I gotta make sure that if something happened to my other guys and I need a guy that could go in and function, I would go with Zappe. Can you throw the ball far? Yes. You go back and watch combine film. Watch how slow the drop is too. It's nice you get entertained by the backflips, but that's not part of the game.  How much does that help him during games? I mean that's one of the most exciting things that crowd sees right now, because your lack of star power 

Beetle: I watched the back flips this week and I said this has become a clown show. 

Zolak: I would tell my players not to do it because of the ability to potentially land awkward on a knee and you tear an ACL. 

Beetle: You need to tell him to stop doing that, especially if there's no purpose in doing it. Just heaving yourself through the air and flipping over for no reason. What's the point of that? Yay, he did a back flip and has a tantalizing arm! Yesterday, the throws that he was trying to throw downfield couldn't cut through the wind 

LISTEN: Has Joe Milton had a better camp than Drake Maye?

As training camp approaches, there’s always a lot of talk about ‘surprise cuts.’ Which players on the Patriots roster are fans expecting to make the team, but might not? 

However, today we’re going to look at this from a different point of view. Which players are currently under the radar, but could end up in the conversations for roster spots by the time training camp comes to a close?

It’s not unheard of for players to make this kind of push during camp. The most notable for the Patriots in recent history came in 2019. Fullback Jakob Johnson was originally signed as an International Pathway Program (IPP) player, meaning the Patriots could have just left him on the practice squad without him counting against the roster. However he showed enough for the Patriots to remove his IPP designation when placing him on the practice squad, keeping him eligible to play during the 2019 season. That happened a few weeks later after an injury to starting fullback James Develin. 

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Other players who either made the initial roster, or were signed to the practice squad only to be elevated early in the season include running back J.J. Taylor (2020), safety Joshuah Bledsoe (2022), specialist Brenden Schooler (2022), and cornerback/specialist Ameer Speed (2023). 

With a new coaching staff and front office in place this year, there’s more of a chance than usual for these kinds of players to emerge during camp. Who will make a surprise run at the Patriots roster? Here are some names to watch this summer.

Keep in mind, this isn’t to say all six of these players will make the team (that would be more than a surprise). But one or two could make their way onto the initial roster or be early practice squad elevations if things go their way over the next month and a half.

The Patriots have a lot to figure out at guard, especially with Cole Strage expected to miss the start of the season due to injury. Sidy Sow will likely get one of the two spots, but pending Mike Onwenu moving back inside the other is up for grabs.

Veteran Nick Leverett and fourth-round pick Layden Robinson most of the reps this spring, but Jordan worked in the rotation as well along with 2023 fifth-round pick Atonio Mafi. What Jordan has going for him is experience. He’s only 26, but his 29 career NFL starts (and 55 games played) are among the most of the Patriots’ current guard group. If the team wants more experience up front, he could angle his way into a backup spot with a solid summer.

After signing late in April, Wilcox was another player that got a good amount of attention in the spring. He didn’t have a ton of balls thrown his way, but the four-year NFL vet was on the field a good amount.

After Hunter Henry and Austin Hooper, there isn’t really any clarity on the Patriots’ third tight end spot - if they keep one at all. Seventh-round pick Jaheim Bell is an interesting project player but he is more of a gadget Swiss Army Knife-type than a true tight end. Plus at 6-foot-4, 250 pounds Wilcox brings a blocking element the other tight ends don’t.

If the Patriots want to have a blocking tight end on the roster - which would make sense for a team that projects to be run-heavy - Wilcox is the best fit for that role currently on the team. Of course, he could do that initially through practice squad elevations, and be added to the roster later.

The battle for the final few cornerback spots is going to be a close one in training camp this year. Coming out of the spring there was plenty of talk about more well-known players like Marco Wilson, Shaun Wade, Isaiah Bolden, and rookie Marcells Dial competing for the reserve roles behind Christian Gonzalez, Jonathan Jones, Marcus Jones, and Alex Austin.

Hearn also belongs in that conversation. After spending most of last season on the Patriots’ practice squad as a UDFA, Hearn is back and showed noticeable improvement this spring. Helping his case is the fact he has experience not just on the boundary at 6-foot-1, 204 pounds, but also in the slot and a little bit at safety as well. He’s got as much competition ahead of him at his position as any player on this list, but he certainly made the most of the opportunities he got this spring.

Most of the Patriots’ top edge rushers didn’t take part in spring practices, opening the door for players further down the projected depth chart to get more opportunities. One of the players who appeared to make the most of those chances was Ximines, a late free agent signing who played in 48 games with nine starts for the New York Giants over his first five NFL seasons.

While the Patriots’ top-end stand-up pass rushers are set in Matthew Judon, Joshua Uche, and Anfernee Jennings, there aren’t any clear-cut backups right now - especially if Keion White continues to play as a defensive end rather than stand-up linebacker. Ximines will have a chance this summer to prove he’s worth a roster spot to provide that depth. He’s also a likely special teams contributor, having played regularly in the kicking game while in New York.

This will be McMillan’s fourth season with the Patriots, but in two of the first three he was on IR before final roster cuts. Last year he suffered a partially-torn Achilles tendon in late May. Still, the Patriots liked him enough to sign him to a contract extension just a few months later, re-upping him for 2024.

Now healthy once again, does McMillan have a place on this year’s team? The team lost Mack Wilson in free agency, after he played a valuable role as a sideline-to-sideline passing-down middle linebacker. McMillan has the athleticism to play a similar role - assuming he’s fully healthy. He also has plenty of special teams experience.

Free agent signing Sione Takitaki figures to play a similar role, and probably has the edge on McMillan. But given McMillan’s special teams potential, with a strong showing this summer as a depth option he could work his way onto the roster.

Reagor finished last year on the Patriots’ active roster, so maybe he’s not the biggest ‘surprise’ on this list. Still, some may not realize just how realistic his path to a roster spot is.

Assuming health, the Patriots are going to have four roster locks at the wide receiver position in Kendrick Bourne (assuming he’s healthy for the start of the season, which sounded like the plan at the end of the spring), Pop Douglas, and rookies Ja’Lynn Polk and Javon Baker. K.J. Osborn is a near-lock as well.

Now down to the sixth wide receiver spot, any player hoping to make a run at the roster from here is going to have to contribute in other ways. That’s where Reagor has a significant advantage. Not only does he profile as an effective kick returner, but he’s taken some reps at gunner as well. None of the other wide receivers competing for this spot (mainly JuJu Smith-Schuster and Tyquan Thornton) have near the special teams experience or upside Reagor has.

Whether or not the Patriots keep a sixth receiver will be the real question, and goes back to the idea of ‘at-large roster spots.’ If they do though, Reagor has a great chance to be the guy.