Bertrand: It’s A Good Thing It’s Not About Winning For Brandon Aiyuk

On Tuesday's edition of Zolak and Bertrand, the guys discussed the news that the Patriots and the San Francisco 49ers have completed the framework of a trade for wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk. Bertrand makes the case that it's a good thing Aiyuk is prioritizing a new contract over wanting to win, as the Patriots would have no shot if Aiyuk only cared about winning.

Bertrand: I don't know if that's a negative about Brandon Aiyuk? It sounded that way when Tomasi talked about it, that it's not about winning. Good. It's a good thing that it's not about winning. Felger got that right. It's a good thing it's not about winning, because the Patriots would have no freaking shot.

Zolak: You have the most cap space. You're now a bidder.

Bertrand: Yeah. You've got to be a team that has the money. The Chiefs are not doling out this kind of money for Brandon Aiyuk. The Miami Dolphins have already done it with their receivers. They are not giving out the money for Aiyuk.

Zolak: Your first big attempt to go get Calvin Ridley failed. You learned from your mistake there, you were out bid. We've been talking about this for months, you now have to overpay for players for them to come here. Then once you start doing that, then players hear about it. Then they all want to come and that's how you start build it. Don't have the second mistake again. Don't give me the rain or the weather. This or that. Cleveland's right on the damn lake out there. They have worse weather then us. I want to prepare to be let down because they could get outbid. But I'm giving it a shot here because of how they lost out on Ridley. They can't have two of those in one year.

McKone: Look, I'm never going to fault the player for taking the money. You should take the money. I get all that stuff. But for the Patriots right now with where the franchise is at, having a guy walk in and day one be the leader of the offense, because that's what he's going to be when he gets paid top dollar. You don't have anybody else on the offense, is the best situation for this franchise under a first year head coach.

Zolak: Yeah. The only way they should lose out on this is if they aren't allowed to counter. Where I would be afraid is if it's a sealed envelope. You make a bid, put it in the box, and then we open it. Highest bidder. I'm going to them. When you're allowed to shop your services like San Francisco's allowing him to shop, you get an offer then you take it to the other people.

This year’s New England Patriots training camp has a chance to be as busy and as involved as any camp the team has had in recent years. After all of their offseason changes - in terms of both players and coaches - the team has a lot of questions to answer as camp begins on Wednesday. 

Of course, position and roster battles tend to be the bigger storylines of any training camp, but there’s much more going on than just that. So, having already covered the top position battles to watch this summer last week, let’s dig a little deeper. 

Today, we’ll be taking a look at the biggest non-battle storylines to watch at each position on the Patriots’ roster (not including coaching, which is in itself arguably the biggest story following the departure of Bill Belichick but will have less tangible short-term results). That ranges from individual player improvement and usage to full positional questions. 

Heading down to Gillette Stadium for a practice or two this summer, or just following along from afar? Here are some key storylines to keep track of…

Quarterbacks: Drake Maye’s development

This is probably the most obvious ‘what to watch for’ of all the positions. Rookie quarterback Drake Maye seemingly checked every box he could be expected to check in the spring non-padded, non-contact practices. Can he keep building and keep that momentum going in camp?

The biggest test will be when the pads come on and he starts facing something resembling more of a ‘live’ pass rush. That will build up to the actual pass rushers he’ll face in the preseason. Can he operate as cleanly when there are NFL defenders actually on their way to/allowed to hit him?

Running backs: How are they splitting up the reps

For a long time, the Patriots split their running back responsibilities by situation. They had early-down backs (ex. Antowain Smith, Corey Dillon, LeGarrette Blount, Stevan Ridley) and passing-down backs (ex. Kevin Faulk, Shane Vereen, James White). While some backs did both, for the most part there was a clear division in the usage. 

Now the Patriots are running a new offensive philosophy with a new coaching staff, and have two well-rounded backs at the top of their depth chart in Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson. They are now set up better to divide the workload simply by rotation or fatigue, rather than situation. This can have the advantage of making the offense less predictable, but running backs capable of playing this style can be harder to find. 

Training camp will give us an early look at how the Patriots are dividing the workload. Are there certain situations only one back is repping in? How comfortable do the backs look, not just catching the ball, but blocking? These will be important to track at the position.

Wide receivers: Is Kendrick Bourne ready to start the season?

There’s a log-jam at the bottom of the Patriots’ wide receiver depth chart, which we discussed in our position battle preview. As those players compete amongst themselves, Kendrick Bourne’s ability will loom large.

Bourne is working his way back from a torn ACL he suffered in October. He didn’t participate in any practices this spring, but was on the field with his teammates at times in street clothes. There hasn’t been an update on Bourne specifically since, but head coach Jerod Mayo did tell reporters at the end of minicamp that - besides Cole Strange - he expects all players to be good to go within “the first couple of weeks of training camp.”

If Bourne is back and at full strength by roster cuts, that’s one less wide receiver job available. However, there is a new rule this year where up to two players can be placed on IR prior to final roster cuts, and still be eligible to return during the regular season. If Bourne isn’t going to be ready for Week 1, the Patriots could go that route with him - potentially opening another spot for a receiver.

Special teams: New kickoff rule