Patriots Mailbag: Preseason opener, Brandon Aiyuk, and more
Answering Patriots fan questions ahead of the team’s preseason opener on Thursday.
The Patriots have an off day from training camp on Wednesday, which means it’s time for another Patriots mailbag! What are fans wondering about heading into the preseason opener on Thursday? Let’s take a look…
It’s still early on and we haven’t gotten a full look at the Patriots’ new offense yet, but I think Pop Douglas is one player who could be in for an expanded role that really fits his skill set. Last year the Patriots used his speed and quickness to test the defense horizontally, but didn’t have him do a lot vertically. The play action shot elements of Alex Van Pelt’s offense could open up more of those opportunities for him this year.
Two scheme questions to start off! At it’s core, it’s not going to be very different. They may call things more aggressive on an individual play-to-play basis but that will be within the same scheme. Of course there will be some decline without Bill Belichick, but I don’t know if it will be this constant in-your-face thing. To me, his absence will show up the most against elite quarterbacks and offensive play designers, when Belichick would go deep into his bag for a unique look or trick to throw them off guard.
As for Jerod Mayo, it’s still very early. He’s scripted pretty aggressive, demanding practices in training camp, which is my big takeaway to this point. While he may be a ‘player friendly’ coach off the field, he’s certainly pushing the team on the field to this point.
Yes. Austin Hooper, who was signed as a free agent this offseason, has had a solid camp and will be the second tight end (mainly Henry’s backup). Then there’s the question of if the Patriots will keep a third tight end. That would most likely be a blocking tight end for short yardage and goal line situations. Mitchell Wilcox and UDFA Jacob Warren would be the best fits for that role, although it’s very possible they could add a player who shakes free during roster cuts like they did with Pharoah Brown last year.
Jaheim Bell missed the first week of padded practices for undisclosed reasons, so there hasn’t been much to evaluate with him. He returned this week and has made a couple of catches working with the third team, but he’s playing catch-up right now. He needs to prove the Patriots can utilize his unique skillset (he’s more of a hybrid H-back/slot receiver than a true tight end) to earn a roster spot. If not, he could make the practice squad to start the year and continue to work his way into the lineup during the season.
As much as I like Kendrick Bourne and think he could be a foundational part of the Patriots’ rebuild on and off the field, if they can move him and a second for Brandon Aiyuk (as has been reported) it wouldn’t make sense to replace him with Pop Douglas. Douglas is younger, more explosive, and isn’t coming off of a significant injury. (Also, the Patriots may just be out on Aiyuk all together.)
To an extent, yes. Once they settle on their ‘best five’ on the offensive line (a process that could last into the regular season), they should be good enough to at least let him get his feet wet and start gaining NFL experience (when he’s ready, as is mentioned in the question). They’re not ‘ready’ for him to fully maximize his skillset, which is the case for most teams who just drafted a quarterback in the top 10. It’ll take them a year or two to get there, but they are in a position where he can start building chemistry with the players who are already here for now.
It’s a little bit of both. The reality is it’s tough to tell without the benefit of watching back the film. However, the shuffling of the cornerbacks in practice seems to suggest none of the players pushing for that third boundary spot behind Christian Gonzalez and Jonathan Jones have truly wowed the coaches, who still want to see what different players can do in those situations.
Caedan Wallace seemed to be making some progress at left tackle before being bumped down to the second team last week. Vederian Lowe has gotten the majority of the reps in the meantime, so expect him to get a look. At right tackle Chuks Okorafor makes the most sense, but he’s been out the last few days. Calvin Anderson has repped in his place.
Sort of. I think Joe Milton has potential as a package player, taking advantage of his strong arm, size, and rushing power with certain formations and play calls. A Hail Mary specialist would certainly make sense as well. However I don’t think he’ll be a ‘gadget’ player in the sense that – at least for now – I wouldn’t expect to see him at any position other than quarterback.
