This is the Patriots Catch twenty two podcasts with Evan Lazar and Alex bar and Lazarre.
Hello, everybody nailed it. Joined us always by our bar.
Here is Evan Lazar and Alex Bars. They're not gonna be able to get the rest of the roster where they need it to be fair enough.
Let's move on because we're gonna we're stuck here.
You just want to talk about you guys playing catch. You don't want to talk about football.
One, That's exactly what it is. Well, we definitely get to talk about two guys playing catch today.
Definitely. That's all non padded practice.
This is literally all all it is is two guys playing catch and shorts and a T shirt and a helmet. Not not to come out here and say that you shouldn't listen to the next two hours of us pouring over all of our notes from that two hour session this morning of shorts and a T shirt and a helmet.
But the point is is, and I wanted to make this point anyways because I feel, as I say this every year and you're gonna make fun of me when I say this, but every year that we do this and this is what let's just tell everybody how old we are. Year seven for both of us. We started the same year, So this is year seven for both of us, which is have.
We been doing this longer than most of the guys have been in the league. Oh yeah, it's got to be about we got to be getting there. Yeah, I mean, the average NFL career is like five six years.
It does. It does dawn on me now when we talk to guys that I am. I'm really am older than all these guys at this point.
Well, I was chatting with so I did the pre practice thing this morning with Sarge where he goes down to talks reporters and they had Sony Michelle go before me. Yeah, tough act to follow, and we're waiting.
I was chatting to have a Super Bowl ring.
I was chatting with him. Very nice guy, by the way, very nice guys. I'm chatting with him and we were like, yeah, you know, it's great covering you go, oh yeah, you know, I remember you're there's like ye oh yeah, your first year was my first year. Look he's won how many rings? He's now out of the league. He's living his life doing business. Good for him, But yeah, it's been a minute.
Well, we've been doing this a minute. We've been doing this a little while now, and one of the things that I've learned from the experience is that these first couple of days, you want to come out guns blaze, and you want to have takes, you want to have opinions, you want to start formulating your roster projection and all these different things. But the reality of the situation is that we are not even scratching the surface of real football. And the thing that Dawn's on me with this as well.
We were talking about this a little bit on the Live show yesterday. On pu last year, we went out to Green Bay, Deuce and I went out to Green Bay for those joint practices, and for all intents and purposes, those joint practices were relatively even two teams. The Patriots won the first day, the Packers kind of controlled play the second day. Those two seasons could not have gone differently. Literally, we got to the season and it went like this
for those two teams. And it just goes to show as much as we love and I feel like I'm saying this and it's making our the stuff we do sound irrelevant, but it just goes to show where I want to try to keep my head which is level at this point in time. With that being said, you are going to hear a lot, and it objectively speaking, You're gonna hear a lot about how the offense had a tough day to day. It did not look pretty
at times for the Patriots offense. But if I'm going to be true to my word, and I'm not going to jump to any conclusions, and I'm gonna not ride the roller coaster of the Patriots training camp this year, because you know me, I tend sometimes I get on on the six flags.
Right, how you feel about Taekwon Evan exactly.
I'm trying. I'm trying so hard not to.
Let's make the big point, then the.
Big point, and I'm not doing a good job of landing this plane quickly. The big point is that I don't want to come in here with a bunch of knee jerk reactions. That's not what we do and I'm not trying to do that. So if you're worried about some of the reports that you're seeing from practice at the offense had a bad day, I understand, But I don't think it's anything that we didn't already know about the offense. The offensive line is going to be a
work in progress, period. Yeah, that's it. It's gonna be the It's gonna be work in progress. There are question marks about the validity of the pass catching group. If they have a high then enough high end talent to go out there and make big plays, that that's gonna be a question mark. So I don't feel like I've learned anything new about my concerns. But because we have a show to do today and we should tell you what we saw, it was a shaky day for the offense.
Yeah, I think just on the big picture of the previous two days. Where I come from is what I always harp on in the spring, these non padded practices. There's information here, there's important information here. It's just not necessarily in the results. It's in the approach. And that's
that's both from the coaches and the players. So most of my takeaways from the first couple of days is who's on the field, who isn't, who's playing with who, who's playing over who, and then how some individual players are approaching things. I'm sure we'll get to Drake May, but like my big takeaway on Drake May, has nothing to do with his performance. But he came out aggressive. He came out aggressive. He came out ready to compete.
And yeah, I mean he's going to compete. You expect that, but you never know what the rookie, it's really easy to come out and you know, I just don't want to screw up. I don't want to get anybody mad at me. I'm gonna take my checkdowns. And at least on day one he didn't do a ton of that. He did a little bit of more of that today, but all the quarterbacks did because of the line. Again. But you know, I'm more interested in the approach, in the philosophy that we see from the first few days.
We'll get to the real football that comes on Monday. Yeah, but there is still information here. There is still absolutely information here. Like I had circled, I wrote a thing before camp. You can still check it out. In ninety had five Sports of dot Com on six players I thought might surprise for a roster spot, Guys that aren't being talked about that maybe they're not gonna come in and be the team's MVP for the season, but they
think they're gonna be here. And one of them was tight end Mitchell Wilcox, and he's been on the field a ton the last two days. He hasn't necessarily done a lot in terms of catching the ball, but he's not. He's a blocking tight end. That's his role. They need that. So that to me is more what you take away
from this period, We get a better idea. We spent so much time those months between the spring and the start of camp, will what are the battles and who's competing with who and what spots are up for grabs. We're kind of seeing that all play out in terms of where guys stand during these few days, and then once the pads come on, that's when you start having the discussion of okay, well who's actually right?
And that's the evaluation period is starting on Monday, and that's that's all where I'm coming from. The main thing is is, just like I said, none of what we're telling you should come as a surprise that they're still trying to figure things out on the offensive line and that the receivers. Although there are some flashes from some of the younger players and from Taekwon, let's be honest and Jalen Rager a little bit earlier yeah, our headphones are popping a little bit, but I think we're good.
Uh yeah. The even though there there are some concerns on offense. Like if I had told you before they even started practicing on Wednesday that the offensive line might be a little bit concerning and the receivers might not create a ton of downfield separation, you would have told me, well, duh. You know, I can look at the roster on paper
and I can feel that. So I just want to get that out there because I know that there are going to be some knee jerk reactions to some of the things, and I just wanted to make sure we get that out there before we really get rolling here. Hey Patriots fans, if you want to see Toyota's best offers, including those not seen on TV, go to buy a
Toyota dot com. It's Toyota's official website for deals from the official vehicle of the New England Patriots, Toyota Let's go places and easy to drink, easy to enjoy bud like the official beer sponsor of the New England Patriots. Want to do some bookkeeping before we open it up to the phone lines, which are open eight five to five PATS five hundred web radio at patriots dot com
as always is the email address. And I have a bunch of notes that I wanted to just run run through with you and then you can obviously add anything that I missed, but before I did want to get into some bookkeeping type stuff. So in terms of attendance, the PUP and NFI guys are still the same. You know that that hasn't changed.
Well, Gibson got activated today. So is he officially activated? I think he has to be because he was on the field in uniform.
He was on the field in uniform and he went through stretching, right, so.
That's usually the bar.
Yeah, so they well we'll find out what the wire if that makes the wire today if not U but he was there. We had a sighting. Yeah, we had Antonio Gibson's sighting. So that's good positive news. Devon Godshaw, this is where I wanted to start. Now there's a report out there. I think I believe from Mark Daniels that Christian Barmore is feeling a little under the weather and that that's why he was a little limited today. I don't know if Devon Godshaw is in the same boat.
If it's an injury, if it's an illness whatever, uh. But bottom line is is he was out there yesterday, he was out there today for the second hour of team drills, but he was not participating. And by the looks of it, again I'm just purely speculating, but by the looks of it, it felt like a hold in type of situation. And we know he's unhappy about his contract He's made that, you know, publicly clear. So Devon Godshaw is either holding in or is dealing with something minor.
I don't know, but assuming just for the sake of the show that he is holding in, you know, where do you stand right now currently with what they should do with Davon Gotcha Because I think Matthew Judon's playing ball. I think Matthew John's going to be out there. Yeah, and my guess is that they will reward him at some point for not going this route with it. But with Godshaw, do you feel like you know, where do you feel a things stand with Devon Gotshaw right now? Yeah?
I mean I get it looked like a hold in today, but why would he be a full participant yesterday, yeah, and then hold in today that that doesn't make sense. So I think he's a full participant. As for his contract, I've said this, if it's one of the two you pay Judon. If you can work something out with Godshaw, too great. But I don't know if they want to maybe draw a line with all these contracts they've been giving out things like that, And what's Godshaw's role? They've
talked about being more aggressive? Does that mean less two gapping on defense? Where does his role play in with that? Is he going to be more aggressive? Is he going to be more of a pass rusher. We did see him, you know, make a play as a pass rusher on day win a camp, but his situation is a little more complicated than Matthew Judon's is. And I don't know if you noticed, but towards the end of practice, Robert Kraft came out of the building. Yeah, talk to Matthew
Judon for a little bit. Then he was talking with Elliot wolf Grod Mayo came over. So, whatever you want to make of that.
Does seem like something is maybe brewing.
There were conversations. What they were about, yeah, I don't know, but they were for that.
YEA, My whole thing with Devon, gotcha has not changed. And I just feel and again when I talk, like you know, talk about players like this, I hope that people recognize that this is not personal whatsoever with the player. But I just don't really understand. I don't understand what his leverage is, frankly, because at this stage of just the NFL ether, Devon Gotscha is like maybe a two
down player. He's He's a rotational nose tackle that's going to play on first and second down, but primarily just on first down as a run staff. He's not a pass rusher. He's not a third down player. He's not a passing game player they're gonna bring in and we saw today, you know, even though he wasn't out there, I don't think he's in that pass rush package even if he is in there. So we're gonna see them bring in players like an armand Watts, like a Daniel Aqualley.
Obviously Christian Barmol will be in that mix to rush on the interior in obvious passing situations. It's not gonna be Devon Godshaw. So yes, I agree with Godshaw to an extent that he plays a role that if you really watch the film, that he makes a big impact in their run defense, and they had a great run defense last year with him in the middle, no doubt about that. But if you look at the compensation on his contract, he's pretty fairly compensated this year for what
his role is. He's he's making what ten and a half I think it is a million eleven million dollars to play football for the Patriots this year as a two down run stuffing nose tack. That's a pretty good deal. Like, it's not a very valuable position. And we've talked about this a lot with the draft, and as everything always trickles up from the draft, how many guys have we thrown out there, Alex over the last couple of years that were in this mold of a nose tackle, a
true three four two gapping news tackle. And those guys don't get drafted high anymore. You know, you wait, some of these guys, you know, remember, like a Mark one McCaulay goes undrafted, right, you know, like these guys just aren't valued around the league anymore. So I'm finding a hard time figuring out what Devon Godshaw's leverage truly is.
I think it's intangibles. I think it's as a like a veteran, as a leader, as a culture guy, things like that. In addition to you know, I mean he does, like you say, places role well, and that's part of it. And then you know, they're trying to establish a new culture. They're trying to get guys to go a certain way inside the building and you know, be to the tune of a certain drum. And he probably believes he's a guy that can help them establish that. He might not be wrong, right, but are you.
I just think from an on field perspective.
Right, is that worth the extra money?
You just you can't bow down to everybody, right like you can't because you're handing out these extensions. And that's what Judon said yesterday. And this is what people like like Paul had been worried about with these contract extensions. Internally, you know, these retaining players with these contract extensions. The fear is is that Devon Godshaw and Matthew Judon are going to sit there and say, well, Barmore got his Remandre got his, Dugger got his you know, where's mine? Right?
And in some respects you do need to be wary of that. And I think Judon is a fair gripe because of how little he has in money coming to him this year. But I just don't feel the same way about Godshaw, and I would be careful about just bending the knee to everybody and just giving everybody a little something.
So when they were giving out all these extensions, people said, well, where do you draw the line, and it's a it's a fair question. Yeah, it's a fair question. Certainly not before Matthew Judon he's worth paying Devon Godshaw. Yeah, maybe that's where you start to have that conversation. I know Joshua had been thrown out like certainly with him because he just signed a deal like three months ago. But that's I feel like he's that Devon Godga might be the answer to that question.
He might be the line that might be it. Yeah, he might be.
Yeah, And that's nothing against him. That's just for where they're at, for what he wants. It doesn't make a lot of sense at that point. You're just signing the deal kind of to sign it.
Yeah, yep, I agree, all right, So that's Godshaw. I do want to circle back really quickly to Antonio Gibson in a second, but just a few other bookkeeping notes.
Keep the book, Sevan, keep on keeping the books.
Pop. Douglas hasn't really been practicing on the last two days.
You want my theory on this, I do want you. I would call it a theory, not even a take. I would call it a theory. They're gonna bury him again. Remember last year he had like two great weeks of camp. Yeah, and then he just didn't practice and he wasn't hurt anything.
But everybody already knows what he is. Like, what's the point of burying more.
He's going to be more.
You think he's gonna be.
I think part of it is he's going to be more, and part of it is they want to make sure he's healthy. Yeah, So I think there's a real chance that they just look at him and say, you're good. We got a lot of receivers we need to get through to evaluate. We know what you can do. We don't want you getting hurt. We don't want to show people the cool, fun gadgety stuff we're gonna do with you. Go right, he had the zoomies today at practice. He's running up and down the sideline on his own.
Yeah.
Like, I think they're burying him again. So they're hiding him, hiding him.
They're not burying him because burying him, that's true, that's the wrong word.
Yeah, hiding him.
Because yeah, burying to him to me is like to make him to the practice squad, which is not what the case is with this, right. Hiding him is an interesting take. I hadn't thought of that.
It's not a take, it's a theory.
Okay, it's an interesting theory. I hadn't thought of that because, to me, you have a brand new offense, brand new coaching staffer, and new quarterback. You gotta get this guy reps now. Could they give him reps once the doors closed to practice? Yep, in the end of August theoretically, But that's a big question with him and always has been with him in the draft. Now after his rookie season, it is very abundantly clear that Pop Douglas is a dynamic playmaker, both as a route runner and with the
football in his hands. But at five eight hundred and eighty pounds can he can he hold up like durability wise? Can you feed him one hundred and twenty five targets a year? Is he going to make it through a seventeen game season? With that high a volume, because, especially on this roster, you'd want to give him that much volume because he's the probably the most dynamic player you have on offense right now, so you'd want to feed
him the rock. But is he gonna be able to withstand the wear and tear of a season that mays to be seen?
So maybe that's part of the reason why this time you just say, hey, man.
Managing the body blow.
You're good, You're good, we know what you can do. Okay, I'll see you when the reporters get out of here.
I like that theory, So Barmore, we mentioned the illness kind of limited a little bit. Today Pop Douglas has been, as Alex said, doing wind sprints off to the side by himself and having a grand old time with that. Apparently Devon Godshad pulled in injury, illness whatever, didn't participate to Jay.
I don't know, we'll see what happens tomorrow. I don't want to be like too short sighted on it, but it would just be so weird for him to come out the first day full and I mean fully participate and then say now I'm good. Yeah, Like that's just what's the message you're trying to send.
There fair enough and Martin Mopoo, Marte Mapoo, there we go. Also not very active in today's practice. Was pretty active yesterday. I felt like or was playing his role of the defense. I guess I should say. I'm not necessarily saying he made a ton of splash plays or anything like that on the ball, but he was out there. He was participating today, not as much. That one is still to me.
And you know, when we talked to jirod Mayo say, yesterday before practice, we talked a little bit about Marte Mapu and just what's his role and is he a linebacker? Is he safety? I feel like they're I don't feel like he flat out said that they're asking the same questions internally, yeah, about what he is. So that makes our show relevant, I guess, because we have this conversation once away.
But here's I'm not sitting here telling you I think he is a linebacker. I'm sitting here telling you try it and find out. Yeah, and at the very least do that. And that's kind of what Mayo said. Now he said they'll figure that out when the pads come on. So, for whatever reason, that doesn't start yet. Maybe just because they feel that you can't fully evaluate that position without pads, on which he's right. But no, he we've had that, Evan, We've had that conversation. Is he a safety? Is he
a linebacker? I don't know, but you gotta play him to find out, right, And it sounds like we're going to get some of that, you know, again, like we said off top of the show, if they do it in the next three or four days whatever, it's really once the paths come on that that becomes a little more interesting.
My take on that is kind of evolving, but I want to save it because I want to talk about Marcus Jones in the slot and that's.
Going on there. No, but you have a take. Give the take.
I wonder with Marte Mapu if there's not a role for him as as a slot as a nickel where a lot of teams nowadays are playing more safeties in that in that spot on early downs, because you were in the fit as a strong side linebacker essentially, like that's the new strong side linebacker. There is no more strong side linebacker, right like you have in a nickel, you have five defensive backs. You're not necessarily playing you know,
three or four linebackers anymore. So, the nickel or the slock corner is point is at the point of attack a lot in the run game. So over the last couple of years, whether it was Marcus Jones, Jonathan Jones, Miles Bryant, the Patriots just haven't had a ton of size in that spot and their run defense hasn't necessarily
taken a huge hit because of it. But I wonder if Marte Mophu's destiny on this team is to be like a nickel safety where you know, the guy that comes to mind for me is Chauncey Gardner Johnson, who's probably one of the best added in the league. You know at times, I guess you could make the argument that Honey Badger plays that type of role as well, but it does it a little bit in his own way. But you're talking about I like the idea of discussing
having a bigger body on first, just on early doubts. Sure, And now if you play a team that's a spread team that's eleven personnel and they have three receivers on the field ninety five percent of the time, and they're in the gun all the time, like you know, you
don't need to. Then it's a game plan player against these Shanahan Tree offenses that are gonna be heavy, that are gonna be under center, that are gonna want to run the ball at you, and is somebody that is a little bit girthier, a little bit stronger at the point of attack. Because I like what I've seen from Marcus Jones in coverage in the slots so.
Far, He's been good.
He's been one of their better players on the field. He's definitely their best man coverage option in that role
right now to play in the slot. But on first down, does he all of a sudden become a target for teams, especially teams like Miami the Jets who are running this type of offense now with Hackett, Like those teams are going to look at that and they're gonna say, we are going to put Marcus Jones at the point of attack in the run game, and we are going to make Marcus Jones defeat blocks and make tackles to set the edge of the defense. That to me is not
gonna end well for the Patriots. So I do wonder if Marte mop Who's destiny is a nickel safety, because he's not gonna play deep. He's really not gonna play the Kyle Duggart rover role either, right, like that that's taken. He's blocked to play like a true box safety's there's two guys ahead of him on the depth chart to play that kind of role, and Jabriel Peppers and Kyle Duggar, and they still don't seem totally gung ho about him playing at the second level full time.
Uh real quick. First, Phil Perry tooted out two hours ago. Tomorrow Douglas is dealing with a hand injury. So there goes my theory. But to your point about Marte Mottswain
was the right exactly. That's why it wasn't take to your point about Martini Mapu, which I think is interesting in the in the context of this defense, Like you said, they haven't necessarily had that big, strong side run presence at the second level, but they play a very They have played a very disciplined, edge set aware defense with Dietrich Wise or whoever's over there, Lawrence guy. At times in the past they had a guy whose primary job was to do that.
Yeah, Anthony Jennings, if you want to go for a route, YEA.
So now they've talked about playing this more aggressive defense. Maybe those guys aren't as concerned with contained and they're more concerned about penetrating. If that's the case, now you are exposing Jonathan Jones, Marcus Jones, whoever's in the slot more and that's where a player like Marte mop who could come in.
Yeah, exactly, that's exactly. We just kind of connected the dots for each other because I just feel like, yes, against certain matchups, if you're gonna play a team that's that deploys a true slot receiver, like I'll just give you examples, because it's easier. When you play Buffalo and Khalios Shakir is in the slot, you're not gonna have Marte Mopho covering Khalios shaker Like. That's that's a bad
matchup for the Patriots. It's a receiver against the safety, slash lineback, whatever you want to call them, right, it's a bad matchup. That's a more of a matchup for Marcus Jones, or maybe Alex Austin breaks into the top three and Jonathan Jones covers Shakira or whatever the case may be. But when you get into these Dolphins Jets, you know San Francisco, which they'll play this year. Those types of teams they are going to run a lot
more a twenty one or twelve. They're gonna be more heavy personnel, and then you can match heavy with heavy and maybe be in like a three safety nickel. And if you're in a three safety nickel, maybe Marte Mapu is your is your third safety as the nickel safety. That to me is a really good idea. It's a theory, a really good theory for Marte Mapu. He's gotta be healthy.
Whatever happened with him today, I don't know. And second to that, I do think that there is a world where that is a somewhat limited role, where it's a strictly game plan style thing. And if that's the case, then he might only be a thirty thirty five percent snap guy at the end of the year, and then we're gonna have the conversation of, well, he was a top one hundred pick and he's not playing well.
If he's here, play him where he's gonna help you the most, or don't play him if that's what's gonna help you the most. Like he's here, we can bemoan the draft pick all we want, but in the context of the twenty twenty four Patriots, oh well then they
shouldn't have taken him. Doesn't do anything fair enough, So you gotta at this point, it's up to Gerard Mayo and DeMarcus Covington to figure out where can this guy help us the most or just understand, yes, he was a third round pick, but we don't have a role for him, so we're just gonna leave him on special teams because that's what's best for the football team.
Yeah. I've always just loved Chauncey Gardner Johnson's game. He has a good player. I think he's a dog he plays.
I mean, he's got another I'm sure he's a nice guy, but he's got another level of angry an a hole in him when he's on the field.
He's a dog. And I feel like the league in a lot of ways, has trended in this direction because of all these Shanahan inspired teams. You just can't get away with having a hundred and eighty pound corner on the field in the slot anymore.
Like well, I even just like I looked him up when you said that, and he's listed at toh five eleven to eight. I would have guessed he's playing closer to to twenty the way he plays.
Yeah, he's I mean, dude, all right really quickly, So going back to Antonio Gibson, this is something that we have talked about a ton on this show, and you a couple of weeks ago when we were doing one of those offseason shows we got we got into a discussion about, wow, I care me Evan, I care about RB three on this team and has hell frozen over? Like what's going on here? Right? Like the RBS don't matter?
Guy cares about running backs. This is exactly why, because for the first two days of training camp, Antonio Gibson has not participated. Now, the good news is that girod Mayo doesn't feel like it's serious, and he was out there today in uniform from briefly stretched then he disappeared to the conditioning field. But that does usually signal that he's getting closer, right, Like it's not going to be a long term absence, like he's not going to be out for the year or anything like that, Like he's
gonna play. So with that being said, though, it has opened the door to the fact that they do not have a whole lot of proven running back depth behind Rermandra, Stevenson and Gibson. So we're back to this whole thing again. You know, do they have a guy on the roster that we feel like can carve out a role as the third running back? Do they have a guy that they can keep around, whether it's on the active roster, the practice squad, is a fourth running back?
Like?
Do they have enough running backs?
Right?
It's really what I'm trying to say, period, And uh, something tells me that this might end with Elliot Wolf having to get on the horn and calling in a veteran running back that has some NFL experience.
I'll tell you this. They worked out uh Monday. Do you remember to Meetric Felton.
Yes, So it's funny.
So we were big to Meetric Felton guys in the draft that year.
We were big, and I was a big Antonio Gibson guy. And it's kind of a Spider Man meme situation. They're they're pretty similar players.
They're Felton's much smaller.
But they're in terms of how they've been were used in college. I remember them being pretty similar.
We kind of Felton was a converted receiver Felton Playnio Gibson. Oh, that's right, he was. Yeah, it's just much big. I just think it was much bigger as felt and small. But he can turn kicks and things like that. And he played for Van Pelt for two years in Cleveland. So a guy like that, I would take Felton over any of the third options they have, unless they want just a bowling ball, in which case Felton's definitely not the guys like one hundred and eighty pounds is.
Really that small? I gotta look this up.
I might be maybe he's I think he's like five eight one ninety five ninety five.
Is what I'm saying. Okay, so yeah, so he's smaller than I thought he was. Yeah, okay, so he's he's definitely more quick. Yeah, he's definitely more of like a scatback type. Yeah, like Antonio Gibson's fast, really fastened a straight line is explosive.
Well, we were talking about Felton in that draft as being like a potential James White replacement.
Yeah, but it doesn't It doesn't surprise me at all that their call was to Demitric Felton for that workout when they weren't one hundred percent sure of what was going on with Antonio Gibson because I do think stylistically they should fit into similar roles within the confines of the offense. But I guess it's one of the those things of like why not both right? You know, I
hear you. I mean the way that I've seen it, and I you know, I probably haven't done as good of a job as tracking this because we've been on the air for the first two practices, but it seems like Kevin Harris is getting the lion Sharon's Yeah, the most three reps right now hasn't been a whole lot of Jamichael Hasty Nope as of right now, and it hasn't been a whole lot of was.
It Sean haven't seen him? And then Charrell Jennings on pups.
Right, So where's our confidence level with Kevin Harris.
I gotta see him in the pads, come on. I mean, I haven't seen much from him, but he's a two hundred and twenty pounds downhill running back like it doesn't really matter with him till the pass going. He did drop a screen today, I think or misplayed a ball on a screen, But yeah, you're not throwing him screens. He's not on the field to catch screens. He's on the field to put his helmet in some guy's chest
and push him backwards. So we'll see. I mean, I've liked the flashes, there's just been so few and far between. And that's not his fault. He hasn'ten given a ton of opportunities. But where's he at in year three?
Right?
You know, where's his development at? And I just think having another option and a guy like Felton would make a lot of sense.
It's a very very small sample size for him in the NFL. I think it's seventeen career carries or something like that. It's if maybe that was one year. It's not a lot and I shouldn't do these things off the top of my head anymore because my memory is not that great. But he hasn't had a lot of carries or opportunities in the NFL. It is.
Thirty four carries eighteen two years ago, sixteen last.
Year I had, I was right in the middle. I knew seventeen was my average.
Seventeen carries a year, yes.
So it's not a small a large sample size, but his yards after contact data as a rookie was decent.
Well, But he had that one run in Arizona.
He had one run in Arizona. That's probably to that brought up the sample size right right. But he's had moments and he's had moments in preseason games as well. He's not he's not a big play explosive guy. He's a bowling ball. He's you know, a big back that's going to that's going to run people over. But as a between the tackles running back, he should be able to get the job done in a pinch. It's not
it's not a great option. Like I'm not sitting here and tell you that they have tremendous running back depth. But with the way that we the way that we know running back value is equated, is he one of
those guys that can just get what's blocked right? Like I always call it the Ben Jarvis greenellis, like, can he just get the four yards that's there and fumble and not fumble and every once in a while maybe he breaks a tackle or runs over somebody for an extra couple of yards and we're in business, Like that's all you're really looking for out of that spot. I
think that's possible. If you're looking for somebody that's a little bit more explosive, that's going to be a little bit more dynamic, then maybe you're calling Demetric Felton or somebody else. Right, So emailer will emails and ask, you know, talking about the running backs. A couple of emails about these actually outs to us about the running backs and the.
Only show's gonna talk about I tried to get Felger to talk about it last week, so it's like pins in his eyes.
It's one of those things that I've been reluctant to talk about it too, because you know how I feel about the running game. Yeah, but I have to be honest, and that is that they're going to run the ball. It's going to be a big part of their offense. Yep. I'm not totally gung ho about it, but that's what they are going to do.
You're doing your job, as I always say, it's your job having do it.
And just like in Cleveland, which we've seen in Cleveland over the years with Nick Chubb and some of their other backs, they drop like flies sometimes and all of a sudden, you're on, who is that guy that had that big Thursday night game in Cleveland a couple of years ago that I'm breaking up a God, we should remember this, but yeah, you know it's like you you pull somebody off the street and all of a sudden, he's got one hundred and fifty yard game, right like that.
Those types of guys are important and over the course of seventeen games. It's not what you're banking on your whole season, but if you need a spot start here and there, that needs to happen. He did get some carries for them last year, yeah, without but no, not the the guy I'm thinking of is not your own form is a couple of years ago. It wasn't last year. I was like, I think it's two or three years ago.
But the emailer asks a question that I feel like we've been asked a million times about running backs, and that that's Kareem Hunt. And yes, he does have the experience in Cleveland with alex Van Pelton. It's a it's a it's an obvious connection, but I still remain skeptical that organizationally, Kareem Hunt is going to be of interest.
Oh sorry, it was to Ernest Johnson, AAF Legends, the Orlando.
Apollos Dearrenis Johnson on Hunt.
Yeah, I'm with you, there's organizationally doesn't make a lot of sense. I've read some things. I don't know how much I believe them. I've seen a couple people list Nick Chubb as like a surprise camp cut. What right. I don't know where that's coming from.
That's what happening.
I mean, it shouldn't even be twenty four hours before he's here. If that happens, that's not happening. I'm telling you what I saw.
That's crazy. That's not the best running backs in the league.
Absolutely. I don't know if they're thinking, like new offensive coaching staff and he's coming off the knee and whatever's.
Coming off one of the more gruesome knee injuries we've seen in the last couple of years in the league. Like that was brutal injury that he had, so maybe, I mean, do you remember that it came out at like I don't know if it was him or somebody else. I got ahold of the of the X ray and the MRI I from that knee injury, and it's just like a n No, I'm pretty sure that was real.
Yeah, people are talking about him as like a potential trade candidate. And that's wild A couple of places.
That's wild.
Well, that's they'd be dumb do it. They'd be dumb to do it, like I wouldn't count on it. That shouldn't be plan a.
No, they it's an honest, fair question to have about their running back depth.
I'll give you one while we're on this, all right, So they're not gonna I don't think they're gonna move on from Chubb. Maybe he opens the season on pup. Yeah, but but you know they have Jerome Ford, solid player, they have daunt the foreman, solid player, Like they are kind of deep. There a running back behind him, Naim Hines as they have me. He's on a five they have. Um, you call about Pierre Strong or if he gets cut like they had, Pelt clearly wanted him.
It's a better fit.
It's a better fit.
It's a better fit. This is the offense that they drafted Pierre Strong.
I would absolutely take Pierre Strong back if that opportunity put himself and he was decent for them last year. I wouldn't be surprised they made a couple of plays with them last year. Elliot Wolf Macroe still here. Yeah, twenty two draft class. That was the offense that they drafted him and Cole Strange and taikwad Thornton to be a part of was to be more outside zone heavy, and that's told they were trying to do that with Patricia.
It's possible. That's a good call like that. That's probably if he's fallows out of favor there, if he's a cut candidate, could they retrade him back to the Patriots, you know, like obviously for a very minimal compensation. Yeah, but something along those lines. Not a bad shout, Not a bad shout. All right, let's take some of these phone calls and then we'll get to some of our other practice notes. I just want to point out there's no other show, there's no other Patriots show that's gonna
go forty minutes nowhere without talking about the quarterbacks. We went forty minutes without even mentioning Drake May's name. I think I think I talked about him very briefly.
That that's what we do here. We talked about the third running back and the nose tackle, and.
You can maybe linebacker safety and.
Us trying to you know, put our our coaches hats on and talk about Martin Hapu's role and you can save your quarterback talk. That's what we take it. Elsewhere.
Where's our awards?
All right? Matthew is in Virginia? What's up, Matthew? Matthew? Hello, Hey, how's it going right?
Can you hear me?
Yes? Go for it.
So I just have two questions for you guys. The first one is, uh, did you guys see Gonzo? Was he looking good out there today? I know he's coming off that shoulder injury, but you know, if he's he's looking good, I have a lot of faith he can be a top five corner. And the second thing is, I'm actually going to college this year. I just graduated high school. I'm going into college for journalism. I'm hoping
to be a sports journalist. Do you guys have any tips for maybe a new starting sports journalist or want to be beat reporter?
Thanks, guys, thanks for the call, Matthew. So we'll answer both questions that The first question with Christian Zaz, he's been out there and participating in full, which is for right now is all I wanted to see.
It's all you gotta say. And I asked him about that after practice today. Just with that, you know, is it nice to be back out there. So it's the best feeling in the world.
Yeah.
So and he's moving well and all that. Like, Yeah, I don't want to downplay. I mean, he had a serious injury, but upper body injuries, lower body injuries, they're different, especially for corners.
Yeah, and he's been healthy for quite some time. Yeah. Yeah, so he he's good to go. He looks pretty smooth out there. I would say he's probably still getting his sea legs a little bit. You know, he's let up a catch in front of him to Jalen Polk today. Not anything to like panic about or anything like that, but I I feel like, you know, in terms of
just getting back into the swing of things. You know, he's gonna maybe be a beat behind, But for right now, the most important thing is that he's physically out there, looks the part, looks like Christian Gonzalez moving around grade and is healthy and that's the most important thing, all right, quickly, one piece of advice.
Uh, don't say no to any opportunity. Nothing's blow you, nothing's too small, nothing's whatever, or even just the more you're saying yes, people know that all right, I can count on this person. He's available, he's willing all that. So I remember coming back from spring break Evan Ethic of college and getting a text that they needed somebody to fill a six twenty six am sports update shift on the radio. This is like a five minute shift. You read a report, you're done, and I said yes,
because that's just what you do. And afterwards somebody say, hey, you don't really appreciate you filling in for that, Like we noticed that things like that, So uh, never, the word no should not be a part of your vocabulary professionally.
You walk that walk by the way, because you're on like seventeen different podcasts.
This is my second or four shows to Yeah, that's not advice or somebody going into college. This is just life advice for this field.
You walk that walk for sure. Like sometimes I even ask you, like why are you doing this show? And it's because somebody asked me that's why. Yeah, you're you're a better man than me. My one piece of advice. I would say, I got great advice from somebody once that I tell you probably heard this seventeen times, but they said, you know, they asked me like, who's who's somebody that currently has a job that you would want, that you emulate, you know, that you look up to.
And at the time I said, I said Reese, And I said, you know, I want to be a Patriots beat reporter. I want to be Mike Greece. And he said to me, well, then be Mike Greece. And I was like, what are you talking about, Like, I don't work for ESPN. I can't, I'm not credentialed, like I can't just but his point was kind of fake it till you make it, Like no one really knows what you're doing until you do it, you know. And and so there's no rule book, there's no playbook on like
how to be a beat reporter. There's no real guideline or you know whatever. He said to just watch what Reese does, and.
It's great advice.
Trying to do what he does.
It's great advice. And it's you know, something I alway think about. You know, how they say dressed for the job you want, not the job you have. Yeah, dressing act like it. Yeah, I mean do the job you currently have too, But you know, act act the way you want. Have about Reese, by the way he's been doing videos with some of those like, you know, younger kids who are trying to get into this at camp. Yeah, I love that, you know, our buddies act. I saw
us out there in Carlos. That's awesome, man, Good for them, Good for him.
He looks like he's been hitting the gym a little bit.
He does.
He's in shape.
Talk about we always do to coming who's who came into camp in shape, who looks like they're they're in good.
Shack, best shape of his life there, I say, Mike.
That's that's how we do it. That's usually the euphemism.
All right, Colleen is in Houston. What's up Colleen?
Hey, guys, can you hear me?
Yes?
Okay.
So I was thinking about like what I want or expect from this season. And I don't expect playoffs. I don't think most people do. But some people during up two thousand and one and like that was a phenomenon. It'll never happen again, especially to the team it already happened for. But I was thinking about what I would consider a successful season, and for me, I want to see my team win. But if we get a great draft pick and we can trade back and get a
left tackle and a wide receiver. Somehow finagle that that would be a great year for me. But like last year when we beat the Broncos, I was all on board, like I was super happy. So I'm curious, is there a number of wins or a draft to position that you would consider a successful season? And then very quickly go, Matthew, you sound super wholesome. I believe in you. And also I'm pissed that Joe alt is becoming a right tackle because he was such a good left tackle.
The good point like a way, Okay, thanks for the great call.
Colling nailed it on Joe Walton. What the hell is horrible I doing?
Are we sure Jim Harbad knows is like all there? Like, are we sure that he's going to be good at this? No?
No, I don't think he is.
Did you see that he was wearing cleats out to practice like he's listening him up.
I don't remember if it was on this show. I was on a show.
He's worrying me a little bit.
And I dropped this take. No, this is I said this on the Sports I think I was on with Joe Murray. You want a hot take for the twenty twenty four NFL season, Jim Harbas thinks Jim Harbaugh's won and done.
Oh one and done.
Jim Harbaugh's won and done, whether he's not good enough or he just realizes I don't want to do this. I want to go back to college because it's a very different.
Game, it's a different animal.
I think Jim Harbaugh's won and done in LA just.
Some of the things, you know, the Joe All things, I couldn't agree more. Now they have ever shown Slater, who's one of the best left tackles in the league. Right, So it's it's hard to.
Trade down, Yeah, I mean trade down draft Fuanga, wasn't it.
Some of the reports at the time that they tried or that was sort of I feel like that was the playoff.
Well, if they couldn't get anybody to take the fifth overall picked didn't try hard enough.
Well, all the quarterbacks were gone. So what you're not trading up for J. J. McCarthy or Pennixons. Yeah, I guesslie. Neighbors went six, right.
I meant to say neighbors. Somebody wanted the neighbors wanted to jump the Giants from nobody wanted Joe allt you have a franchise left ackle sitting there. Yeah, nobody wanted Joe all And and to to Colleen's point, to go to another part of that question, what's a successful season, Like, I don't know that it's a win total or a specific draft pick number, because I said this last year, like, there's no such thing as too many wins. They have
to build a competitive culture. You don't want losing to become habitual. And the reality is they're in a position where they should be able to move around the draft board as they need. They're probably gonna end up with the top ten pick. There's two stud tackles we think in this draft, and Will Campbell and Calvin Banks. You see Will Campbell put up six sixteen on squad rack with a wink. He might be special. He might be special. Yeah, But anyway, and look, if they walk out with Will
Campbell or Kelvin Banks, that'd be great. If they can move up and take a receiver at that point, you might just be better off trading that second round pick for a veteran receiver. But yeah, I don't think there's like a number which a successful season to me is growth And I know that sounds like corporate and people might cringe at that, but I mean it, especially when
it comes to Drake May. I got this weird question in a mail bag the other day, and I thought it was a good thought experiment and it's lacking context. But the question was, would I rather see Drake May play four really good games and get hurt or play eight meg games and end of the year.
Healthy like a Joe Burrow situation.
I guess yeah, to which I said, well, if the eight games are so so, but he's still getting better throughout them, I would rather that than four games and he gets hurt because season any injury. Who knows what that means for his future league. I just need to see him be better at the end than they're at the beginning, especially the way this team has fallen off
late in the season the last few years. So you know, if they went in four games, but two of those wins are in December, you you might feel good about that. You might feel good about that going into the offseason. Who did that a couple of years ago?
Detroit, Detroit, they were They got a little bit hotter than just that. They They ended the year I think winning, They almost made the playoffs. They they they fumbled the bag at the end of the year to make the playoffs if I remember correctly. So they they won like I don't know, seven or eight games. I want to say, again doing things off the top of my head that I shouldn't do. But that's the team that I look at. Everybody wants to be the Texans last year. That's probably a little lot.
That's the apex.
But Detroit a few years ago now built totally different, right, they traded for their quarterback and all that kind of stuff. But Detroit a few years ago, they were on the up. They finished the season on a high. They just barely missed out on the playoffs. And then they came back last year and we're one of the best teams in football right wired to wire.
So I mean, again, just be better at the end than the are at the beginning. That goes for Trake. Maybe that goes for the team as a whole.
Yeah, I thought that, Gerrod Mayo and I want to look up this Detroit thing because it's.
Back as you look it up, even going back to twenty one. A lot of people and I was not in this group, so and people have taken a victory lap on this recognizing what the fall off at the end of the twenty twenty one season was. You had what looked like a successful season with the rookie quarterback and it turned out to be a little fools goal.
So they won nine games. Detroit in twenty twenty two didn't make the playoffs though, and.
Right they lost to the or No. They played the Packers in the Sunday night game, but they something else happened earlier in the day was supposed to be for the playoffs, and they knocked the Packers and then it was it.
Yeah. And then in twenty twenty three. Of course, last year they go twelve and five make it to the end NFC Championship game, so that that that's definitely another path. But in terms of successful season, I agree with you that it's not necessarily on wins and losses, and it's probably something that we're gonna see and feel more than it's going to be tangible of they won eight games,
they won nine games. But I thought Geron Mayo had a great answer to the question about this exact question on Tuesday what is a successful season when he said it that we've laid a foundation that this year is all about laying a foundation, just like that Detroit team did in twenty twenty two where they won nine games. That was a found They knew that they had built a foundation, that we were going in an upward trajectory. I hope that the Patriots are doing the same thing.
It might not be as fruval like. They might not get to nine wins, maybe it's only four or five wins, but you want to come off the year feeling like they're building towards something in a positive way, and that that really does start with the quarterback. So we got to we're now forty five minutes in without talking about the quarterbacks in detail. So now we can get to the quarterbacks. But before we do, has your work from
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of the New England Patriots Quarterbacks. So a little bit of a development today with Joe Milton, your boy. How do you feel about that, Alex, Yeah, I mean so Bazuka.
I'm not gonna get too much.
He doesn't like Bazuka, so we need a different No.
What we came up with it the other room.
The Manhattan Project, the Manhattan Project. That's right.
You thought he's gonna be a secret the Manhattan Project. We're going to let him throw in front of people. The Manhattan Project is moving up to depth chart, so I don't think he is. I'll tell you what I think today was.
You think they're gonna rotate?
Yeah, I think that's how they're going to maximize the reps for Jacoby Brissett and Drake May is that third spot. One day it will be a Zappy day. One day will be Milton day. Now, maybe I'm wrong, Maybe we come out tomorrow it's Joe Milton again. But if I'm as much as I see Joe Milton throw the ball and he was humming it today, I thought too much on some of those Yeah, he had he had won a Kwan Baker. They took Kawad Baker's fingers off. Yeah, he went down to the books as a drop.
Wow.
I think that's how they're gonna split the rep. Because I've said this, you still want to rep Joe Milton. I understand the priorities are Drake May's development and getting Jacoby Brissett ready for the season, and those should be the priorities. So it should be the heavy priorities. But you can't just let you invested. It's a six round pick. He invested something in Joe Milton. You can't just let
him sit there and do nothing. And for what it's worth, you have other guys that are, you know, in their equivalent spot in the depth chart that you want to rep, and maybe you don't want your top quarterbacks throwing into those guys. There'd be reasons for that. So you do need a third quarterback, You do need somebody in that role. But rather than going third than fourth, it maximizes the opportunities for May and Bersett to just alternate Zappi and Milton each day.
I would like to see a little bit more touch on some of those underneath throws from Joe Milton.
He did have one good touch throw but I don't know if I don't know if it exists. No, he did have one today.
No, I know, but I don't know if it like consistently.
Right, They needs to do it more. Yeah, he needs to do it more.
But with that being said, and he hasn't necessarily uncorked the deep ball yet, like we haven't seen one of those sixty five yards in the air type throws. But he did have a throw today. It was a bootleg and we'll get to some of the disasters on some of these bootlegs. But he bootlegged and there's a defender right in his face and he just kind of flicked the ball out to the sideline. I think it was
as to one of the tight ends. Might be it was a Michael Peedaway or Jahane Bell, and it was like effortless, Like that's not it should not look that easy, right that on a line feet not said, dude in your face, just kind of drop the arm angle and just flick the wrists and the ball just jumps out there. It shouldn't look that easy. It does for Joe Milton. Let's start with Jacoby Brissett though, or let's continue.
No, we started too late. We started with Joe Milton, you made that decision.
I know what Jacob PRIs said. I said earlier on PU and I'm getting getting some flak for you know me, sometimes I say things a little bit too strong that I don't actually need to come out as strong as as I said it. I said that nobody cares about Jacoby were set And again, I promise you done of the things I say on here are personal to the player,
to the person. But frankly, we're out here watching these practices to evaluate Drake May and evaluate the entire thing in the prism of Drake May be in the future and potentially maybe the present sooner rather than later. So yes, Jacoby Pressett has a role on this team. He has an important role as both a potential bridge quarterback and as a mentor. But with these practices, more than anything, this is about Drake May because we don't know come
September when we might see Drake May next. Right, this is our chance to actually evaluate Drake May and see Drake May in a large exposure. We might get into week one of the regular season and we might not see him for another two months, and we don't get to watch practice like we watch practice in training camp. Once the regular season comes around, we have that, you know,
maybe ten minutes. You know, maybe Drid will be a little bit more generous with our in season practice time, but we're not gonna see team drills during practice, right so that's this is our opportunity to soak in all the Drake may as we possibly can. What have have been your impressions, you know, with that being said, what have been your impressions so far of what you've seen from Jacob?
Ever said, So, I mean just steady, just kind of what I expected he makes. There's some place he's made that he had, you know, a good off platform throw the other day. But when the pressure's turned up, it's it's been a bit more of a struggle for him. And that's kind of what he is. That's kind of what he's been. Not a ton of surprises from him. I think you're more or less getting what you expected.
Yeah, that's how I feel too, And part of me feels as though it's it feels a little not I think underwhelms the wrong word, but just like meh about it because there's nothing really exciting about the offense what Jacoby were said, and maybe it's more just like the allure of the unknown with Drake May, and it's the whole mystery box saying right like there could be more upside there, not could there will be more upside there
with the Drake May box. But what Jacoby was said, yes, there are times, probably pretty more frequently than Drake May, that things are on time, and the offense probably runs smoother, and he's in and out of the huddle probably a little bit smoother at this stage, and you know, the ball the throws are more on time and all that kind of stuff, but it just lacks any sort of
danger or explosion or like a playmaking ability. Like his best throw so far is probably on that I throw up to se him to Austin Hooper yesterday, they'll stick nod route, you know, sit down and then break it up the seam. He made a nice throw fitted between
a couple of defenders. Right, he's hit, He's hit some underneath stuff that's been on time and in rhythm and all that kind of stuff Like those are the types of things that you want and you see and the coaches probably value that more than we do because they know that this is what it's supposed to look like, right, like this is the in rhythm offense, this is the scripted offense, whereas with Drake May, there's just always this appeal of he could just do something like anything that
you're not expecting, Like he could throw a fifty yard bomb down the sidelines to Jalen Rager, like that could just come out of nowhere. I'm not expecting that to come out of nowhere at any time, which Kobe was said, so for lack of a better word, because it's not coming to mind right now, meh, Like it's it's kind of boring, I said, steady, But but it's kind of boring.
It's boring in a good way because it's what you want. You want a guy that's just gonna get you, to Drake May. And I think another thing is we've heard a lot of players talk about what a resource Jacoby Burssett has been to help them learn Alex Van Pelts offense. So in that sense, I mean, I think you're getting what you wanted out of him, and he's doing his job right. The play was never for him to come in and win an MVP if he doesn't be great, But the play was never for him to come in
win MVP. The planners him to come in and keep the seat warm and help everybody get help Drake maner, but he else get adjusted to this new offense and just simply having a new quarterback, and so far, I'd say that's what he's done.
Yeah, I agree. I Again, there's something to be said for all the things that you're saying, of course, and then there's something to be said for the offense probably running more on script or on time comparatively speaking to some of the other quarterbacks. Yeah, there's more of those plays that I feel like when they hit it, I'm like, okay,
Like that's how it should look on a Sunday. He made a throw to today, to Taekwon Thorton, for example, his play action five step play action drop and he comes off it at the top he kind of went up in the pocket like he stepped through the pocket because there's a little bit of pressure coming off the edge there. Yeah, steps through the pocket back, you know, gets back into the phase, throws the football. Taekwon Thorton comes out of his brake balls right there, and you're like, okay,
that's a Sunday throw. Like that's a Sunday play and those types of plays are encouraging from Jacoby brissaid, there's just there's already it already feels like they're swimming upstream because of other avenues of the offense, like the receivers, the offensive line. It feels like the passing game sometimes is fighting it as it is to make yards and when the quarterback is really more just managing the situation
more than anything. That that also just kind of gets what we got today, which is just a lack of big play flash, Like there's just no flash to it.
There's also something, you know, to be said with Jacob Brissett, I would say, you know, as we go through this offensive line situation, which we'll get to in a second, that it hasn't been good and if it's gonna be like this, then all those people that we're calling in and you know, the conversations that we've had over the last couple of months about do they need to sit Drake may just because of the offensive line play, if this is how the offensive line is gonna look in
pads and the answer that question might be yes, like we might be everyone might have been right about that. Right now, we need to wait a little bit. Let's get to the main event, though, let's get let's talk a little bit about Drake May. I think the biggest thing that I've seen with Drake May that's so encouraging or just just catches the eye. The ball absolutely jumps out of his hand. There's no question about that. He's got easy cheese, like he's got easy velocity with the football.
I thought today was in on perfect display because yesterday he had the downfield throw to Rager and it might have been a tiny bit overthrown, but it's a catchable ball because he got it. There was one hand to catch. Great. The catch was better than the throw, but it was still an example of that arm talent that you see. But to me, it's even it's not even necessarily the
deep ball. Today he made a throw on an incut to Jalen Polk towards the end of practice where it looked a little bit like an RPO to me, some sort of play action we're talking about that figure it was. I thought it was an RPO because he kind of delayed it, like he held the mesh point a little bit longer than a regular play action pass would look and he just he takes out the football, he keeps the ball, and it's just a sleight of hand of just being able to then transition into throw. He doesn't
have to step into it. He doesn't need to actually, you know, climb the pocket or anything like that. And it's just like on a line in between a couple of guys. To Jalen Polk, those drive throws, those middle of the field drive throws, that's a breath of fresh air man. They haven't had a quarterback that's been able
to do that since Brady Ticket. Actually drive the football through the middle of the field and throw the ball into some traffic, but have it really be not a danger ball, like, have it actually be a good throw
but in a good decision by the quarterback. Those drive throws are super encouraging to me because that that is exactly what you're you weren't able to access with Mac Jones was ten plus yards down the middle of the field like he was never Mac never really was able to master that to me and uh and Jacoba, Jakoby Drake may has been able to do that already. He made the throw yesterday to Juju on the bootleg where
he you know, comes off the bootleg. Juju's crossing from left to right and off platform, you know, in the air, you know, kind of on the move, just makes another throw on the line to Juju with just easy v lo on the ball. Those are the types of throws that I look at. I'm like, in terms of arm, talent, athleticism, ability, he's checking all the boxes of a number three overall pick. Like, we're not going to be asking ourselves does he just not have it physically to cut it into the NFL.
He's got that in droves. Now it's just about him catching up mentally, like is he gonna be able to get them in and out of bad plays at the line of scrimmage? Is he going through his progressions properly? You know, those types of things are gonna be the bigger questions for this coaching staff because the guy throws a pretty ball like he throws a pretty ball and he's got some heat on it.
So my big takeaway from Drake May through the first two days really this was yesterday, is uh, he's here to compete. And some people may hear that and be like, well, yeah, duh, he's a professional. But no, it's so easy for a rookie to come in and just all right, well, I don't want to screw up, screw up. I'm gonna take what's there. I'm gonna take what's safe. I don't want to mess up. I don't want anybody to, you know, think anything is bad. Whatever, blah blah blah. No I
he came out slinging it. He came out he's testing tight windows, He's testing deep parts of the field, and that comes with mixed results, and you want to clean that up. But part of the reason it's good he's doing that is all right, He's gonna figure out here in camp. Okay, this works, this doesn't. If I want to do this, I have to do it this way, or this needs to be done you know, quickly or whatever.
Like he came out aggressive, he came out with no fear, and that's what you want to see from a rookie quarterback. He does not in terms of the mentality of it. He does not look like a rookie.
Now.
Like I said, there's some within that they have to clean up. But I would rather he make those mistakes now and learn now and test things now, and then when he gets to week one he has all that information versus he's playing it very safe and then Suddenly Week one, there's two minutes to go. They need to go eighty yards for a touchdown. Well, I can't take the checkdowns. Now what do I do?
Right?
So when I talk, we talked off the top of the show about the approach means more to me than the results at this point of camp. That's what I'm talking about. Hill. You hope he irons out and figures out exactly where his limitations lie in terms of testing certain windows and certain certain parts of the field.
He has a ton of confidence, he does, and that's I don't want that confidence to go away. Like that's the thing is.
Well, you have to hone it. You have to hone it, and you know, learn from it and be realistic. But he's where I like his confidence is he's not afraid if I throw a pick, it's all over, right, Jacoby's going to be the starter. Oh yeah, right, he's not afraid to throw a pick in this setting.
Now.
I hope when he gets to the game he doesn't have quite that same approach and he kind of learns, all right, this is what worked, this is what didn't. But he's fine experimenting in practice because he knows, okay, this is the only way I'm going to be able to figure these things out.
So maybe we're arguing semantics, and I'm not really been arguing with you. But the film nerds, the Twitter, film coaches, whatever you want to call us, what we would call what you're describing is arm arrogance. And if I'm the Patriots, and if I'm gid Mao and and I'm Elliot Wolf and all the Patriots brass, the last thing that I want to do is coach arm arrogance out of Drake May.
I would so much rather him continuing to be arrogant af rip it, grip it and rip it baby, like, don't don't hold him back, because yeah, they're gonna be mistakes, right, and maybe he turns the ball over and maybe he makes a bad throw here or there. But there are quarterbacks on the flip side that have that type of arm arrogance that are just have that like I'm going to fit this ball into any type of window that for the most part it kind of works like they
kind of get away with it. Well, but that's you have to.
But I think the guys that really do that at an elite level know what they can and can't get away.
With maybe to an extent you'd have to ask them, like, I don't know where the line is necessary, But I look at quarterbacks and I know you're going to tell me that he stinks. But like Josh Allen, Jordan Love Herbert, those types of guys that have this kind of arm talent I put like I'm not gonna put my homes in.
The conversation is different stratsphere, but those three guys are the guys that come to mind when I think about Drake may just from a skill set standpoint and from a tool standpoint, and all three of those guys still have don't lose that like they don't. They have all the confidence in the world that they can hit any blade of grass, and I would just rather roll with that, Like so, okay, maybe he does have some Josh Allen turnover issues early on in his career, so be it.
Like he'll learn from it, you know, and he'll get But.
That's my point, learn from it because there are some guys that don't there are some guys that can. And this goes to something Jott and Mayo talked about yesterday, which I thought was great because this was always a big bill Belichick tenant, and one of the things that maybe didn't get talked about as much as is, you know, you can make a mistake. Guys are gonna make mistakes in camp. It's gonna happen. Don't make the same mistake twice. Yeah,
make the mistake, learn from it, apply it. And that's basically what I'm saying, Like, just you can't put don't keep trying to test the same throw that's clearly not.
There, fair enough, but you can't put trading wheels on the gunslinger, like, don't take the gun slinger out of him, because then what ends up happening is you end up getting and granted the physical tools weren't there for Mac, but like you end up getting something like Max rookie season, which for the most part we know now was kind of an aberration.
But I guess what I'm saying is like, yeah, but I I don't know. We disagree on this. I don't think it's a good thing for quarterbacks to throw interceptions. You don't care, but you know it's.
A it's a give and take though, because no, it's inherently it's not good for quarterbacks to throw interceptions. But at the same time, if the quarterback is also just not be aggressive and testing windows down the field, then you're not gonna be a productive offense.
I guess what I'm saying is he's doing it in practice, and I like that, and I'm sure he'll do it in the game, but coming from the ACC playing a bunch of week defenses where he could pretty much do whatever he wanted, he's got to relearn there are limitations, and he can test those limitations, but he's got to
learn limitations. And I like that he's doing that because it would be easy for them to put the training wheels on in practice, and he clearly feels he has the freedom to experiment and do what he needs to do. It's just none of that matters if you continue to be overly wild in the games. I guess is my point fair enough?
And I also just feel like this was something that they did with Mac that I in hindsight, because all we can do now, and I know it's easy for us to sit here in hindsight and wag our fingers, but all we can do now is learn from the Mac Jones experience and what went wrong with his development, And there's a million things that it contributed. But one of the things that I feel like they can learn from with Mac jo Zones is that you can't completely
coddle a guy. And I feel like a a rookie season, they had such they had him so buttoned up.
That, Yeah, that's clearly not the case here that you.
Can't coddle him, right, Like, I hope that when they put Drake May, whether it's week eight, week nine, week fifteen, I don't care. I hope when Drake May finally takes over that they just kind of let him loose. And if he throws three picks in a game and they lose because he's a little bit too arrogant, then that's when you coach him to rate it back in. But don't go into games. Remember with Mac his rookie year, he didn't throw a ball into the end zone for
like the first movie. Yeah, Like, don't go into games like that, Like let him play through it, like let him make mistakes, let him learn on the fly.
I hope they do that differently, well, I guess so to bring it all together. They're doing that in camp. Yeah, because even in camp that year, it felt like Mack was relatively controlled. This feels like they told Drake may be, Drake, may make the throws you want to right, and we'll react to them after. If they're good, great, If not, we'll tell you they're not. We'll tell you to stop
making them. But or we'll tell you no, do it differently, right, throw this ball in this spot and put it on the back shoulder instead of the front shoulder, however they want to qualify it. It does feel like they're giving him the free and this is what I like. They're giving him the freedom to test things, and he's taking that freedom and making the most of it.
I've also been pretty impressed with Drake Mays. I thought that we would have more of those like WTF throws than we've had, and not necessarily turnovers, but just throwing balls ten yards over guy's heads and like some of the stuff that we saw on tape with him at North Karrigine and in the spring where he would just like totally lose the ball right, like he would just
lose control of the football. He had one throw over the middle today to Jaheim Bell that was off, and he had one yesterday that it felt like he got pressured in his lap and kind of threw a dirt
ball over the middle to Kaishan Boody. But for the most part, he's been generally accurate, which I think is encouraging because I thought that we were going to see some like I remember, I keep going back to Josh Allen, but remember Josh Allen's rookie year when he would just throw the ball like ten yards over his dude's heads on the sideline. But yeah, it was like Landen, like the first row. And I'm not exaggerating. Zach Wilson used to do it all the time too, And you're just
and you're just like, what the heck was that? Like, where is that going? I haven't really said Matt to myself too often with him.
That's one where let's see when the pads come on, he's facing a live rush.
You know, maybe it would be up a little bit more.
Yeah, that's again, I'm more interested in this point in the approach, not so much the results. Yeah, and that's not to protect him to say he's bad. If anything, I'm probably taking something away from him. He's been good, But I just like the approach. I I just liked it. He's been fearless.
Oh yeah, he sees that single high safety and he's he's hunting like he's not.
That's me playing Madden.
You you put that single high safety over the top of Drake May, and you better cover the receiver as well because he's going in the field.
Now do that when there's a two hundred and eighty pound pass rusher in your face. Yeah, I guess, is my point. But he he has been afraid so far, so so far, so good.
Last thing on the quarterbacks really quickly. This whole thing to me still is annoying. It's still a charade to me, like there's I just can't envision a world where where we're at right now with Drake May. To me, is he's on a climb up the mental mountain, right. Can he call plays in a huddle? Can he go through progressions? Can he audible? Can he get again? And can he be at a high enough mental level that he can function without it being in a disservice to him to
put him out there. I can't envision a scenario where they have eleven more training camp practices that are that are open to the public. There'll be a couple more that will be just for the media. Then they'll have three preseason games we have about six weeks to go in this process, and I just can't imagine that in six weeks from now he's not going to be at a baseline level to be able to call a play
in a huddle or go through an NFL progression. I just don't understand what we're doing here with talking about it any differently than the door being wide the heck open for him to take this job week one because we can all sit there and watch it through two days and through the spring and all that and say it's not gonna be physical, like, it's not gonna be arm talent, it's not gonna be any of those types
of things. This is clearly about whether or not Alex Van Pelt feels like he has a mastery of the offense, it's at a good enough level to play in an NFL game, or it's about all the other stuff we've been talking about, the offensive line, the receivers, whatever. But for Drake may just in a vacuum. I don't see any reason why he can't be the Week one starter, because I feel like mentally he'll get there in the
next six weeks. Like they have plenty. They have so much time between now and the regular season to get him mentally ready. I just I find it so hard to believe that he won't be And so therefore, if we get to the point where Cincinnati's around the corner, we're really talking about it being other stuff, like, you know, other things.
Because it's not going to be his your Your whole point is outside of the reasons he wouldn't start, I can't see why he wouldn't start.
Basically, I can't. I can't see why he wouldn't start because of Drake May.
If you want to make he'll be ready, whether or not the situation is ready is another question.
That And because that's the only point that you could make that I could honestly hear and be like, Okay, I accept that as a point. If you're telling me that he's not ready to play an NFL game because we don't feel like he can call a play in a huddle, well then I would say to you, well, what the heck have you been teaching him for the last three months.
Well, let's see again, let's see what he looks like when he has pass rushers in his face. And it's a little early to say that. I don't you're not necessarily wrong. I just think it's a little early to be that pounding the table for it.
But in you, what do you think is going to change? I guess so drastically.
I just want to see how he handles pressure before I'm willing to say he's like I I he's on track. He's on track. Yeah, I just like you said off the top of the show, it's two practices. They haven'ty put pads on yet. We haven't seen real football. Let's see that before we go exclaiming, because that was that was a bit of an exclamation, right, I said before My take wasn't a take. It was a theory. That wasn't a take. That was a That was a proclamation from Evan Lazar.
Yes, my proclamation is that Drake may should be this team's Week one starter. I'll say it now.
Can I watch him in a fully padded practice.
You can watch him in practice, But just to be to be fair, I would have told you on draft night that he should be the week one So.
I remember we were out there in the spring. You're he threw a pick and he said, nope, he's still a Week one starter. He's the best quarterback on the team. So what are we doing, Like, are we not going to play the best players? Or we are we going
to be the best player? That's where the other even if that does end up being the case with him, there are the other factors because we can get to the offensive line have an I don't feel great neither my third overall pick investment behind what we saw today.
He's the best quarterback on the team. I would have told you that on April twenty six.
So then let's not get killed.
Okay, So along those lines, let's talk about the offensive line. Offensive line play in general, line play either side, sitting here and evaluating it in non padded practices. I'll make the comparison again. I think I made it in the spring. It's a lot. What they're doing at this point is
like paying playing defense in basketball. They're just trying to slide their feet and maybe there's like a little bit of hand checking, but we're really not hand checking, and we're just trying to keep ourselves in between the pass rusher and the quarterback. That scenario that I just spelled out for you ten times out of ten is going
to favor the pass rusher. It just is. Yeah, And when you also add in the pass rusher is Matthew Judon, Josh Ucha, who's a guy that has double digit sack season in his NFL career, Christian Barmore yesterday, Like, these guys are are good pass rushers on top of that. So I don't want to evaluate the line necessarily because I don't want to get two in the weeds of shorts and a T shirt and offensive line and blocking.
But that being said, what I'm seeing out there with the offensive line right now, and why I'm still not hitting the panic button just yet, is because a lot of it to me seems assignment and like execution based in terms of, you know, there's a pressure today where they tried the bootleg and Matthew Judon just didn't bite on the bootleg. Now, Matthew John's a really good player. Maybe he sees it from a mile and he doesn't
bite on the bootleg against anybody. But there's really no threat of the run game right now because they're not in pad, so they're not running the football, they haven't set it up, they haven't they're not sequencing plays together right So in a lot of ways, it just feels like it's predictable and Matthew Judon stays home and he's right in the quarterback's face, and that's that. And on the one hand, you might look at that and you're like, oh god, you know, here we go. Right, the offensive
line's a mess. And there's another one. I think it was Dietrich Whise that came through unblocked. Again. They were trying to move the pocket a little bit, and they just didn't get it fitted up properly, like they weren't hat on the hat properly with it, and oh god, here we go. Get right. So I'm willing to be a little bit patient with it, but I can't deny the priors, which were that this was what everybody thought
was gonna be the issue. And two days into camp today especially felt like a jail break on every other drop back.
And I'm with you, I don't want to necessarily evaluate line play without pets. I think that's excited. But like I've said a few times during the show, let's not look at the results, Let's look at the approach. Yesterday it was Calvin Anderson Caden Wallace right tackle. Today it was Cade Wallas in Venerian Low. Well, you've seen Calvin Anderson play both sides chooks A corfour still on the left side. I will evan if you'll allow me for a second, because I'm curious if you saw this evaluate
one performance based thing. A core four still looks a little uncomfortable getting back into a set at left tackle. I'm sure he doesn't entirely look like he is, Like once he gets back, he looks, it looks normal, but there's like a period there where his weight doesn't look bad, if that makes sense.
He's got a little hitch.
Not even that. It's just I don't defeat tied. I don't know the defeet are tied to the upper body right leaning now.
To be fair, he he's kind of an unorthodox passbocker as it is, and he's one of those guys on film, even on the right side that it doesn't always look pretty. But he's somehow.
And he's still learning it. Like, yeah, you can look look off balance the first day at camp all you want, as long as you get it figured out by week one. So but to get back to the point of the approach. So we've seen three different right tackles Mike on Win who still isn't kicked outside. We've seen Calvin Anderson getting ready to play bull Spots Mike go on Win who told us yesterday he was asked about playing right guard and he said, you know, I'm happy to do whatever.
But we're going to be doing different groupings throughout camp. Chukes the coorp for says today there's gonna be new offensive lines every day. That's where I'm worried. Yeah, because we talk a lot about Evan that seeing it through the same eyes, that's the Dante scarnekism, right. One of those five guys that see it through the same eyes are on the same page and know where everybody is and it helps them and especially in zone blocking, that's massive.
See it through the same eyes, How are you gonna build that chemistry? And I don't think they. I mean, you know, all twenty days of camp will be twenty different groups. But I think the plan is probably for the first week or two, try a bunch of different groups and see what sticks. Yeah, and that's your hope. In that early time you find one maybe that narrow it down to two or three and then they rotate. But it's gonna make it real. And the one thing they do seem to have figured out and we'll see
maybe tomorrow, Mike. When one is at right tackle, I don't know. They seem to be sticking with four guys and okor four remains a question in terms of can he actually play on the left side, But he'll be there.
I feel as though we were at the point with the Corps four for I'm almost done saying who's at left tackle, because it's a core four.
He's gonna start the season there. Whether or not it works out and they can stick with him will be a question, But he's the left tackle. He's the left tackle to start season. But that how are you gonna build the chemistry? How are you gonna get five guys to see through the same eyes when you're not consistently having the same five guys out there. So that's what
really concerns me about the offensive line. I said a bunch they are going to have to find a combination, and obviously finding a combination means it's not gonna be the same five guys out there every time. This is the spot they've put themselves in. So I don't want to talk out both sides of my mouth and say too many line combinations, but at the same time say, well,
you gotta figure out which combination works. But there does need to be a happy medium there, and really, once the pads come on, they need to maybe iron it out to two or three combinations and say, all right, this is our favorite. We're gonna ride this as long as we can until it doesn't work, then we'll go to the next one. But I don't know how long you can do a different combination every day before you're just spinning your tires.
Well, I do feel like they on need change from a day to day. That's gonna be major as who's playing right tackle.
So I it looks that way through two days.
Yeah.
The only reason I wonder about that is Mike and Win, who, when asked about specifically playing right guard, said we're gonna have different combinations every day. And I just wonder if we haven't seen the Mic and Win who write tackle combination And yet.
So my whole thing just scratching it because it's it drives me nuts. You hate this. I hate the fact that I feel lied to by the organization. This is about Walls, this is about Mike on winno. Oh. I feel lied to because when they drafted, you know, it was right around the draft. It might have been his pre draft press conference that they do every year with Elliott Wolf. He said somewhere. It might have been the Adam Schefter podcast. I'm sorry, I'm rambling.
Are you talking about when he said when it was going to be the right tackle.
He said somewhere that they signed the best right tackle available in free agency.
I think that no, because the combine was before free agency. That was at Yeah, he was talking about on Winter's contract. That might have been a pre draft thing.
He said that they had signed the best right tackle on the market, that they believe that they signed the best right tackle on the market.
He wasn't wrong. If they're planning the right tackle.
He Then they then get to the spring Mike on Wen, who stood at the podium, I wrote the story, so I remember the headline. Mike on Wen, who preparing to start the season at right.
Tackle, said that was the plan, and there was a reply I think rap sheet or somebody reported that the plan was for him to play right tackle like he signed to play right tackle.
We get to the first freaking day of training camp, Day one of training camp, and what we've all been saying, and I'm not doing this to Pat myself on the back. I'm just telling you that it was the obvious thing. If we knew it, it was obvious. We had all been saying. This doesn't feel great. I don't feel great about this. Mike on Wen, who is more of a guard than he is a tackle. He's built like a guard,
he's not a tackle. The first freaking day of training camp, he's back at guard, and he's been at guard two days in a row now, and he ended the spring at guard. So you didn't sign the best right tackle in free agency. You signed the best guard in free agency, and I don't want It's not about the money, because he's still compensated.
Okay, he's the second highest paid guard or the fourth highest paid right tackle in football.
It's not bad. The money's not bad.
He's top five at his position, whatever his position is, and.
He's damn good. So it's not bad money and it will keep on. The next guy will top him. The next guy will top that. The belly in Denver has already gotten more money than Mike one who did. Okay, So it's not about the contract. I don't care about
the contract. What I care about is getting an offensive line that's functional and if they had approached it with the through the prism of we need to replace both tackles, because they went into into the draft thinking they needed just a left tackle because Mike on Winning was going to be their right tackle, and it never felt right to me. It never passed the sniff test that he
was going to be a full time right tackle. Then he also came into the spring and into the summer still looks the same, didn't slim down at all, didn't get ready to play tackle at all. He's gonna play guard. They're gonna put him at guard, and they're gonna I have a giant gaping hole at right tackle and a huge question mark on cheeks the core where I left tackle. Now.
The one thing that is I'm holding out hope for is that by the end of the summer, maybe Caden Wallace jumps Calvin Anderson and Vederian Low and they have something in Caiden Wallace to be the starting right tackle. Like maybe they hit on that pick right and now he's just starting right tackle.
That's realistic. I like well, and I know, I you know, kind of complained about the plan to play Wallace at left tackle, but I like him as the right tackle. There's a solid pick if the plant's playing right tackle. By the way I found the tweet, this was Ian Rappaport. A couple of days after the on winn new contract became official. I actually quoted the team tweet of own wind who signing the contract. He said, note on Michael and Winnu, who signed a three year, fifty seven million
dollar deal during free agency. He's expected to be the Patriots starting right tackle moving forward. Sources say the planners for the extremely versatile player to finally settle in on the right side. He is settling in on the right side.
Oh, he's settling in on the right side, all right, don't just I don't care he on top of this. I don't care where he plays.
And I don't see what the think do you say? Okay drives me nuts. Just be honest. He's a guard. Be honest about it. Do you think they lied here or do you think they truly believed he was going to play tackle until they got out there in the spring and saw what their guard situation was.
I'm even more worried if the fact that, if the fact is is that they thought he was going to hold up at tackle. That makes me even more worried.
But did they move Did they move him because you know him?
Yes, you know?
Did they move him because they don't like what they have a guard?
That's crazy. You don't move the better player. The better player plays where he should play.
They've moved the better player before.
Okay, but you shouldn't do that. Okay, I don't disagree. You don't see the Dallas Cowboys going into training camp and saying we don't have a right tackle, so let's move Zach Martin too. Right tackles. Zach Martin's a left guard. He's gonna be a left Guard's gonna go to Hall Famous.
But they've moved the better player.
Okay, Well that's also dumb, Like he just don't tell me he's a tackle. If you and then get into training camp on day one and have him playing guard, it's it's silly, it's nonsense.
Well look it did I think. I think this is the plan, but I don't know. I there's there's multiple conversations, and now the plan needs to be he's the right guard, so that's where he is.
I'm with you.
And then that makes it a lot easier because instead of doing different configurations Essentially all we have is the right tackle battle. If you know Chukes of Korp four is going to start the season, that left growing pains and all of that. Well, that's not necessarily different combinations, and it's just Kayden Wallace, Calvin Anderson, Darian Lowe. I wouldn't be surprised if they throw Tyrone Wheatley in there
at some point, like it's just a bat. It's just a position battle or right tackle, and I can live with that. It's not ideal, but you're seriously banking on Chuokes of cor four working out.
But I live with that that. You have to live with that because that the chus. Yes, I understand that that that that's happened.
I'm just gonna go watch Will Campbell squat more after after we just but it's me, I'm tell and we have to do a show again. We don't know, we don't know by the time. Maybe these are the only couple combinations we're seeing. I'm still not rolling out. There's a conversation combination waiting Friday, Monday whenever where Mike when winds at right tackle and it's they used a fourth round pick on a guard. These one hundred third overall pick on a guard that's a player you would expect to start.
That would concern me. I'd be even more worried if all of a sudden, now they're gonna they'd put Mike on Wnu at right guard in a non padded practice just to kick them back outside to right tackle like that. That just doesn't make anything.
But I'm saying not all of a sudden, it's they essentially haven't scripted day one, this is a combination, Day two, this is the combination. Day three, this is the combination date.
Well, that goes back to your point, that is that's that's asking for trouble. Yeah, you gotta stick with one.
Well, what's so what they have five practices before pads Wednesday, Thursday, Friday at four. So maybe the plan is we're gonna try four different combinations and then whichever one we think that's the best shot. That's who were putting out their Tuesday for bads.
So my other concern about all of this is that to your point, because they don't have cold strange right now, they don't love their guards.
I don't think not having cold strangers exacerbating this issue.
By the way, I think it might be because if they feel like cold Strange is solid, is good, then when he comes back, he goes back to left guard, city goes back to right guard on when it goes.
Too many pieces at that point, play everybody where they're gonna play, and just find Cold Strangers back up. That.
This is my point though, is like I would not be surprised if we get into let's say Cold Strange comes back at the gate and we gave well, now cold Strange is back, so we're gonna we're gonna go to this line, and now all of a sudden, halfway through the year, you're changing the line.
So what I'm saying is, if they know that's the plan right now, they should be working with Mike go and Winuitt tackle and just okay, who's gonna hold down left guard until col Strange comes to Backus's Nick Leverett, Michael Jordan, whoever.
You're it's a non padded practice. Just put Nick Leverett in there for just the time being as a placeholder, right like that. If that's what the plan was, If that is the plan, that's what they should be doing. But instead what they're doing is they're putting Mike on right now.
I don't think they know what the plan is. I think the plan for this week is to figure out what the plane is when the pads come on. Jeez, all right, we knew it's going to be bad. But what I was hoping was is coming into camp there wouldn't be all these musical chairs. I was hoping that
we were going to get into camp. And besides, maybe right tackle because of Kid and Wallace, Like Kiden Wallace is a rookie and he's going to come along slower than maybe they had a placeholder there for him, like Calvin Anderson yesterday when they came out and Calvin Anderson was the right tackle. Yeah, I said, placeholder.
Cool, All right, fine, you know it's the same thing with Jacobe bres said, right like, if we have a placeholder, they have a bridge and then eventually they're going to pass it.
The rookie win the job. That's a perfectly fine get that approach at any position.
But now you know they're moving pieces around already with Vederian Lowe playing right tackle, and this this is how you get yourself into trouble. Pick a five. Yeah, it's not gonna be great on paper. It's they're not gonna be the the you know, nineteen ninety whatever Dallas Cowboys, right like, they're not gonna be awesome on paper, but pick a five, stick with the five and let's roll. Like this whole musical Chairs act is gonna get them into trouble. Now that being said, Calvin Anderson, I did
want to touch on him briefly. Had a good chat with him, first of all, Like I just kind of hope that he makes it because he's super nice, nice, been through a yeah, like been through an absolute ton and he's like just genuinely a good a good dude. From my interactions that I've had with him, he would I asked him straight up about playing in an outside zone scheme, and you would have thought that I like just gave him, you know, a PS five on Christmas morning,
right like his face just like lit up. He was like this is I love this, Like this is the offense I want to play in, Like this is all awesome, Like this is this is built for me. So I really am cautiously, cautiously optimistic that he could hold down that spot for the time being until Caden Wallace comes back. It does fit him. He's an athletic guy. He's a you look at it, go back and look at his combine testing numbers as rass relative athletic score is high.
It was like nine something, I want to say, or maybe is eight eight high eight slow, nine something around there. He's an athletic dude. He can move, he can move latterly, He's got all the tools to be able to block in this system. So I'm cautiously optimistic that he might be in a much better place this time around right and that could maybe hold his water a little bit with the with the right tackle spot. But I'm with
you one hundred percent. Like they have to pick a five, and they I just want to see on Monday be dialed into five guys, and I don't want it to change. Like the good teams, the good lines, they have a starting five, and barring injury, that doesn't all training camp, it's the same five dudes.
I mean, be open and changing if it doesn't work. But I get what you're saying, like pick a group, give him a week and see what that looks like.
And if in Detroit they're not having this conversation, they know the five guys, they've known the five guys all off season.
I think the same five guys from last year, right, and they and.
There's no question of like is this guy a guard a tackle and is that guy gonna play? Is this guy?
No? No, well I'm not. You're talking about a team that's been building its roster for years versus a team that's in year one.
I'm it's different. No, I'm not saying that the Patriots personnel should be on that level. I'm just saying that I said earlier that I wanted to be Mike Grease, so I just acted like Mike be the Detroit Lions.
I like the Detroit I'm fine if they want to have a battle at one position. If you want to battle it right tackle and make Calvin Calan, Caten Wallace win the job, fine, like, but just the best right start start coming up with some continuity. God, I mean, he still probably was even play a guard.
He's still all that. That whole thing was all bogus. All right, that's all I'm saying. I've talked a little bit about that. Let's let's talk about some of the receivers quickly here, and then we will talk some defense. I promise. I know we've been pretty offensivy, pretty.
Usual non padded practice.
So first, the first thing I wanted to I wrote down I wanted to talk about was just Jalen Polk's overall involvement. It's it hasn't been that he hasn't been lighting up practice or anything like that. Uh, but he's clearly somebody that they see as an immediate contributor. I think that's safe to say. And he's gotten a ton of targets and he's caught a few of them, Like it hasn't been a complete over and he's involved heavily.
So I feel like they look at Jalen Polk and there's been some rumblings from inside the building that they're pretty uh bullish on what they've seen from Jalen Polk so far. It seems like he's going to be a guy that's going to be in the mix right away. Yeah.
I wrote yesterday that the big takeaways he seems to have the early trust of the coaching staff. Yeah, Like they're give him opportunities and it's like you said, he's made the most of or not made the most of it, but he's he's made some plays. There's a couple of plays maybe he's left on the table. He was on the wrong side of a really good pass breakup from Jonathan Jones today. But Marcus Jones, Marcus Jones, thank you. But he's he's out there. He's out there. He's heavily involved,
and I don't think that's gonna change anytime soon. Trod Meyellio Wolf talked at the draft about play the kids. That's what we're seeing, like he's getting the opportunities to go out there show what he can do and improve.
Yeah, he's he doesn't jump off the practice field at you with like speed or you know, explosiveness or anything like that. But he's very smooth. You can tell that he's efficient with his movements, and he's made some plays underneath the defense that I think have been a little bit more impressive than the downfield targets that haven't been
quite as successful. You know, very first throw I think of training camp, but from Jacoby Brissett on Marcus Jones, just like a little option route in the slot, quick out, made the cash in front of Christian gonzales On on the incut. Those types of plays. I feel like he's gonna thrive on more in the pros than maybe he did at Washington I mean, you watched a ton of that Washington offense, probably more than anybody. Yeah, and you know how that offense was. They didn't run routes in
that offense. It's just run to space and Pennix will find you.
And I think you're seeing a good mix of He has a real knack. This is one of my favorite things about him in the draft. He has a real knack for understanding what the defense is trying to do and getting himself to a spot where the quarterback can make a play. And he's combined that, you can call it a skillion, called an instinct, whatever you want to call it. He's combined that with he actually is looking pretty comfortable as a outrunner, I would say through a couple of days.
So now tapped. I think in college, I think he's he's gonna be a guy in the pros that's gonna live at the first and second level. Yeah, Whereas in college because of the offense he played in, it was they were down the field.
He's gonna be a second level guy. We talked about him leading into the draft is kind of a more explode of Jacoby Myers, and that's exactly what we've gotten through two days and going back to the spring.
Yeah, the hope here is that some of these fifty to fifty balls that he's been targeted on down the field, once the quarterbacks have like a better feel for his pacing and like where he likes the ball right, then that maybe those things will be completed more often. You know, does he like it coming over his shoulder? Does he like to high point it, does he like to back shoulder it? Like those are the types of things that
you talk about with the quarterbacks. And then eventually two weeks from now, they're putting the ball in the right place, and now he's making plays on those balls that were falling in complete earlier on in training camp. I'm optimistic that that can turn. Like, he's never going to be a guy that's gonna run by anybody, but if he can just have that threat of being able to go down the field a little bit and then win maybe in some contested situations every once in a while, it'll
open up that second level for him even more. But I've been optimistic about what I've seen. I still think that the Jacobe Meyers, Tyler Boyd like that type of player. Is we where we were right on it like with those comps, like I feel that's how I feel when I watch him. Still, we haven't seen a ton of Javon Baker quite yet. He participating, but I think with the thumb injury in the spring, he's maybe a step behind Polk just from a learning standpoint at this point.
So we'll probably have more to say I would say on on Javon Baker in a couple of weeks, like I feel like he'll catch up and and he'll be good. You know, he still looks like some of the things we said in the spring, but I don't want to overreact too much to some of the.
One thing with him, Like he had a thumb injury, right, so he doesn't look like he's having any issues catching the football.
Yeah, that's that's a good point. Okay, can we talk about Tae Kwon? Now? Can we do it? Yeah?
Let's do it. Well, I think we got to talk about Tae Kwon and Jalen Rager together.
That's exactly how I wrote it down. Taekwon versus Jalen Rager is the battle we didn't know we needed, but now it's amazing.
But it's not like, let you are you ready to talk about Maurice Harris because we'renna talk about.
So here's the thing. There is a giant role on this team, a gaping hole in this offense for somebody that can add some vertical speed to this team. If they are coming out in you know, whatever personnel grouping, it doesn't matter if they're coming out on the field, and it's like Jalen Polk and Pop Douglas and Hunter Henry and like you know, Osborne or Juju or whatever
ends up being the third guy. Yeah, Pop is gonna is explosive, but he's not a deep thread, right, and they are going to be an offense that's still going to be operating in a phone booth if they have nobody that can run out by anybody on the outside. The only two guys on the roster unless Javon Baker starts to really come on here. And it's different with Baker, like he's not necessarily he's not a four to three guy. It's just he wins vertically differently. But maybe he can
be the vertical X. It's the vertical X receiver. And Jalen Rager and Taekwon Thornton are in a battle royale for making this roster in that spot. We've both been a little bit more on the Rager train just because of the returnability, which I do think is a factor in this. But in general, h Ragger day on Day one kind of a Taekwon day today. I want to put in the context with Taekwon, No, a lot of it was like underneath stuff, Like most of it was
seven on seven. Yeah, it wasn't a whole lot down the field like Rager's catch on Day one.
Well, I would I would say in Taekwon's defense before, I kind of diminished both what he and Rager did. In Taekwan's defense, you like seeing him catch the ball underneath because that was what he couldn't do. We knew he could run a go route, but can you get yourself open underneath and catch the ball? And can get yourself open in the middle of field and catch the ball, and he did that today. That all being said, couple things. One with Taekwon, it's about staying healthy as much as
anything else. Yeah, get through camp. He's opened his first two NFL seasons on ir get through camp, and that you can't win the competition if you can't do that. Second of all, we've seen the seven where the pads aren't on yet and the fast guys are just running by. Everybody want of draft fast guys, draft fast guys, right, but you don't even have to draft him again. To go back to Maurice Harris, we both thought it was our first year covering the team. They had the second
coming Randy Moss. Turns out some players are better when you can't touch them. So to my point about Taekwon Thornton running the underneath stuff, yeah, it's encouraging to see, but also I want to see him do it when they can jam him at the line of scrimmage. Can he get off a jam? Things like that? And the same goes for Jalen Rager. Can he make catches when
the receivers can be more physical than him? Can he run by guys when you're able to get a little more handsy and you can kind of bump and run down the field.
So in no offense, but maybe it's not as eazy Hearn that's the guy in coverage, and maybe.
It's Christian No he beat the deep Boss by Marcus Jones, I think yesterday, right, No, that was easy Hearn the first one. Yeah, they weren't both were they both as easy hearn? Okay, well again, well the very least let his easy hearn play physically because he's a physical corner.
Yeah, so no, I'm not trying to pick on his easy hurt.
No, I know, I I just have trouble. It is what it is, and they had good days and they deserve credit for having good days, and having good days at this point is better than not having good days at this point. So it's laying the foundation. But we've done this long enough, Evan that we've seen speed guys pop in the first week and then the pads come on. We forget about him within a day. So I do think one of them is gonna make the team. I still go Rager. It doesn't I was saying this yesterday.
Whenever it's like, oh, you were saying Rager and he had this great day, look at that. No, I still think Jalen Rager is gonna make the team. Has nothing to do with what happened yesterday, because at the end of the day, one of the guys can play special teams, the other one can't. He's also just been better in games, and he's been a better player in the past that too. But yeah, it's I'm not gonna get hyped about either of them as receivers until the pads come on. Like
they again, they had good days. Give him credit for it, they deserve it, but I'm not ready to make any sweeping proclamation about either of them before the pads come on.
Fair points. The one encouraging thing has nothing to do with either one of those guys. But they do have a quarterback, especially with Drake May. But I also think Jacoby ber Said as a much bigger arm than Mac Jones or Bailey Zappy. So they have these quarterbacks now that if Taekwon Thornton gets behind the defense fifty yards down the field, they have a quarterback that can actually
throw it, yeah, fifty yards down the field. So when I watch Thornton and I watch Rager, do I think either one of those guys is all of a sudden going to become, you know, fifteen hundred yard receiver. No, of course not. But they have a quarterback now that's going to be able to actually get the ball down the field, and that makes their speed a little bit more threatening.
Absolutely.
Yeah. And the guy I keep coming back to with both of them, but especially with Taekwon is tes Walker, Like I just feel like Drake May was able to do it with tes Walker. They are very similar players to me in terms of their skill set. I think tes Walker might be a little heavier, but in general, yeah, they're similar guys. And that's the type of receiver that Drake May on the outside likes to throw to. You know, he likes to throw to a guy that could win deep.
I think Javon Baker is gonna eventually be that dude that's gonna be the guy that he's gonna feature mostly going deep, but that speed X receiver is a guy that they need. Not only are they gonna, in my opinion, needed vertically, but I think there's also a horizontal element of it too. They're gonna need somebody that's gonna be a threat on jet motion and different you know, types
of motions and things like that. You know, maybe that's Pop Douglas, but I think you have to get back to the conversation of managing you know, body blows with Pop Douglas too, and managing his workload to make sure he stays healthy, you know, Rager Thornton. Those guys could be guys that are used as a jet sweep even if it's just as smoking mirrors, you know, if they don't actually get the balld. But that type of thing. I'm with this type of offense. So I'm with you.
I'm not gonna get to any grand proclamations. I'm not gonna get all hot and bothered by Taekwon Thworton and and today. I've honestly been more hot and bothered by Taekwan in other days than today because so much of it was, like, you know, he's catching like five six yard passes, Like I'm not going to get crazy about that. You know, I was more impressed with him. It's at points in the spring, to be honest, with some of
the things that he did down the field. You know, he made that one catch I remember in the spring way like deep ball from Drake May Like that was the most impressive play he's made so far this offseason. Still, so I'm with you on that. Let's move away to the defense. I got a few more minutes here to talk about some of this.
I do you have one special team's thought too? Again?
Oh, I wanted to ask you about that about special teams in general in the second, But first I want to start with Marcus Jones. Yeah, I feel like he's probably been the highlights so far on the defense. Obviously, you know you're not going to talk too much about the defensive line and not bad practices, but a big question coming into to the spring and to the summer, I should say, yeah, I was whether people thought he
was a good football player or not. Miles Bryant played a ton for this team last year and he's no longer here, so that slot corner roll is completely up for grabs. We've talked at times about Alex Austin playing outside and John Jones kicking back inside. So far, I feel like we've seen more Gonzales and Jones on the outside with Marcus Jones in the slot as like their primary nickel. Yeah. Look, and Marcus Jones, to his credit, has been awesome. It's been good.
A great pass breakup on Jalen Polk today. You know, bigger receiver and we've seen him. We saw him do it two years ago, contend with those bigger receivers and he definitely has an act for that. So he's been good. In him being good unlocks a lot because we talked about there's they're better on the boundary than they are in the slot. You know they have talent in the slot,
but maybe not as much depth. If Marcus Jones is the guy you're comfortable putting in that spot the majority of the time, it gives you the freedom to put Jonathan Jones on the boundary. You don't have to maybe put as much on the plate of a guy like Alex Austin or Isaiah Bolden who's been getting a ton of run in that role as well, and it stretches it out. So good start again, smaller player. Let's see when the Pats come on. You know, I'm broken record.
With that, but maybe it's good start for him, good start for him. He deserves credit for that. And I would also say that with Marcus Jones and Alex Austen, it feels very matchup based. Right. If you are playing a team that has bigger receivers, right, then maybe that week it's Alex Austen and Gonzales on the outside with John Jones going back to the middle of the field. But if you're playing Miami. You know, we say this all the time about Marcus Jones, great matchup against Miami, and.
No, they're definitely And what's encouraging and you see guys like Alex Osten having success and you see guys like Marcus Jones having success. Is there's now an ability to mix and match ye, and you don't have to handcuff yourself on your personnel. You have the depth and you have the diversity of skill sets to be able to play different teams in different ways. And that's when you can truly be game play and defense, which is ultimately what they want to be.
Yeah, and we should also mention on defense that Matthew Judon is out there participating and he looks like a you know, full participant in these practices. He's not holding in, he's not limited in any sort of way. It doesn't seem like and there still seems to be you know, the one front seven guy ade point two. There still seems to be a decent amount of buzz about Keon
White and his role in all of this. They've been in a lot of their like two down linemen pass rushing fronts so far because it's such a pass heavy time of year, and he's been in that group and he's been sort of working as more of a stand up player. I still feel like we have to figure out where he what he is like, is he a stand up guys hand in the dirt guys he had outside linebacker? You know, maybe a guy that can run Russia inside, you know at times to and reduce inside
over a guard or something like that. But Keon White is continuing to buzz a little bit. I would say, is there anybody else on defense that you feel like deserves a shout? Sort of?
And this is where I get into my Special team's take. Okay, you know who's been playing a good amount of safety even a little bit with the ones Brendan Schooler. Brendan Schooler. Yeah, And I wonder this is one of the big questions of the post Belichick era, how is it going to work with these special team specific players We've seen chrishnellis Joe Giles, Harris get a ton of run on defense, guys that we think are gonna be in that role. I wonder with Schooler, is it one of two things?
I guess it could be a little bit of both. All Right, we want you as our Special Teams captain, but we need you ready because you're also going to be an emergency safety for us and they don't have a ton of depth at deep safety. It's Jalen Hawkins and then he's kind of been the next guy when they want to put Dugger in Pepper's both in the box. Yeah, or is it we have Jalen Hawkins who can play special teams like you and you can play free safety, So what more can you do for us?
Kind of thing?
Right? So, I and in the past he's played there a little bit, but it's been a lot more this summer than he did the last two years. In the past, he was kind of just with that third unit. It felt like they needed a body to get eleven guys on the field and he was out there. No, this is he's getting like real safety reps. Yeah, and I think he might have ret over John at Joshua Bleds so at times.
Yeah.
So it we should mention, you know, without Marte Mapu. You know some Marte Mopu not a deep safety necessarily, but it's just another safety that wasn't practicing. But I feel like the Jalen Hawk No.
But but even yesterday, even yes, he was.
More with the twos yesterday today I noticed it with the one.
Yeah, but I it does feel like and maybe it's just on an emergency basis and that's probably all it should be. Yeah, it does feel like they're getting Brandon Schooler ready to play some safety.
Jalen Hawkins. That whole thing seems to be cooling off a little bit.
You think, So maybe I feel like he's been out there good amount.
Maybe I haven't noticed it as much as I should. Again, you know, when we do the shows during practice, I've.
Not he was right. He was also playing some slot corner today.
Okay, So maybe I missed that.
They're they're putting him that he's been on the field a lot, but it hasn't just been at free like he's in the box a little bit today. I saw him he got a couple of reps in the slot, So I think they're just getting him ready for a very multiple role.
All Right, one more quick thing on the day. I actually I've liked what I've seen Autam Marcellus dial to is that some good the other some good coverage moments like away from the ball and stuff like that that I've seen. I really like their corners.
It's their best position.
Yeah, I feel like it really is. I Mean, there's some questions about who's gonna play wear and that sort of thing, but it does you know christiangan Zalez and Jonathan Jones is your top two is already pretty solid and they have some options behind them, So I'm pretty uh, I'm pretty optimistic. They get out there at practice yesterday and I couldn't help, but it was their starting defense. And they come out there and they have Christian Zalees on one side, Jonathan Jones on the other, Peppers and
Dugger up top. They have Dietrich Wise, Godshaw, bar More Judaan on the outside to Vibe Bentley, And I'm just like, I mean, that's that's a hunit man. That's a unit like that. Like I'm like thinking of myself just compared to the rest of the league. And there aren't a whole lot of defenses in the NFL that you look at eleven starting caliber players.
And a lot of those guys have really good backups.
Yeah, you didn't.
I don't think you said ke On White, Like you didn't mention Daniel Quality who's back and healthy. You didn't mention Marcus Jones.
There's just not a whole lot of holes. No, there's not a whole lot of holes. Really quickly did before we wrap here? Is it just me? And maybe you disagree with this completely because you definitely pay more attention to special teams than I do. It doesn't feel like they've done a ton of special teams through the first two days.
They did one sort of punt on air thing today that was it. No, there hasn't been a lot of special teams.
So I are you upset? Are you disappointed? Is this hurt your feelings? Like they've basically treated your days of the game like it's not.
One, it's a long camp.
Two.
Outside of field goal kicking, I'd like to see them do some because that's a battle, like let's see that. Yeah, But like the kickoff stuff, the punt stuff, that's so much more meaningful with pads, like you gotta be able to hit. Is there a chance that kickoff stuff is they're gonna I also think there's an element of that too, that that's they're just gonna cram that when they put Pop Douglas back on the field and all that after we're out it. No, I think it's a real chance
they're gonna hide the kickoff stuff. But like I haven't, I haven't done the Stopwatch yet. Two days. No Stopwatch, that's exactly what I thought of, So I was like, we don't have big times, but you know what, you want to work with gunners and all that. You gotta be able to hit. You gotta be able to hit. So I like to see it. But and ask me again, when we do the show next week and.
We've had a few padded practice, I want you to come in here angry if there's not more special teams next week.
If they haven't done it by this time next week, when you they'll have had what Monday will be padded yea, probably Tuesday or and then two of the other three days, probably three of the four days next week will be padded. Yeah, I'll be a little annoyed at that point. I'll be like, what are we doing? Special teams? Wasn't great? We need to be better at this, But I I love it outside of the field goals, non padded practices. If they want to use this, they got a new offense to
get installed. They're playing catch up a little bit. Yeah, I can understand that part.
Jeremy Springers chilling.
Is he chilling or is he in the left?
He's collecting the paycheck, cooking, he's doing American Dreamers.
He has worked, He's working because I said, they're not doing field goal stuff. I'm talking about team field goal most of the time. When the and it's been a lot of seven on seven and eleven on eleven, that second field is wide open, and he's right there standing over Joey Sly and Chad Ryland as they're kicking and the is they're kicking field goals off the tee. So he and he's got two kickers to figure out. No, he's working.
We get a lot of questions about, you know, has this been different than a Belichick practice? What's different between this and Belichick's practices. Bill Belichick is not going to full practices without doing any special team. You're bringing out the Stopwatch within the first thirty minutes of the day. He won a training camp with Bill Belichick, Like, you are not getting this deep into training camp with this little special teams. I get the different.
I'm not gonna I get outside of field goal, which I yeah, they could work on a little more. I'm not going to miss special teams reps in non padded practice. They're just they don't hold a ton of weight fair enough. But this is different or no, it's different, not good or bad. It is different again, but if they're still not doing it next week when the pads come on. Different story.
Last thing on differences between Belichick and this it's very very very early to be talking about scheme and stuff like that. But defensively, it feels like nothing changed. Like I'm sure they're going to have a couple of wrinkles here and there.
That's another one that I think once we're out of there, they'll start.
Yeah, and I'm sure that that DeMarcus coming in and Girod may are going to want to put their own spin on things and have, you know, different wrinkles and maybe be a little bit more aggressive in certain spots, certainly on first and second down. I saw a great stat in the FTN Fantasy like Almanac and Aaron Chats puts out, the Patriots were near the bottom end of the league in pressure rate on first and second down defensively,
and they were top five on their down. So I build was not like all the pressure, all the pressure was coming on third down. Yeah, right, and they weren't cooking up that I think could change. But as of right now, if you told me, you know, is it a new playbook on defense? This is they're running the Belichick scheme defensively, and maybe we'll see some wrinkles down the road. But I'm not expecting to reinvent the thing. Yeah,
I'm not expecting it to reinvent the wheel. But I'm glad you're not too upset that you haven't been able to record anything.
If you can't tell, I was worried about you for if you can't tell, I don't get too worked up about non pad of practice. I don't.
It's probably a good approach, you know.
I try, but I've been burned. No, I learned my lesson on that I've been burned.
Who did I have?
You had Maurice Harris? Who's the wide receiver? It's like twenty nine. I don't remember.
There's a I think one of our very first arguments was over Gunner Roshevski.
But I was right about gun you.
I told you.
You say, you said, direct quote, he does not belong in an NFL training camp.
He isn't he did.
He is an All Pro. He is an All Pro.
I had one punt return against the Chargers in twenty twenty, and he won All Pro because.
He is in All Pro. And you said he did not belong in an NFL training camp.
I was talking about him as a receiver. I'll admit when I was wrong. No, no, no, that's not that's not you not wrong, But that's not you were saying. You said he did not belong in a kid. You did not qualify it like that, because that doesn't make sense. I got really excited about Philip Dorset one year. That's what it was.
Oh, that's fair that he at least was an NFL because I liked him before he got here.
Maurice Harris, Maury's Harris was a different for.
People who don't know who Maurice Harris is. And then we're wrapping up. Yeah, me and Evans first year spring practice. It would neither have ever seen a spring practice because those aren't open to the media. We go and Maurice Harris was this guy the Patriots had signed. He'd like bounced around the league. He's like twenty seventh. Wow, he was younger, he's only thirty one. He was in like his mid twenties. He'd been in Washington for a few years.
And the Patriots sign him in a one year deal late in free agency, and uh, he tore it up in the spring like he was awesome. He is great. He's catching deep balls left and right from Tom Brady and we walked out of there thinking, oh my god, they found a guy and out of nowhere, just free agent off the street. He's dominating and he was like this tall, skinny guys, kind of built like Taekwon. And then they put the pads on and he completely disappeared.
I don't think he made it through camp. I think he got cut before camp.
And to be fair to him though, like Brady was into it and I don't mean to pick on him. Yeah, Brady was running over to him, and Brady kept throwing to him.
But because he was always open, because they couldn't hit him, and he was fast enough to run by him. Yeah, and you learn the lesson that it's there's more to it than that.
Yeah. Absolutely, we have to wrap up. Jack and Michigan called in so well, I know, what's up Jack? How you doing.
Guys here?
May?
Yeah, you're on the air. What's up?
Quick question? I am flying out to training camp the week of the twelve. Are you guys gonna be there signing things? I want to get a Catch twenty two flag created for myself for you guys to sign.
Well, that's amazing. I didn't a really had a that big of a fan, and I really appreciate that. That's like very flattering. Yeah, well we're at every camp practice. I mean I am.
I don't know, Yeah, I know, I'll be there. Yeah, well it's only two practices that week is twelfth and thirteenth.
Yeah, so we'll be at every practice. Alex is much better than I am about about poking around at pre practice because we do Unfiltered live on most days, but by that time, we won't be doing the show live during practice, so I can. I'll definitely be down there and you should come say hi, or we can find you, or vice versus. If somebody has a catch you have, like a flag with the show logo on it.
They do.
I went to look for a PU or a Catch twenty two flag, but they don't have them. So the sun sits to a custom flag. You just send it an image and they make.
It for you. If I see somebody waving a Catch twenty two flag, I will absolutely come over.
One hundred percent, absolutely awesome.
One.
Thanks Jack, thank you so much for listening.
That's we've got to sign like the inside, like like each sign of too I think is the way to do it right.
Yeah, I mean, Marie, we we need merch, like that's what we're like. He's looking for a flag and we don't have a flag to sell him. Like this is an opportunity. Where's mister Kraft Like I'm giving him more money. I hope they're listening upstairs.
Yeah, I still think like a Patriots jersey that's number twenty two that says catch on the back.
That's that's not I feel like we could make a T shirt with this logo on it easily.
No, do it a with the twenty two and it says Catch is the name.
That's we're making more money for this organization.
What good guys we are when they when they have when they pay DK Metcalf the bag next spring. It's because of all the Catch twenty two. I want flags.
When Matthew Judon gets his extension, I want him to come thank us.
We haven't sold the merch doesn't exist yet.
Well, it will, all right, it will, all right. We're gonna have to wrap it up, but we will be back next week, probably around the same time because we write and we have different things going on, so it might be a little bit later but before we sign off, Bridgestone, the official tire of the New England Patriots, is proud to sponsor with a partner with Sullivan Tire, New England's headquarters for quality Bridgestone Tires. Visit Sullivantire dot com to
find a location near you. And one last time, Easy to Drink, Easy to Enjoy bud Light, the official beer sponsor for the New England Patriots. PEU live from practice tomorrow eleven to one. When practice apps catch twenty two of you Back Thursday next week. We'll see you guys then. Thank you for downloading this podcast.
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