This is Patriots Playbook.
The legend it's the first day of summa. Where the hell? What the hell happens in my sun? They ruined my sama. Look, I'm not gonna try to play amateur lawyer here. I don't want to play amateur lawyer because that's when you get yourself into trouble sometimes. Today, in this day and age, I don't know which end is up. I don't know what I should be thinking.
Really things right, I think the weather is put off, things like.
La is now Portland.
Well, that's not what anybody wants. If you want, you know, if you want Portland to Seattle, move there.
Now. Here's your host of Patriots Playbook, John Rook.
And if you want hot, steamy, sultry summer weather, just wait a while, because we didn't get that.
Today.
It is day one of training camp here at Jiludd Stadium in Foxborough. Welcome inside the Patriots Playbook. This is our July monthly edition, off season edition of the podcast. If you're joining us for the first time, just sampling it because you happen to be stumbled here on the website trying to find out information on day one of
training camp. We are here at least, this particular program is here monthly during the offseason, and then we go weekly during the regular season on Thursdays, and that will start in about five weeks, right, Matt, I think, yeah, about five weeks from now we'll get that, we'll get
the regular season. I know, we have one more off season show to get to, which we will do on the last day of August, right as preseason has ended up, and they'll be right about the time that the Patriots will be wrapping up the final fifty three man roster. There is a long way to go between now and then. What's today today is July the what twenty seventh, twenty sixth, right, Okay, got it? I you know, I'm lucky if I know my name on it, old guy. Yeah, I know, thank you,
the old guy. So so that's what thirty three days or so away. There is so much to do between now and then, as I'm sure sure most everybody realizes, and trying to form this football team. And today tomorrow, Friday,
the first three days of training camp here. You probably heard, if you were with us at all during the training camp coverage earlier this morning here on Patriots dot Com Radio, that really the first three days are going to be like glorified OTAs glorified you know, walkthroughs, because what they'll be doing, and what they are doing is sort of recertifying what they learned from the playbook during the spring.
They will get into meaningful competition next week where the guys will be putting on pads or at least shells to start. I think they're only allowed one or two, I think two full pad practices per week, so they probably won't even start ramping that up until either late next week, right, Matt, Yeah, sounds about right, doesn't it. Although my hip pads on Monday, damn. All right, Well that's good, okay, all right, So that's actually a good sign.
And we will get a chance then to see guys competing for jobs, which is I know, that's what everybody wants to know. Who's playing well, who's not playing well, who's living up to their capabilities, who's disappointing thus far, who we expect to come into the fold, who is gonna fall short? Do we want to go out and you know, try to you know, scan the waiver wire for other guys who can't make other teams and pick them up. If we think they can fit a particular
need or roll here in New England. Okay, all of that's going to take part, and we'll start in earnest really on Monday. These first three days Okay, it's a continuation really of what was learned and the things that they walked through during OTAs and the spring you know, mandatory practices. So that's kind of where we are. These guys are going through the paces. But that doesn't mean
that we don't have things to talk about today. And there are some key questions that we're going to talk about today that I feel like, Look, if you're from around these areas, this area, from New England, if you're from you know, Boston, Providence, wherever, you know, somewhere in this region, then you're probably paying attention on television or radio or even on the you know, in their news sites as well as to what really the key items
to call to talk about are. We will approach approach some of those topics here today because largely I think a couple of them are worth talking about, and then I think a couple of them are just damn silly. They're just it's ridiculous to even think of. And I'll give you a big one. Okay, the biggest one that I think that's just a silly, stupid question that most of the media around here is just all, you know, a flutter over. Is Bill Belichick really on the hot seat?
I mean really really? Now, I know, Eldred God bless your son. If you're you know, listening, you know, on your deliveries in North Carolina. He has never liked to build the GM. I don't blame him because clearly in the last few years it just hasn't turned out the way that anybody would have liked to have had it. But if you're gonna ask him to do a mea culpa and say, Okay, my bad, sorry, guys, I really
screwed up on that draft, that's never gonna happen. He hasn't even done that as well, for you know, the coaches that were clearly a misfit, you know, within this organization a year ago. So you're never gonna get that, nor should he have to do that. I'm firmly in the corner, firmly in the camp of the man has enough of a track record where he has earned his seniority and he has earned his place, and if he
wants to be here. He deserves to be here. Now that doesn't mean that time and time again, if he falls short, he deserves to keep the job. Because this is after all a business, and missed Craft, John of the Craft. They certainly have reiterated that fact as well. This is a business. We are in the business of winning championships. We're in the business of making money. We're in the business of keeping fans happy and keeping them
coming back to our facility. Why else do we build the kind of facilities that we have here, you know, in Foxborough. Why else do we compete? We compete to win. We got to spend money to win. And yeah, you can be critical about the Patriots because they're one of the lowest spending teams in the NFL, you absolutely can.
I'll leave a lot of the spending stuff up to our good friend Pat's cap on that one, because as you guys know, you know, Miguel probably is up to date and right spot on with that stuff as anybody in the NFL, for any team, He's right on top of it. So I kind of leave that stuff to him. We deal more with, you know, the personalities and the and the you know, the execution of of you know, the play on the field. It's like the old you
know JK McKay. John McKay, you know, saying when he was the coach of the Tampa Bay Bucks when the bucks Worth's expansion team in the NFL back in nineteen seventy, he said, what did you think? You know, he was asked by the media, what do you think of your team's execution on the field? He said, I'd be in favor of it. You got that, nobody else did. But nowadays I'd be in favor of it. Okay, you know, I don't think we're gonna have to go that far
with this team. I really don't. But then again, you know, if this team eight and nine a year ago, you know, with a little bit you know of a different look, certainly coaching wise. You know, guys that you know, you can certainly argue that maybe they were a little thinner than they should have been. Wanted to be in several spots on this team. Okay, it didn't work out, and I would tell you that well. And this year, on paper, at least, it looks like the schedule is a little
more difficult than it was last year. I mean, let's be honest with each other here, all right, So it looks a little more difficult, but that doesn't matter because
the bottom line is whether or not you win. And Craft has already stated, you know, his goal is to get into the postseason and win a game in the postseason this year, and I would concur as we open up training camp and start the twenty twenty three season, hopefully it will continue, you know, in the postseason in twenty twenty four, they have one regular season game and
then you'll get into the postseason thereafter. But for twenty twenty three and twenty four, anything short of New England making the postseason is going to be called a failure. It just will. I could see a scenario where this team could go ten and seven, and if they lose on a tiebreaker to get into the postseason, all right, at least they're back on the plus side of five hundred. I could see that. But I'll still be personally disappointed.
I think most fans would be disappointed. We don't know how that part of it's going to play out, because that depends on so many other factors, largely the other teams in the AFC East and everybody else on New England schedule. That's how you determine that. I could see that. I don't think that will happen. The AFC East, as everybody knows, is sticked, okay, stacked, strongest division in pro football. I don't think there's much doubt about it right now.
I could see a scenario with three of the four teams in the postseason. Could definitely see that. I don't know with tie breakers and such, it would even be figuratively statistically possible if all four teams could get in. Maybe we'll let some of our experts work on that here during the show and see if that's even possible. But I would tell you that I think there's a great chance that as long as you finish in third in the AFC East, you're probably gonna be in the
postseason dance somewhere. Probably. But then again, if you're let's say a nine to eight team or even a ten and seven team, and you're just squeezing into the postseason, if you're not healthy enough to play and compete in the postseason, what good are you really doing? So my major concern here, number one is we open up training camp, is what the depth gonna be like on this team throughout the course of the year. I want to see
the guys who we can plug and play. I want to see the guys who when someone goes down, who steps in for the whole next man up scenario. I want to know who the next men are up and are they capable of doing it. This is where you really find whether or not the Patriots coaching staff and scouting staff have done their jobs. Say whatever you want about the draft picks or you know in the last few years. Clearly right now we'd have to say they are trending downward. They haven't done a very good job.
We know this. That is certainly a valuable criticism. Okay, cat argue really against that point, because the proof is in the talent on the field. But this past couple of years. Last year was better than we thought, even though there were a bunch of no names that people laughed at, literally laughed at. This year is different. Christian Gonzales. Most everybody feels like the Patriots stole in the first round, stole. We're gonna find out pretty quick because I fully expect
Christian Gonzales to win a starting corner job. I do I expect it. I think we all feel like that and that would be considered I think an upset certainly a disappointment if he does not, because if he doesn't, well, who the hell else is gonna I am a little surprised,
although legally speaking, has every right to be here. Jack Jones is in the mix after his you know, off season difficulties that he's had, you know, and we talked about that last month after it happened, So I'm not gonna get into the whole you know, Well, why did Jack do what he did? Well, no, that's done. He's here to practice, he's here to play. Bill obviously did a good job. I thought it is opening press conference yesterday to sort of diffuse that I can't speak about
it because it's a legal matter. That's an he took the easy out, and I don't blame him because anything you do is speculation and it could be wrong. So we're not gonna speculate. The fact of the matter is that he's gonna be in court. Jack will be his next hearing, I believe, August nineteenth. Yeah, August nineteenth, Okay, and we'll just wait and see what the court say, what the law says, what does attorneys say, if they're even gonna you know, be prosecuting. We don't know right now.
He's a member of the football team, and he's on the team and he's practicing, and I fully expect him to compete for a corner slot.
I do.
Now, we still have the NFL to decide whether another there's any suspension or anything warranted in that particular realm. Okay, that's fine, but well we'll just we'll tackle that when we get to it. So you know, I've started defense, even though I told some guys on a main radio station this morning that you know, the three areas that I'm going to be looking at is practices, underwear on the offensive side of the ball. You know, I want to see if Trent Brown remembers how to block somebody.
I want to see, you know, who emerges at wide receiver because I know that there are a lot of disappointed people, and I'll throw my hand in the mix. I'm disappointed they didn't get DeAndre Hopkins. I don't know if he would be a quote unquote cultural fit, but I'm still disappointed because I don't think he can have enough toys. You know, when I was a kid, I didn't have enough toys in my toy chest never did. Maybe stronger, maybe tougher, Okay, but he who has the
most toys at the end wins. And that speaks directly to the depth. And so that's what I'm really clued in on. I want to see how this team begins to build depth. Trent starts on the offensive line. We need to make sure mac Jones has his backside protected. I want to see, you know, which receivers emerge. You know, can Taekwon Thornton actually live up to some of the hype from a year ago because he was a speedster coming out of Baylor and then all of a sudden,
bang he gets hurt. You know, That's that's a big spot for me. What do they do about running back to the depth? Do they have enough running back the depth? I know Time Montgomery started out today, you know, he spent last year on injured reserve. Thy Montgomery started out today working out with the wide receivers, and I thought he'd be a prime candidate to be, you know, the third down back. We'll see Pierre Strong He'll also be a candidate for third down back. So there are a
lot of things that need to play out. I think that there are going to be some things over these first three days that will cause us to be curious. Didn't really see a lot today myself, Okay, didn't really see a lot today other than I noticed Thime Montgomery was actually, you know, working out with the white with the white outs today. Other than that, I didn't see a whole lot different than I thought was out of place or a little bit unusual or it caused me to go hmm. So again, this is more of a
continuation of what happened to the OTAs. So what we're gonna do here on the show, and I want you to know the phone lines are open and available to you because I know you have questions, and we have our own panel of experts here who have studied very hard over the last couple of days, especially on this team that we're going to share. Let you share their your opinions with them, and their opinions with you. So
I want this really to be interactive today. Eight five five PATS five hundred is the toll free telephone number again, toll free, pick it up. It's on us eight five five PATS five hundred. If you want to do it the old fashioned way, email, web radio at Patriots dot com okay, web radio at Patriots dot com. You want to hit me up on Twitter, you can It's at JR Broadcaster. Is the handle at JR broadcaster. And if you want to post it on my Facebook page, we'll
get to it. John dot rook r Okae on Facebook. That's where you can find me on Facebook. So those are the ways that you can converse with the show. Those of you who have been a part of the show for the last seven or eight years. In July, know that at this time of year, I also am conducting which coincides with the start of Patriot Training Camp. I also conduct a summer sports broadcasting you know camp,
if you will. For lack of a better phrase, it sounds like and everybody's coming to camp with their backpacks and bringing their sack launches, and not quite like that, because I actually I put these I put these young people to work. These are all aspiring sports broadcasters. They're either juniors or seniors in high school one or the other. So they're all getting ready to embark upon their own careers. And yeah, when I tell you there are sports nuts, there are sports fanatics. I ain't lying.
Ain't lying.
You're gonna meet three of them. Now we've got another four who are waiting on Team two who will join
us an hour number two of the program today. But you know, first things first, I want to make sure that I introduce the guys to you today because we have some questions that we're actually going to get to and these guys have been doing their their their study and like them, I want you to contribute your thoughts on the questions that we're posing to you know, our panelists, our reporters today, if you will, first and foremost 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, all right, Patriots Playbook preseason Camp Day number one. All right, I'm going to introduce to you Etelina Auben. She is a junior from Win Soccer or you live outside of Win Soccer.
You live? Oh, so you are from Rnthom You just go to school one socer, yeah, Nount Saint Cherile, okay, all right, and you're an athlete, right, yes, Okay, what do you play?
Well, I dance for my school team and I'm also on the basketball team.
Shoot hoop too, right yep? Multi dimensional? Oh yeah, please tell me, okay, please tell me why in particular you want to be a sports broadcaster.
So basically, my dad brought me into it.
Man, she just it took her all of fifteen seconds. She just ran you right under the bus.
Good.
He put me into it, and he was we were looking at colleges and he kind of just got me into it. And I was like, you know what, I like sports, and I was like, I like talking to people. I like getting out there and getting my thoughts out. So I was like, you know, maybe this would be a great career idea for me. So I looked for the camp and I found it, and so far I'm enjoying it very well.
Okay, I appreciate that, and thank you for your time and your effort this week. It's been good thus far.
Thank you.
Nathan Courier. I know you like to go by Nate, but Nathan, you're from New.
Hampshire, right, conquered to be exactly.
Conquered, all right, and you're a hockey you know, Krishna right, yep?
Hockey is the main sport for me. I do.
I'm involved with lacrosse, baseball, softball, and might start getting into basketball. But hockey is the main sport that.
I didn't hear football there anywhere? Did you guys hear football?
I do not do any broadcasting for football.
But you're starting today.
Yes, I am starting today. I've been starting this week actually, okay, all right.
So that's good to know. All right, So we don't have any dummies.
Here, not at all? Okay, football fan, I never I like it.
Never announced got another out of stater with us today, Mario Bettingfield. Mario, I'm sorry to say this. Gang. He's a Tennessee Titan.
Mm yeah, twenty eighteen felt good, but hey, the franchise. I was just looking up for the Titans. But the Patriots got some good, some special going on here too.
You live in Nashville then, right, yes, okay, all right? Cool? And you are a junior or senior? Al right, so you're considering colleges, right?
Yes?
What what sports do you? Really?
What?
What floats your boat? Mario?
About everything? Honestly? But if I had to choose, want to be football. My primary love since I was a kid. Used to go to Tennessee State University games with the Tigers or Titans games. Huge Saints fan as well, and just been reading about football history for forever.
Are you big into the Titans?
I it's a complicated relationship, but I try to stay on the stafe side though.
Okay, that's fair. Well, you know you're your head coach is actually a joint of the Patriots Hall of Fame this year, right, Yeah, like Rabel, how do you feel about that?
Oh? Rabel, he's had a he's had he had an amazing career with the Patriots. Honestly, he has more touchdowns than the whole receiving core for the Titans of twenty two. Yep, right, So I mean, Rabel, he cretriut a lot to that defense with Tylaw and Teddy Bruski.
Willie McGinnis back in the day, probably before you were born, right early two thousands, when we were born. You were born five. Let's see, that's what I mean.
But let me say my knowledge is older than that.
I listen, and you have you have actually shown that off this week. I mean, guys, on my wrong first day of Classic him and he blew us all away.
Oh my facts Oh my gosh.
You can ask him anything and he knows it.
That's what I love about it.
We were sitting at lunch yesterday and I think we asked him the World Series, the World Series of nineteen eighty two, and he he knew exactly who it was.
Is your memory encyclopedic?
My memory is a cyclopede. I won't say, is Bob Costs is by my own team?
Nice?
I think it's in there. It's nice. It's deep in there.
But he knows his sports facts, so so any fans of any sport, you can pretty much ask him a lot of common questions and he's got something there.
All right, let's write down the name Mario bedding Field, right, Yeah, I can remember. I want to remember, all right. I like that. We're gonna put you on the We'll put you on the other spot here, all right. We have questions. We have questions that we're going to ask here as a show, and our first team are opening hour. These guys are going to attack these questions amongst the other items. Our our number two team that will be on will
also consider the same questions. So this will give you plenty of time wherever you're listening to consider them for yourselves and join the conversation. I want you to engage our young people because they work really really hard and trying to formulate their own opinions and research why they feel the way that they do in these particular issues
that we're going to be talking about. Because quite frankly, I kind of took a look at what our own media is talking about, what the NFL has thought about, Like, if you're, you know, a frequenter of NFL dot com, what are they saying about New England on the national websites, on the football websites, and what are our issues? And I've already talked about one, so I'm going to start with that one that we talked about in the opening
moments of the show here. And the fact is is that Bill Belichick should not, I repeat, should not be on the hot seat. I don't think you should be. I've been as critical of coach, you know, Bill Belichick, I call him BBI, you know both, you know in print and you know, certainly here on the show, But not disrespectfully, I think that coach has certainly earned his stripes. Anytime you've got you know, eight rings to your credit, six of them here in New England. You clearly know
what you're doing. Now, does that excuse his performance over the last two or three years. No, because, after all, what I said at the top of the program today is no, this is a business. We understand it is a business. So because it is a business, you're expected to perform. Look, if we're players and we fall short of it, what happens to us? We get cut? Right, Okay,
Now the coach has a contract. I think he's allowed, you know, a chance to let's just say, rebuild, maybe a little interregnum, you know, a little you know, a little down period before things come back up. And I think most fans expect that this year would be the year, especially because you know, they have people like you know, Bill O'Brien to come in and actually run the offense
and coach it up. And they've got a couple of new receivers, and they got more depth on the offensive line, and maybe they've got more health at running back, and maybe they got a couple of other targets at tight end. You know that they can actually use to their advantage this year. So it to me, I think the Patriots are actually going to be a little bit better than some expect them to be on offense. Coach Belichick is the one that had to put all this in place.
But if this team falls flat, and I know Vegas, Las Vegas has the over under, it's seven and a half for these guys in terms of wins for next year. WHOA, Now, I think that's low.
I agree.
I think that's an easy, absolute easy over for me, despite the fact that the AFC East is going to be, I believe, the toughest division in which to compete in the NFL this year. So what are you guys thoughts on Bill Belichick and the fact that our media here in New England has really put him on the hot seat. Is it deserving and why? Or is it not deserving
and why? And that's the first question really to what I think of you guys who are listening today, Whether you're on the pod, you know you certainly send me an email or send me a tweet, or if you're listening live eight five to five PATS five hundred is the toll free number you want to join the conversation. Quite frankly, I think it's a bunch of bunk who wants to start with that one?
Ill i''m gonna go right on that. I don't think he's anywhere near that hot seat. I mean, in the past twenty two years, bringing the Pats to the postseason nine times, winning six, I mean, the battles have been incredible.
We can go back to twenty twenty, twenty twenty one season.
Made an entrance, and then twenty one twenty two.
Wasn't There.
Wasn't really there for anybody that you're coming out of the pandemic.
No, no, that that that you can't really compare that to anything. Twenty one twenty two, I mean the tenant seven was was a good season for for a COVID year.
And then let's just talk about last season. Last season might have.
Been we were injury prone, we had some problems. But I think there there might there might be some complications between being a GM and the head coach in the same realm. But I think he shouldn't like like you said, the media should not be not even be talking about that. That's not our big concern right now. I think Bill Belichick has done an amazing job as head coach here. He's coaches seemed well. I guess, I guess there's been complications.
Like you said, you have to perform. If you're not perform, you're gonna go. I mean, you have a job to do.
He really should, I think, hold himself to that standard. I think there are some here that follow this team fairly closely. I think there are some here that are like, Okay, he's just hanging on until he can pass Don Shula's record and become the winningest coach of all time. I've always believed from day one. I've always believed that he wants that record.
I know he.
Doesn't really show his ego. He's actually, you know, pretty self serving, but I think, deep down, I think he realizes the magnitude of what it would mean to pass shoeless three forty seven. And that's, you know, by the way, you know what something silly?
You know?
Don Shula had that. You guys know of the shoelas steakhouses. You ever see those? I don't know if you're old enough to remember, probably, I think, okay, probably not Shula's had. He had steakhouses all over the country right now. They were called shoeless three forty seven. I never knew that the three forty seven stood for how many wins he had in the NFL. Is that, But that's what the Steakhousers recalled shoeless three forty seven, Like, why do they
call it three four to seven? It's because that's how many games you won in the NFL. Stupid. Okay, thank you very much. I just killed myself. Just rollep roll the bus back over me. All right, go ahead, I'm sorry, Elliott. What are your what are your thoughts on whether or not you think he's on the hot seat.
I really like some people might not agree with me. I think he's definitely sitting on a warmer seat this season, and he's been there since like twenty nineteen, since Bretty departed, and I think it's it. I don't think it's necessarily because of how bad or how good.
The team's done.
I think it's he lost a lot of great players and he's trying to build back up the team's chemistry, chemistry with the rookies and the veterans coming back, So it's hard going into a season and then divisions and postseason is really up close too, so it's definitely hard to bring that chemistry up together.
Yeah, got you. You know you are one hundred percent that his seat is warmer, And I think that's just that's just a byproduct of not making the playoffs and not having won a game in four or five years. So yeah, I mean sure, Patriots fans have a tendency to get anantsy. Patriots fans have a tendency to think, well, the playoffs, that's our domain. Fans here are spoiled. You know, you're fan grown up with them. The Patriots have been good your entire life, so you've known nothing else, So like,
what the heck is going on here? If they don't make the postseason, you know, because we're too used to it around here, and I think you know this is this is where it requires a little bit of perspective. When I first started with the team, my first full time year with the team was not as their stadium voice, but it was I was I was the sports guy at the Channel twelve in Providence, and I did Rod Rust's television show. He was the coach back in nineteen ninety and the team was one in fifteen.
It didn't he didn't last that long, by the way.
No, he was one year at least one years.
The whole franchise, though.
Well yeah, and it was that way, Yeah, Mario was that way. They struggled for years. They you know, they they broke through. They got to the super Bowl. They got the Super Bowl twenty right, they got steamrolled by the Fridge and the Bears, which I'm sure you know, I know you don't remember, but I know you know about Okay, and then we got back in the super Bowl, and I say we the collective, we here back into
the Super Bowl in ninety five. Played the Packers lost, but that was already after Bill Parcells had come in, and of course then as people know, it blew up then. But that ultimately led the Patriots to bringing in at the time it was Pete Carroll and then bringing in Bill Belichick and building the franchise to the point where it is today.
Yeah, I think.
Like where he's going right now, how it looks he's losing a little bit of respect from younger players that they're coming in. Yeah, and I think he needs to win the playoffs in this year's division or because he's just going to keep losing or disrespect from and disrespect from all these players.
Well, I think I think that's a good point because to that end, there are those that believe that New England is no longer a destination for free agents. Yeah, and so free agents are like, well, I don't necessarily want to go to New England because I'm not sure they're going to be able to win. And I think that was maybe even a consideration for DeAndre Hopkins in the last couple of weeks when he ultimately decided on your Titans there Mario so okay, which is okay, that's fine.
But I think there's still enough respect there for for coach Belichick where you know me Juju Smith Schuster has said that already. Mike Gisicki has said that some of these guys that have come in from other organizations this year their first time Patriots this year, they've kind of talked a little about that. So all right, but how much more has to happen for that to completely wear out? And I think we're at that almost that breaking point.
We're almost there at that breaking point where it's like, okay, so his street cred just isn't going to be what it used to be because.
He definitely go on like four years now of not great season, right, and.
So there are people and rightfully so questioning I'm not saying we can't question it. I questioned it every day when we do this show. Okay, and and listeners to this show understand that we talk about that. We you know, talk about that with you know, other members of the medium, primarily on the show, other members of other organizations and teams, so we you know that we bring them into the show, you know, when the Patriots are preparing for them, you know,
the Jets, the Bills, the Dolphins, and the Division. You know, during the course of the regular season, we'll have you know, media people and broadcasters and writers from all the teams around the NFL as the Patriots prepare to play them. They'll be a part of this show. And so the perspective is different. They all feel like, well, we can knock the Patriots off now, and we've been doing it for three years. How do the Patriots get back to that point of almost invincibility? I see where I kind
of did that. Okay, So at any rate, do they really put Coach Belichick's feet to the fire on this? Should we put his feet to the fire? Mario? Is he on the hot seat?
I think he is on a hot seat, actually, I think because if you take a look back at two stretches in franchise history, the only fan the only rains where Craft was under management with Carol and Carol and Parcels. Right, yep, So Parcels and Carol both had four to five year stretches, right. Carol got fired on an eight on a five hundred season and Parcells got fired on a good season where he led him to the super Bowl.
And yeah, and a lot of that is simply because you know, he had yeah, and he had a foot out the door with the whole Jets thing, which is why so many people are poed at him anyway, and why he hasn't gotten into the Patriots Hall of Fame in my own opinion, because there's still too many people, too many fans who you know, hate him for, you know, running off for the Jets. And I make this case
every here. I'm on the Patriots Hall of Fame nominating committee, and I'm proud to be on that because only because I'm old and been around for a long time. But that's part of it, and part of the argument is and a lot of the guys in the media say that about Bill Parcells. Of that, Look, if we don't have Bill Parcells, we don't have the Patriots today. We don't probably have the Hall of Fame, we don't have
a lot today. He started that mindset. He changed the way the Patriots not only were perceived by others outside of the organization, but he changed us internally. Did he leave on unfriendly terms? Yep, he sure did, There's no doubt about it. But for the Patriots fans that think, oh, he should never be in because of what he did to us, get over it. Get over it. If we don't have coach Parcells at the time, there's a lot
that we don't have right now. I would tell you that if we don't have Parcels, we might not have had Belichick because you know, they were attached at the hip at that time.
Right, Yeah, So.
Anyway, all right, I got off on the tangent there, which is what we do a lot of on this show. But the fact of the matter is is that I would tend to agree with you. I understand where you know, the the sense of urgency really kind of is right. I mean, there is if the Patriots go seven to ten, eight and nine this year, all bets are off, all all bets are off.
Okay, it's as choice at that point.
Well, sure it is. And I think maybe you know look, he's nineteen wins away from, you know, surpassing Shula. I don't think you're gonna get it this year. He could certainly get it next year. So I think even Bill knows if that's really important to him. And I believe, for a long time, my personal belief, I don't have the inside knowledge of this, My person belief is that, yeah, that matters, especially when coach Schuli before he passed away,
dissed him and called him Belichiet. You guys probably even remember that yourselves. So I think that's stuff. I think that hurt. I think all he wanted was to be respected by someone like Don Shula, and he didn't do that because the Patriots obviously had all these controversial things that they you know, went through, you know, in the last ten years or so. And I think that hurt.
And so I think he's like, well, you know, the only way that you can shut people up is by you know, you know, scoreboard, right, how many did you win?
Three?
Forty eight? Scoreboard? Okay, did you win the game?
Yep?
Scoreboard doesn't matter how you get there. The only thing that people remember, they don't remember how you want. They don't remember that you want and that's what I think matters to him, And so is he gonna hang around, you know, a couple more years to get to that level? And if he doesn't have success this year, are they
gonna allow him to do so? And I thought going into the year, yeah, But if they don't become competitive this year, if they don't make the playoffs, I have to admit for the first time, I'm gonna have to backtrack, and I'm gonna have to say he's fair game to look at this. Is he the best option for New England, for the Patriots organization to win going forward? It's a fair question. But I don't really degree with I don't
really agree with degrees of warmness on the seat. I think you're either on the hot seat of you're not, so it's either blazing on fire or I don't give a crap one or the other. And you know, and I understand you both think that he's on to a varying degree. And at Lina, you said, oh, the seat's definitely warm.
While I would.
Agree with that, it's certainly not ice cold. But I don't think it's even a consideration for the Crafts until this year is over. And that's really the bottom line where I'm coming from. I think that if this team fails to reach the goals that management has set for itself, that there will be some introspective thinking and maybe even changing in the off season. I would still be honestly surprised.
I know a couple of our guys and Patriots unfiltered, and you know, I think a lot of I think I think you would have to take something extraordinary for the Patriots to fire him, be extraordinary. If they go seven to ten, eight and nine, then you know, do I think he'll resign and quit? You know? Well, then let's say they go eight to nine again like they did last year. That's going to leave him eleven wins short. There's no freaking way that's going to happen. He's not
going to do it. He's going to just, you know, put his nose to the grainstone and try to you know, yeah, and work this out. He wants to fix the problem before he steps out. He has enough personal pride in what he does, and through my observations of him over his twenty two plus years now that he's been here, he this matters. He doesn't want to leave. You know, the okay, corral with you know, dead bodies lying around.
He wants to make sure that everybody's in good work in order that this franchise is ready to move forward. And I think that's where he and the Craft family are on the same page, and I think the Crafts will give him every opportunity to fix whatever the issue might be. This year will be a good first test because you know, his two buddies and Matt Patrician Joe Judge were off doing other things. Chris didn't even with the team this year. Joe has called the assistant head coach.
That was one of the titles that he was bestowed as the titles came out. You know, actually here online on the website a couple of days ago in advance of training camp.
Here.
But you know, they're not in the same spot that you were in a year ago. That's why coach O'Brien was brought in because he has an experience here. He has experience as a head coach in the league, and he has experiences as a good offensive play caller and designer. That's why he's here because I think Bill had to realize without admitting it, okay, that was not the right
tact to take. And I think the problem with what a lot of people are having is is because there are some in the media and there are fans, yes, fans, especially when that decision was made a year ago, they're like, what is he doing?
I mean, look at his track record with the Houston Texans, Bill Ryan before then. But he I think he changed a lot of people's perspective with his offensive play calingy in Alabama that brought him back to the Patriots only.
So there's and and and that's why they feel comfortable with him. And Bill knows, Uh that Bill O'Brien wanted to get back to the NFL. I think that's been a goal of his, you know, since he you know, he left h you know, the Texans especially, and then he you know, uh tutored you know for a year two years under uh you know Nick Samon and Alabama because you know, you know, these guys all know each other. Alabama obviously, you know, clearly has some of the pre
eminent talent in all of college football. Uh. You know, Mac Jones and Bill O'Brien were like two ships that passed in the night. Mack had just graduated when Bill O'Brien stepped in, so did they work with each other, not directly, but sort of indirectly on a lot of things. Uh, And now they got a chance to kind of go back together. So I think there's some similar mindset there.
And what the Patriots want to do anyway, is similar to what you know, mac ran in Alabama and what Bill has done not only in Alabama, but what he did in his time in the NFL before that. So I think we feel like there's gonna be some synergy there. And I think we all realized that was the biggest area of concern going in based on how last season ended. So let's give it a chance to work before we tear it down and say, oh, this is not gonna work. Bill's on the hot seat. He's got to go if
the Patriots don't win this year. I'm just not that absolute, And I think if you really think this thing out, I don't think anybody you know reasonably will be that absolute because he's so close and the Patriots understand from an organizational standpoint, okay, that if he becomes the winningest coach of all time, and I believe you or I listen, believe me when I tell.
You this that matters most definitely.
That matters. I know that doesn't matter to really probably anybody outside of the organization because nobody else has a chance to even come close to it. No one may touch this record again because coaches they just they regurgitate, they recycle themselves so often. Now, if you don't win, you're down for two or three years, you're out. You don't get a chance to pull a Bill Belichick when
he was at Cleveland. You don't get a chance to pull a Bill Belichick and have three four down years here in New England, you know, between you know, playoff appearances. You don't get a chance to do that because there's so much pressure to win. Bill is still in position to do that because of his track record and what he's done. And by the way, if he actually does surpass Shula, and I think he will, that automatically, you know, hey, that becomes a New England Patriots record just as well
as it becomes a Bill Belichick record. Patriots will love the winningest coach of all time. I mean, didn't they name a trophy after the Green Bay Packers coach? Yeah? Okay, that's all I'm saying. That's all I'm saying. Well, you
have a trophy named after him. Hell, I don't know, but I'm just saying that meant something back then, it means something today to the history of the league, and I think it'll be important for the Patriots, you know, to you know, see, if they can't get to that, they're gonna try to do the best that they can, you know, and fix things along the way. If Bill is lacking in any particular area, you know, they keep bringing in young people to sort of come in with
the scouting and remaking, you know, the drafting. And now they brought in some energy onto the coaching staff as well, and hopefully assisting him in that particular endeavor. Not that I think he's incapable. Bill's forgotten more football than any of us will ever learn, and I think it'll be that way from now until Kingdom come. But every once in a while, yeah, you need an assist and I think those that are most successful in life understand that on occasion you do need help. Okay, I think that
comes along with the table. All right, let's get onto a couple of the subject again. Eight five five Pats five hundred, eight five five pats five hundred Web Radio at Patriots dot Com at JR Broadcaster on Twitter. All right, let's start with this team after we've gotten off the Bill Belichick hot seat here. So going into training camp, what do you feel like the current greatest area of
need is on the roster. I told you at the top of the show that one of the things that I want to see first other team is that Trent Brown knows how to block. Again, a couple of years ago, I thought he did a very very good job. Last year, Oh my god, I mean, dude led the league in
Holtz offensive holds. So I'm just like, Okay, something's got to change there, because you know, somebody that six foot five, six foot eight, excuse me, in three hundred and sixty five bills, no need for him to hold just you know, move your feet, get in front of somebody, and you become, you know, literally a man mountain. Clearly something that was
amiss there. So that's to me. I want to keep mac Jones's backside healthy so he has time in the pocket to be able to find the new targets and the old targets that he has had to point toward over the last couple of years. And really the pressure's on Mac Now, I think, uh, threefold, fivefold over what it was a year ago. Because last year was a wash. Year two was a wash. I think we know. And and it's because you know that, and frankly Bill owns that.
Coach Belichick owns that he has to because he's the one that put the position the Patriots in position to fail like they did a year ago. Let's call it the way it is. So this year now you got to figure out whether or not Mac is your guy
for the foreseeable future. And you got him, you know, this year, next year, under the rookie contract, before year five you have an option usually and then boom, you have to decide are we keeping him or are we gonna go draft somebody else, We're gonna trade for somebody else. So you wouldn't generally want to try to stack your roster while you have a quarterback whose salary you control. Young,
talented can compete and be a part of it. I don't think there's anybody in their right mind that's going to say Mac Jones is the best quarterback in the AFC East, not with Aaron Rodgers coming to the fold in New York. But can he be competitive? Sure, we can't. Part of that is he has to have the time to find his targets. Trent Jones is Trent Brown is a big part of that. What do you guys thought on current greatest area of need on the roster And you don't have to agree with me, by the way, on the.
Offensive line, Well, you said earlier I think that they needed a bigger, like a new wide receiver, like that's the greatest need. And I definitely agree with that that last year's they had terrible receivers and mixing in that with the new offensive coordinator, you just you need a big, new wide receiver to come in and just change that look for not only the team, but for Belichick.
Anyone in particular. It's term of wide receiver.
I know they had some people going had to head for a position battle. Yeah, Taekwon Thornton and Kendrick Bourne, so I know they were both.
It's funny you should bring those two guys up because I think those guys are sort of on the ball. H I do. I love Kendrick Born. Kendrick was outspoken last year thinking that you know, hey, what are these guys doing. They're not getting me the ball enough? Right, and we talked about on this show months ago. I think, at least based on what we've heard from Kendrick in the offseason, he's itching to get back out there, yeah,
and have an opportunity to show what he does. Taekwan should too, because in year two, you know, you're supposed to make your biggest leap from your rookie year to your sophomore year. That shouldn't be your biggest leap, and his rookie year was truncated because of injury. Yeah, I really expect those guys to try to put pedal to metal here in training camp and let's see what they got.
And I think I think they're both supposed to be expected to make that fifty three man roster.
Do you think they ultimately will?
I mean, it depends on how they do, but I do think that they should be expected to, so they.
Won't be, you know, one of those guys that they just kind of carry hoping that he shows up in the regular season.
Yeah.
So the next month really is for those two guys. You put it out now and play hard now and show what you've got now or when it gets to be a month from now, right before you know, we get to the you know, the the roster deadline, you're out.
They're definitely gonna push each other for playing time and definitely gonna I'll go along with that.
Nate, what do you think current greatest area of need on the roster?
I think it's definitely the offense. It's somewhere on the offense.
I think it's either like we've been talking about, wide receiver or I think it's quarterback.
I think Mac Jones.
We really, we really need to take a hard look at our quarterback. Mac has only been here two seasons, he's going into his third. He hasn't been pushed by anyone. He hasn't really had anyone to look up to. I mean, like you said, I think Bill Belichick has kind of put us put himself in this position. We no more Brady they I think they could have done things to keep people that left.
But let's go back to wide receiver.
I want I want to talk about Okay, Juju Smith Schuster. I think he could be let's let's just not even talk about player of need. I think he could be a player a position of need and he could be one of our key players of the season. He just came off one of his best seasons he's played with nine hundred and thirty three yards. I mean, Juju, I want to see Georgia.
I want to see Jujo act like a one, even if he's physically not a one.
If that makes sense, I agree, Yeah, it's it's it's not not always on the field, off the field, whether he's second.
I thought battling with the White I.
Thought last year in Kansas City, he really kind of picked up where Tyreek Hill had left off when he left from Miami.
And I thought, you feel like he stepped out of his shell of Pittsburgh right there, Yeah, under the Tomlin Yeah organization.
I would agree with that he stepped out of it because he knew there was a need in Kansas City, right he knew he had something one more Tyreek, So who are they gonna tiget? You know, who's Mahome's gonna go to? And I thought he stepped up and did well. Now, again, injuries are always an issue and they always will be, especially we're now a seventeen game schedule. But I'd like to see him assume a leadership role on the team. On the team, you know, on the field as well
as in the locker room. Because they're gonna be a little bit of a void there. And Frank, you know without you know a guy like Devin mccorty who retired, so I would tell you that. To me, I think that's almost as big an area of need is finding someone to assume a leadership position role again as well as finding somebody who can actually, you know, step up
on the field and do it. I think that's big because that's one of those things that sort of leads to the and our fans know this leads to the Patriot way, you know, where they let the veterans do most of the talking and the lot of locker room and everybody else follows. I mean, you guys are on athletic teams. You've been around on athletic teams long enough, you know this is why you have team captains. This is why you have leaders to set the tempo for
everybody else to follow. You follow, you know, the leaders, and as they try to lead by example, right, and boy does that really come into play. I think when it comes to crunch time in the NFL.
I I I really think that we should we should be seeing what his numbers last year he was in sixteen games, he didn't get injured. He held himself really well in all of his case games. Coming from Kansas City, I think here in here in Foxborough, we really need that. Like you said, we need a leader. We need someone leading off the field, on the field, in the locker room, at practice, not even at practice.
We need we need a leader.
We need someone who can lead this team and push players to be their best and even better.
If we're not pushing our players, what are we doing.
I feel like to your point date that lead that leadership is a learn trade, not like it's not something that's given to you based off It's not some Yeah, it's not something that's given to you based off of just you're there for multiple years and multiple experiences, right, Tru. That's that's why I believe that Juju Smith Schuster is gonna strug He's gonna struggle with his leadership leadership roles.
Right.
He's he's not a Juwan Binley, of course, trying to having the years under the Patriots Belchi Belichick knows what to expect from him out of captaincy. Right, this is something that Ju is gonna have to learn, and he has contact in NFL that can make that happen to just give him advice on that. I mean he's seen it.
He's been with Ben Rollisberger, right, So I believe to that point that Jujus Smith Schuster is gonna learn, I believe this season how to be a good captain and speak up and use his leadership skills to provide a lot of chemistry and great field to this organization.
For that would agree with him that one. What's your current greatest theory of need Mario.
Grace area need it sides with off the line? I think I agree with you. John trim Brown is the only safe position for me at the tackle spot. That other tackle spot is very much up for debate. I think Riley Reeve has a lot of experience and he also has a great he has He has great work on the edge of course protecting it.
Yep.
Conor McDermott is someone else to also look out for. He's a pretty he's pretty versatile. You can use him in most spots on the field as off as an off the line member. Mike Amolu Kid is a decent swing as well.
He can be very.
I think at times he can be very spotty, but he has a good track record Okay, all.
Right, very good. Let's do uh one more here because before we you know, we wrap up and get to our two of the program. I'm kind of curious what you guys look at as this team as a whole. All right, So what I'm i'm and I ask you to do here is put on your thinking caps, based on your research, based on your fandom, based on your knowledge whatever. And I want you to tell me where you think the team is going to be at the end of the season. What's the one loss record going
to be? Are you you know, have you looked at the schedule? You know where the tough parts are going to come from. You have to take injury into consideration. Uh, you got to consider you know, the overall competition, uh, you know, for positional battles and and for uh you know, within certainly within the divisions that you got to play each other team in the afcast twice this year. And then ultimately, based on the record that you think this team will finish with, will they make the postseason?
I'll go first. I think they're gonna be seven and ten. I don't think they make the playoffs. The team has a few pieces or they need a few more pieces on defense. They haven't fully matured, to say, in the organanization yet as a team, I think the defense has mastered your scheme and is ready to contend. I think the offense doesn't have the firepower consistently to be a double digit win season this year, or a postseason team
at that maybe at the seventh spot, Okay. I believe they're a postseason contender about a year or two with a solid silence upgrade this year.
Okay, all right, so you don't think they're gonna get there? No, Okay, so that's fair.
I agree with Mario two.
I don't really I do.
Yeah.
I think honestly the Patriots are gonna go eight and nine again, and they're not gonna with no playoffs, and I don't I don't see when division does come around that they'll, Like I said before, they're gonna have a good enough chemistry to pull something off, and like I and I think that if they do, it will be a shock to all of us if they do so.
I definitely that's how I look at it. I just don't think based off these new players and based off their defense and all these things contributed into one, I really don't think they're gonna make it pass.
We got doubting Thomas's here in the room. I can't believe that I'm the one that's all, you know, you know, sunshine and unicorns here.
Do you think they're gonna make it?
I do.
I do.
In fact, I think the Patriots may shock the NFL.
What do you think the record right now?
I think I said this last month when we talked about the schedule. I'm going to take them at ten and seven with an outside chance at eleven and six in spite of the difficulty of the record, and I think they'll get into the playoffs and depending on their matchup, yeah, I think they'll win a game. I don't know that they'll go beyond one game, but I think they'll they'll I think they'll win and get into the semifinals in
the AFC. That's my thought because I think what they'll end up matching up with again, it all is predicated on injuries, you know. I think that a matchup in the in the second round, you know, in the wild card after the wild card weekend with either Buffalo or Kansas City is going to be extraordinarily difficult for them to match up.
So that's what I think.
I think Bills is gonna take the Bills are gonna take it all in the division. I think they're gonna win.
Okay, Okay, that's fair, that's fair. I do think the Patriots get in his wildcard, so I'll take them. I'll take them right now at ten and seven. They get in his wild card, and then it's all about matchups. But I'll go ahead and go out on a limb and say they can win a game. And I think that would be a step in the right direction. Why Because I think they know they need to take that step at a franchise. They're going to work hard, and I think everybody and I think they've got more talent
this year. There's no question in my mind. They have more talent on this team than they had a year ago. Now do they have the right talent, We don't know yet, and we're only gonna be able to find that out as the season unfolds. But I think, look, if you look at this team on offense this year, even the roster now with ninety eighty nine players whatever it is right now, based on what they had last year, it's night and day. There are more guys that can make plays.
I loved, and I've said this to you know, our audience here before. I love the acquisition of Gasiki. You know, he's like a six foot six slot receiver. I think he's gonna end up being mac Jones's Binkie.
You know.
I can see that it's coming Ju. That should open up room for Juju as well. Even though Juju is primarily a slot type of guy. I think he'll be able to line up wide if they choose to do that. I think you'll be able to take off with the ball if they choose to do that. So there are a lot of different ways that I think they'll be able to try to utilize him. I've always loved Devonte Parker, he just can't stay healthy enough to get out of his own way. I want to see him play twelve games.
If we could get twelve to fourteen games out of Davante, you know, then I think the Patriots are going to be right where they need to be because he's one of those guys that can go up and get it, throw it up. He you know, should be able to win most one on one matchups with most corners in the league. You're certainly in the AFC. I'm actually excited about the new weapons that they have, at least on paper, on offense, and I think it will be better than it was a here going I'm willing to give them
the benefit of the doubt. Now now I could be eating crow, you know, in another month here or you know, if someone gets hurt, or in two months after we get into the first four weeks of the season. Because one of the things I did say a month ago when we were talking about the record, is there's a good chance this team could go one in three to start the year based on the strength of schedule. There's a really good chance. Does that doom them? No, it does not, It won't. Nate, what do you think?
I think this year is gonna be a struggle?
You said, you said we have more talent, But the question we should be asking ourselves do we have the right talent. We have a lot of new guys, big new team this year. I think the start of the season is going to be a really big struggle. I agree with the start of the season, we're gonna go one in three. I think it's it's not gonna be a great start for us, Nor do I think we'll be making the postseason.
I think we'll see eight wins and we'll have nine losses.
So you have eight and Alina has eight, Mario has seven, So you guys are definitely not buying into the hype.
No, I'll tell you what.
Become the chief waiver around here. Come on, never happened.
We're all biased.
We love the team, we want them to go far, so does everyone. We're all here for the Patriots except for Mario. Get out of here, Titans fan. But we gotta be honest with ourself. We can't hype us up. We can't hype hype, hype this season up too much. We like, like you've been saying, our our division is definitely the hardest division in sports. I mean, the Patriots have the hardest. We're in the hardest division, and and are we gonna be able to battle through it?
I don't think so.
Okay, it's gonna be a tough fight, but I could tell it.
I mean it's fair, that's fair.
That's that's why I said eight and nine, because I I don't think we'll be able to battle our way through. We have bills on the schedule twice, same thing. We got everyone on scheduled twice Bills is gonna be really tough for us. If we can pull out one win from them, that that would be amazing, But I don't think it's gonna happen.
That'd be like a step in the right direction.
That would be a great step in the right direction.
We really have to look at ourselves at the end of the season if this is how we go, If we have a season like the Jets seven and ten, if we go something like that, or if we even have something like the Raiders six and eleven, we really have to look at what we're doing as a team.
And so then you guys firmly put coach Belichick on the hot seat after that finish.
Yeah, it's if we have something like the Raiders or even the Broncos where we go five and twelve, we really have to look at is Belichick the right coach and where does he need to go?
That's fair, we did say that. But I tell you one thing. These guys are not sucking up to the professor right now, are they?
No?
No?
Sorry, sorry, love you, John, but no.
I like that. Hey Eldred in North Carolina eight five to five, Pats five hundred, the total free number Eldred. Where are we driving today?
How do legend and the panel? I'm up in the mount heard of a Cherokee, Yes, sir, North Carolina?
Yes?
What are gambling casinos?
Yes, sir, yes, well I'm around the corner from them.
Who you gambling on today?
Oh?
I ain't gambling. I'm I'm delivering some big man holes because they got to do some roads on a quady road or where that road called. They got repair that real bad, yes, and but doing them one a time. It's like a ghost down.
Now.
You got tourists everywhere, bikers, you got hot pants, church tops look pretty good a week.
The hell with the tourists. Just you know, leave your money out el Yeah, really, leave your money and get the hell out right.
You got that right? But I like the attraction.
They're looking very well, totally totally. What's so? What's what? What? What do you?
I mean, what do you think of what these guys have been talking about? I mean, I know how you feel about Bill. Okay, tell me tell me why.
One? Uh? Like I said, is this the way of thinking? And that's work good in the in the nineties when he with the giants, But he didn't work too good. With the with the Cleveland Brown, you know, and it didn't work. You know, ain't working good now, you know, because you got to play star star players. And I'm tired of everybody's saying we didn't ever have a chance
get Yes, we did. He just didn't get them. Heck, he brought nine to ten up inside the buildings, worked him out, then then pick him and last couple of drafts they sitting right there. He got his guys what he thinks, and he don't like paying nobody. You know, he'll pay defense now if guns all his pans out, which I know he will. I think I'm pretty sure he will. He'll get that eighty to ninety million dollar contract. He'll get it, but he won't pay that for a
star wide receiver. Yeah, you know, he won't pay that. And another thing he won't do the people that he got.
He drafts and.
That core that you done made or house thanks. When he comes to signing time, he don't want to sign him. He did the chep him out, chip him out, or you know he might do a sign and didn't trade him.
That's ridiculous.
That's your core. You know. When you was coming up, Stevenson coming up okay, and douglah, I'll keep every one on them. I'm sorry, that's my.
Core, okay, and I won't disagree with that. No, I think you're I think you're right. So they didn't. They basically didn't do enough to get them back where you think they need to be right now.
No, sir and uh Paul put something on on on us a couple of days ago and said, if they went all in on Brady from ninth from eighteen, nineteen and twenty, what.
You think the rug would be?
So Prian said, I don't know if they went all in on Brady and when a Mari couple came open, when the Hawk first went and left and then a dig, you had three more Super Bowls, you had three more.
Well, I don't know that. I listen, I don't know that they would have done that, but I would tell you that if they had decided to go all in on Brady run and keep him here, then I think they would have made an effort to keep more talent around him.
Yes, and and you don't think with that talent he went with no talent, No talent, Like I said, everybody has had had leborguineas and sports cars he had Tukatys went to Zoo both the six down with us in one six.
You don't think he was.
If he went all in, he would have won three more. I know he would have. He won one with with.
The with the bucks.
And I don't care if it was of COVID season we had we had't do the same thing that did. Uh what y'all had to do with us learned to learn office, learn to play?
Yeah, I mean they got him there.
Yeah, I mean it's a good argument. I mean it's
a good argument. That's obviously an answer that will we'll never get because it will it'll never happen, right, But I could I would certainly see that, you know, you know COVID year, you know, look that that to me would have been the year to do it, because you know, everybody had struggles, so you know, if you've done a better job of keeping talent on the team and keeping Brady, I could see that one potentially working out, you know, to the Patriot liking for the last couple of years,
depending upon what would have happened that year. I'm not so sure.
Well, I'm thinking, well, I'm pretty sure because that's the greatest of all time. And everybody can get mad to be saying this. I don't care. He didn't come to the greatest coach that he had the greatest player.
Yeah, I get it.
Those two go hand in hand.
Yeah I get it.
You know you know that that was that andin then Brady. You could say one thing about Brady. One Super Bowl went, the two playoffs lost because they got I played. It was RT or whatever, but they got I played. But he did take him there three years in a row. You can't say that on this end. You can't say that you got the wrong you know, got your own people, got the wrong people when you draft, you know, and everybody was right there with what you needed.
You know.
But like I said, that's build way of thinking. You think this way is the best way. But that's not you know, that's not not this year or the last couple of years football. You know they ain't playing like that no more. But he won't change it.
What do you think, Elder, It is the biggest area of need on the roster right now.
You know I won't say wide receiver.
Yeah, I'm gonna say that outside.
Because if I was the defense annoying, Uh Bill O'Brien, what do you like to do made in the middle of the field and all that. I'm stopping in the middle till you show me somebody on the outside that I gotta worry about. I don't care if you do. Gotta stu stucking around. You have picked to run the four two. He ain't showed me nothing yet, and he burned me a couple of times. Then I'm gonna back up, but I'm gonna.
Call out that middle.
That's what I would do. You showed me something, elk.
You guys have anything for Eldrick?
Do you want to here?
I gotta I got a question, Eldrick. What's what do you think the record is? I think you quickly said it, but I didn't hear. What was the what do you think the record for the Pats season?
To win a shootout?
You guys cheating?
Maybe?
Did you guys cheat and call and talk to Eldrick before we started here? Why the hell are you guys all on the same page?
And I went out in land.
We love you, We've heard, We've heard some stories.
Uh, we love you.
You're a fan of the show.
Thank you.
He's everybody too. But think about it. I'm gonna see me, mister mister legend. If you get a shootout with the Eagles, the Cowboys, the Chiefs, the Bikers, Buffalo Miami got Buffalo Miami twice, and now the Jet even though they got Aaron Rodgers. If I think Aaron Rodgers gonna fall apart, I don't think so. You know, so you gotta win a shootout. You ain't got the web. It's the run hihoot out.
I think.
I think actually this might be one season where we might see the Jets above us for once. They they haven't, they haven't.
Rogers is not all that.
He's not. He's not, he's not.
But they have the prospects, they have the talent. They just need a team that's gonna work together.
Need a quarterback exactly.
And some love Bisola as well.
I just don't. I don't running back well, yeah, but they're gonna get that back. I think Breess Hall is gonna you know, he's very good. I loved him at Iowa Stake because he was a thorn in my side.
But he's very explosive.
He's extraordinarily explosive. And if he's completely healthy, they'll have their running back.
They'll have him, Yeah, they have, And plus they got somebody in the background there to back him.
Up a little bit, you know, so he's pretty well.
They just yeah, they did, didn't they did just sign James Robinson who we had here. I believe they did.
Yes, I think they. I think they did somebody before him that was a guy.
There was a rent back before him. Yeah, that took place for a little bit.
You know, he's pretty good two four minute.
But all of them looking at it's the competition level, you know, And then I know we got we got good coaches. Now, you know we didn't have him last year. But it's the talent thing, you know, Juju, you can pay some million what give what call thirty some millions and that's not not thirty but thirteen sixteen million, Yeah to Parker, and I got, like I told you, you
got a disgrunted rob receiver in Denver. Give a third round or fourth front and go get a Bill And that's such way better than Parker and younger, fast and taller, and we'll go get it and got speed. Now they don't give somebody on the O side.
You're talking about a quarterback here. Do you think Mac can bounce back from his season last year and grow under Bill O'Brien, Like, what do you think about that?
I think it'd be more. I think he can because that's more like Josh McDaniel, a real offensive coordinator. Somebody gonna get his attention, gonna work under his canic tell him what you know this and that he didn't have that last year And nor did Bill bring him in the nurture that I can see, you know, on sidelines or whatever, like he did what you call like he did Brady, what's the thing you go talk to Brady? He didn't do that with Matt. You know, he didn't
do that. I think he'll do a little bit better. And like I said, you still a couple of shots deep. Somebody can get over there, Burnham, cup of time. They gonna make somebody back up right now. We ain't got nobody to making nobody back up. So I'm just coming forward that you got better corners. You got Ramsey in there now over there with the other guy from Miami. Then you got Sauce and this other guy they got over there. Then you got Buffalo corners. You know, jam,
they can jam, they can run. You ain't got nobody can run with him.
Yeah, all right, Elder I'm gonna leave you with one more here because the guy's kind of started out with this and I think I know your answer, but I really kind of like for you to contribute. Here is Bill on the hot seat? Why or why not?
He's a house fit for the last hoo told seasons with me.
He is burning hot.
Yeah, yeah, sir, I mean, I mean somewhere down the line. You have to see what's going on in the NFL. I mean, he ain't no dummy, He's smartest ay to be. You have to see and you have to see that your way ain't going ain't doing. You ain't working like it did before because you had demand. You ain't got demand.
Now. You can't keep.
Playing like that. You can't keep drafting like that, you can't keep scheming like that. You ain't the skiing. It's the player and the scheme. And like I said before, you be the greatest coach in the world. But if you ain't got them plague, you're just a coach holding the clipbull on the sideline. That's all you are.
Yeah, for Jesus the fact, Yeah, I like that, Elder that.
I love you, brother. Thanks for calling in.
I have a good one.
Gotta go see you all right, he's gotta finish making his load here. All right. If you're on the phones, hang in, I'm gonna get right to you. But guys, good job on the first hour here. Appreciate you all, thank you. Yeah yeah, way to roll.
All right, We'll see what the Patriots do this year.
I can't wait.
And Nathan and Mario, all right, I'm gonna take a quick break here, team two hour two straight ahead here in the playbook. In the meantime. Bridgestone is the official tire of the New England Patriots and it is proud to partner with Sullivan Tire, New England's headquarters for quality. Bridgestone Tires. Visits Sullivantyre dot com to find the location near you. Keep it right here Patriots Playbook on Patriots dot Com Radio.
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This is Patriots Playbook, the Legend.
We're into our number two of Patriots Playbook for uh well, what's today? July twenties twenty six? Thank you?
All right?
See I almost forgot again. We started the show like this and I forgot again. This shows you where my head is today with a jillion different things going on, right, This is our number two of the program, and would remind you Patriots fans that if you want to see Toyota's best offers, including those not seen on TV. Boy, is there an ad that you see more on television than Toyota? I mean, really think about that. Anyway, their best offer is including those not seen on TV. Then
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, all right, We continue here with the July edition of the Patriots Playbook. Today was the first day of training camp here at Gillette Stadium.
As I mentioned in the opening hour of the program, that you know, really today tomorrow Friday will really be more glorified OTAs than anything else, just because it's a continuation of what was learned, and then just to see what the retention has been after having five six weeks off since OTA has ended in June. And then they'll get to you know, pad work and contact and yes,
true competition beginning next week on Monday. That were players that were missing today at the opening of training camp, Mike on when you and Calvin Anderson were I guess the most notable absentees. When you is currently on the PUP, the physically unable to perform list, Anderson is on the non football illness list earlier this week was something that was not football related O WHENU is recovering from ankle surgery, as I know many of you were probably aware that
he had in the off season. So that's why those two guys weren't there. I don't think that we're expecting any difficulties or anything lingering from where those guys are, you know, are presently. I think that's the biggest issue. And then I also find out today Cody Davis, who's the special teamer in safety also on the PUP, is the only other player that was missing to my knowledge, at least based on the start of practice today here at Gillette. DeMarcus Mitchell was present, and I know the
Boston Herald reported this as well. He's kind of been been moved from the NFI the non Football injury list as well, so he's back, so that's probably good. Marte Maphu done, the rookie from Sack State. He did not yet a red jersey on, so that means no contact. So I think they're just being sort of, you know,
careful with him. I mentioned, you know earlier, you know, to radio station that I spoke to in Maine this morning as they were all hyped up about the opening day of training camp, that Mapoo's one of the guys that I really am looking forward to seeing the most. You know, there are a lot of hype here about a guy that you know clearly played at another level. I mean Sack State. Let's face it, Okay, it's not Pac twelve, it's you know, not Big twelve, it's not
Big ten. But that doesn't mean that talent doesn't exist. And so to me, this is an example a of a guy that might be playing a little bit more of a chip on his shoulder, kind of like we saw Kyle Duggart a few years ago, right, ironically that you know, these guys will probably play similar positions, right, number one and number two. This is a test of
the team scouting staff. This is a test of you know, hey, these guys can recognize talent no matter where it be playing, where it'll be playing, and whatever level it might be located on. So Mapoo's a guy that I'm really kind of looking forward to trying to identify and see how he begins to make out and can he perform to
the level of early expectation for the Patriots. All right, So before we get back to the phones, I want to welcome in our panel for an hour number two and again, these are my sports broadcasting students at Dean this summer. We'll welcome onto the program Charlie Adams. Charlie's from Do you are even Kranston in Warwick? Cranston, Right, Cranston, Rhode Island, Okay, And so you go to Cranston East High School? Correct?
Yep?
All right, gotcha? And you remember the Thunderbird broadcast program.
There, Yep, Thunderbolt Sports Media.
Thunderbolt Sports.
I love that.
I love that.
You want to give a shout out to coach Simone or anything like that.
Yep, mister Simone and the people over at fans Only Sports Network give me a good opportunity to get my chops, get my reps in in high school, all right.
Fans Only is actually where we send a lot of our Dean kids over to work with, and you probably even worked with some of them, some of them. Maya galupo, Hi, Maya Hi, So Maya tellus you are a senior getting ready to be a senior in high school?
Right, yes?
And where do you reside?
I'm in I'm near Baltimore.
Okay, so you're another out of state or here?
Ye?
Are you a Ravens?
No, I'm a Patriots fan because I'm family from here.
Oh so where's your family from?
I think like around Natick and Lowell.
Okay, all right, I don't know.
If I said that, right, No, no, you did.
That's actually a good job out of you. You know, some people will say Natick, that's true. Some people will say wor Chester, you know which. If you do, then we can tell you're not from here, right, Okay, that's all right. Uh so if you're you born and raised there?
Oh yeah, okay, Baltimore.
So you largely became a Patriot fan because of your family?
Yes?
Wow, so the Patriot fan influence must be heavy in your family, then, yes? Does anybody in your family follow the Ravens?
No?
Wow, so everybody's a Pats fan?
Yes?
Oh okay, him Aya's family. How you doing? Everybody good?
Uh?
Zach Goldberger?
Zach?
Where are you're from?
From?
Brooklyn, New York?
Oh?
God?
One of those Jets, Giants?
Cowboys?
Oh lord.
I didn't want to say it on the podcast. I might feel a little flamed, but uh I love that, all right. So the obvious question then for me, Zach, is how did you get to be a Cowboy fan from New York?
All right, so I'm a big college football fan. I'm a big Michigan fan. Okay, and a few years back, well over half their graduates went to the Cowboys. I was like a right, you know, I off of all the Cowboys and I started liking.
The team, you know, yep?
So all right, well it's not a great excuse.
But no, no, that's fine. We You know, obviously you and I have something in comic because you know, people who've listened to this show for any length of time know that I grew up, you know, with the Cowboys in my backyard being from Texas, and so I was a Cowboy fan. But I was a Cowboy fan pre Jerry Jones ownership. You know, this is when you know they were owned by you know, the Murchisons and uh
and then the Brights of the World. And when Tom Landry was the you know, one and only head coach that team ever had, and you know, just the way it rolled with me, and I stopped really being a fan of the Cowboys, you know, when Jerry Jones unceremoniously dispatched, you know, arguably one of the greatest coaches to have ever you know, coached the game in the NFL. But I can get off on a tangent on that one if you want to, and maybe you and Isaac will do that at some point in time. Right, we can
do that. And let's also welcome kurrent Cochley Kerrn's local midfield.
Right that field twenty minutes on the road.
Right.
So, you know, I know probably why you're a Patriot, Sampit, because you've grown up here. You're into sports in high school. Correct, Yes, I am in the sports high school broadcasting as well.
Yeah, I'm in the broadcasting as well. I do a lot of work with Medfield TV. You're in a sports show there called Warrior Sports Talk, and it's incredible. It's a great opportunity to get work in and learn a lot about the industry and the business and how it all goes. And it's incredible.
All right, So you guys ready to tackle you know, the topics of the day.
All right.
Before we get to them, let's get William and Philadelphia in here, because William's been kind enough to hold on during the break. Hey William, you're in the playbook.
Mister Brook what's going on?
How you doing?
All right?
I've been trying to reach you for I've been missing. I guess one of your shows come on and I don't know when, I say, all right, maybe he's on a day And I looked on the ALP and I was like, all right, he's one if I can talk all.
I Hey, listen, I'm I'm I'm uh welcome to I'll shoot the bleep with you anytime you want it. I mean, you know how to get me on social media?
Right? Yeah?
Yes, sir?
All right, so you can you don't have to wait for the show. I'm glad you did though. I mean, you know, I'm really happy that you take the time to do it on the show. But you know, hey, we can we can do it just about anytime. Our show in August will be on August thirtieth, and then the next week we start the regular season, right before the first game against the Eagles, so that'll be the next couple of times that we'll have the show on. Yeah, all right, fire away, what do you got man?
Uh?
Well, I'm gonna say hello to the panel.
You guys say hello to one.
There we go.
Hey, how y'all going do? I'm a fat just fan too, uh, even though I look at Philadelphia, so don't judge me. So I gotta agree with the panel seven and ten.
To really agree with no kidding, we'll find out how these guys you know are are opening hour. I don't know if you guys heard of it, Uh, seven and ten, eight and nine, maybe you know, And we'll we'll tackle that one here shortly. But I you know, I I feel like, what the hell am I looking at that you guys aren't Because I've said ten and seven, eleven and six.
That's mostly our group is thinking we were Marlin Lineman.
So you're looking okay, all right, So William tell me why seven and ten man?
Well, I'm definitely being nice. I actually want to be worse than that, but I'll be nice about it. So let me start. I guess let's start here your fourth season. Then you're going in your fifth season, and it's the roster. It's just I mean, Bill's he drops the ball every time, and I think, what was the last storm with the DeAndre Hopkins situation? Like you you're being cheap and you you do not have Tom Brady no more. You have mag Jones and he's not he's not. He's just he
needs talent around him. He don't need stuff par talent. He needs really strong talent around.
Him, you know.
And I mean faces, figures on filter, they just they disagree with me all the time. They I guess they homeless bars. I don't, but I mean, look, I love the team too, but I'm gonna call it the way I see, you know, and we're gonna find we I'm gonna tell you this one too that no one is really talking about.
That.
You're gonna find out why Deyvin mccordy was nice, because then mccordy was calling you know, line line the players up and one night the Corns and everything we're gonna miss that, We're gonna get exposed, gonna gets bad. And just one more thing to our first game is uh the Philadelphia eatings. I'm gonna I got one word for the front seven for the philup you nasty?
Yeah? Well, I mean yeah, I mean yea. Let's face it, that's a super Bowl caliber team right still, So, I mean, I know the Patriots know that they have their hands full. That's a hell of a game to for anybody to, you know, start the year off with. And and uh, it'd be a lot of heavy expectation because of the Tom Brady Day thing and all that other stuff. I'm not sure how many people really expect the Patriots to
win that game, even if it's here. You know, I think that you're, you're, you're probably that would be money in the bank if you could get that one.
You know, I don't know how you could be even I don't know how you can be fonditive about this.
I just can't well.
And I but I'll tell you exactly why I'm positive, because that they clearly have more talent on the offensive side of the ball than they had a year ago, and I think the defense will improve from where it was a year ago as well. So if you make small incremental improvements, and I think they've made more than that on the offensive side, but even on the defensive side, if you've made small incremental improvements, I think you know, rising tide lifts all boats, and this team could be
a little bit better now. I know the schedule's tougher, and the schedule could clearly, clearly, you know, cause the balance to tip either way. I think it's gonna be that way for everybody, because the great unknown here when you go into any NFL season, all right, and it's more so now than at any other time in the history of the game. This is a marathon. It is no sprint. There are seventeen long ass weeks to this season, and that's enough time for any team to a get hurt,
b overcome that hurt, and see get healthy again. And so if you've got enough depth on your roster, you can still be competitive. And that's you know, even to the Patriots. Like I said in the opening hour of the show, here, if you start one in three, which I think it's it's quite possible, this team could start one in three, could they still be a playoff team?
They absolutely could be. Now when you look at it, that means, well, they start one in three, rook and you think they're gonna go ten and seven, that means they're gonna go nine and four the rest of the way. You know, who are you fooling them? I'm not fooling anybody, because you're still got the same talent as long as
it's healthy. And if other teams don't have luck and it does require some of that here, if other teams don't have that luck with health, they'll come down to your level and you've got a chance to take advantage of that. That's what I'm banking on. This is a marathon, this is not a sprint. Injuries matter. I want to see this team build up depth, and I think they've done a much better job of trying to build depth internally.
This is why you see guys that can play two ways, Guys that can play multiple positions on the offensive line, the defensive line, especially in the secondary, guys that can play corner and safety, play safety and linebacker. I mean, we see a lot of this multi talented depth that already exists on this roster, and I think it's a step above where they were this time of year ago. That's the reason for my optimism. And I'm not just waving pompons here. This is exactly what I thought. And
I'm somewhat encouraged by this. But you know, my my esteem panels year. They just don't seem to at least the first hour, they don't seem to agree too much. All right, fair enough, but I'll tell you what. I'll tell you what we'll do, William. We will revisit this, right, yes, sir, Yeah, yeah,
all right, thank you, Thank you, buddy, appreciate it. Eight five five PATS five hundred, toll free number eight five five p A t S five hundred, Web radio at Patriots dot com, on email at JR Broadcaster on Twitter, or John dot Rook on Facebook. Those are all the ways that you can get a touch with the program.
All right, guys, so.
Let's kind of let's let's let's start with what we ended the previous hour with. Let's talk about predicting twenty twenty three. You know, clearly William thinks seven and ten. The guys, your your fellow, you know, uh, students didn't go above eight and nine. Okay, that's what they thought all over. I get the sense that you might be a little more optimistic and maybe we'll be agreeable, maybe not. But I want to know why you have that optimism.
Okay, go, I mean yeah, I think obviously it's easy to look at the schedule and because seven to ten is realistic, is it worse than that is realistic? This schedule is leghit. There are a lot of serious, difficult playoff teams on here. I think I got ranked the hardest schedule in the league, as a matter of fact. So it's no surprise to see people predicting us with a losing record well under five hundred. And I'd be
wrong if I said I couldn't see it. But there's also a really, really feasible way that this team can be a competitor. They can win some shootouts with the addition of Bill O'Brien, the addition of Mike Aseki, so we I predicted ten and seven personally, and I think the big wins you see on the schedule that might be surprising. I have a win over the Cowboys, much to the sugar of Zach over there, and I also have us taking a game against the Jets, much improved team.
I think we're gonna split with them this year. We could lose both games, so that also determines a lot of where we end up. This division is tough, the hardest division in the league easily, But I think when you look at some of our teams outside we play the Chargers, the Steelers, the Broncos, the Commanders, those are all games that this team I think should be able to handle with the death that we have, with the talent that we have. So I have them going ten
and seven. I think realistically, if they can keep that pace, they can keep up with the teams in the AFC East. I see them maybe securing a wildcard spot. Maybe that's me my Homer glasses on, but that's what I predicted.
All right, Jack, what do you think. I know you're chopping at the bid here.
Well, I agree with ten and seven. I think it does depend on how receivers like Taikewan Thornton and Juju perform though to help Mac with more weapons on offense. But I think if they can perform the way they should, then ten and seven is a very realistic record for them at the end of the season.
All right, maya any thoughts along those same lines. Are you gonna go differently?
I have similar thoughts. I do think it could be ten and seven, but I do think there are a few games that I was like, I could go either way.
Tell me where do you think those are?
Then?
The Jets, like I was thinking, we could split it or we could lose both. And the Cowboys and the Raiders. These are two games that I said wins, but I could also see that be a loss.
Okay, all right, so fifty to fifty games in there. It kind of leaves you a little bit iffy. But it sounds to me then if you're still thinking ten seven that they're gonna win their share.
Of them, Yeah right, yeah, Okay.
Charlie, you on the same page.
Well, I'm looking at their win total over under at seven and a half.
But I think are you burying the over on that one? Is that what you're telling me?
I'm not too I'm not too sure about that really. I think we're a top four team in the AFC East, but that's not enough to get us to playoffs.
You know.
We need I'd say maybe even twelve wins if we're looking at a wild card spot. So it's another season without a playoff birth.
I don't know.
I don't know if I can handle it being a Patriots fan, I've only seen winning, seeing these missed playoffs. If we do it again, I'm not sure if I can go through that one more time with this strong AFC East.
Okay, I think you know that. Look, I think it's good to be cautious. I mean my initial inclination. I think I said this a couple of months ago, before one of our offseason shows that we were doing earlier, I think before we knew what the schedule was gonna look like and how it was going to line up. You know, I said, hey, don't be surprised if this team goes, you know, eight to nine, nine and eight again, because based on the opponent, we knew they're gonna play,
we just didn't when it was gonna be. Then it looked like the schedule is going to be a little bit tougher than what it was a year ago. And I think obviously that has proven to be true in this case. But I'm going strictly on a feel, and my feel is is that I think these guys on this team and these coaches on this team feel like they have something to prove. This is when I'm gonna go back to the early two thousands, before you guys
were evenna glint in your parents' eyeballs here. But I'm gonna go back to, you know, the early two thousands because those Patriots teams thrived on having a chip on their shoulder. We used to call it the old boulder on the show. You know, they really were motivated by what other people thought they couldn't or wouldn't or never
would do. And I think we're gonna get a little bit of that this year because I think there are a lot of doubting thomas Is out there, and so I think that will especially on the offensive side of the wall, because I think they know that people are gonna really scrutinize over them because they were so bad last year. I mean it was it was a struggle to watch them offensively a year.
It was not good football.
No it wasn't. And I think we're gonna all admit that. And frankly, that keeps me from you know, going over the top even further and sent you know, eleven and six, twelve and five. I think, you know, no, I don't know if I'm ready to go that far. But I look, I'm at ten and seven. I think with a couple of breaks, eleven and six, and I think eleven and six is gonna have them in the hunt for the AFC East. I do because I think Buffalo, New England, Miami,
New York are gonna beat up on each other. It would not shock me to see those four teams go three and three against each other. No, not at all. It really wouldn't shock me. And you'd say, oh, Buffalo, Well, listen, what is Buffalo done. They haven't done anything, got worse. I'm listening. I could think you could make that argument.
I really do. I think Buffalo in terms of what they've lost on the defensive side and some pieces on the offensive side as well. Nahim Heines being out for the year, Yeah, I think I think they've gotten worse. I mean, their situation is. I don't think they're as deep as they were last year.
I think they're coming back to the pack just a little bit, just a little bit. They still deserve to be the favorite. I would still make them the favorite because based on paper, where they've been and what they've done over the last three years, they deserve to be on top. I'm a proponent of, Hey, you're king until you're removed from the you know, from the seat, right, That's what I think. Tell you, you know, knock off the king of the hill. The king is still the king.
I think as long as Josh Allen and Digs are there, they're the king. Yeah, you can't. You can't stop that. Nobody can stop that. Do There's no answer for it?
No, I think that's true. But let's let's this is why we have to play the games right, right, so we kind of gotten our records in here postseason, Yes, no, indifferent. What are you thinking.
I'm looking at the last two weeks of the season, having to face the Bills and Jets. That's gonna be two crucial weeks if everything goes right. I think there's a lot of things that have to go the Patriots way to get a chance at that last wildcard spot.
Yeah, I can't argue with that. I think at ten and seven you make a wild card. I think anything short of that nine and eight probably isn't gonna be good enough this year. I know it was last year. I don't know that it's good enough. I don't think you can count on that eleven and six you're showing and like I said, eleven and six, you may even tie for the division title.
What do you think, Kurrent No, I mean, I completely agree with that. I think anything below ten and seven you're not cutting the playoffs this year. This is such a competitive, tough division. You're gonna be playing tough teams all year long. You're gonna have to at least be a couple games over five hundred to make the playoffs. Eleven and six, I think you're right. This is gonna be a competitive division. No one's gonna be sweeping through the division the way the Bills did last year. They
were claiming games pretty easily. I think, you know, if with a tougher division, yeah, I think you could get a wildcard spot, you could sneak in there and maybe being played for the East. But I think below that there's no chance.
Zach Maya, what do you think?
I agree?
I agree. I think that.
I do think the Dolphins are going to come in first in the division this year. Really Yeah, I mean the ad, the addition of Jalen Ramsey, and you know, with Tyreek and Jalen still on the team, I think Tua does have to step up, but I think they could definitely have a case for the first in the division this year. But I think the Patriots might be able to sneak in a wild card spot this year. I think within the next two three years for sure
they will be a playoff team again. I think it's going to have to come with a little bit of time with their youngsters still having to evolve.
Okay, all right, Maya, I show you a smile when he said when he said dolphins. So I'm just kind of curious what you think there.
I do think it is going to be tough for them to reach the postseason and get a wild card, but I do think it is possible if they get as you guys said of like ten and seven were above.
Yeah, so that would put him in there, right, Yeah, Okay, let's go to the phones. Eight five to five, Pats five hundred. Sasha is in southee kind enough to hang on, Hi, Sasha, you're in the playbook.
Oh yeah, what's up, John?
How you doing?
Thanks for having me on? Yeah, sure, I just I wanted to talk about I don't know if you've talked about this yet, but I think it's kind of an underrated storyline of the off season is that, you know, I think arguably our best defensive player and offensive player are both free agents next year in Kyle Duger and mike on Wendon, and we haven't I haven't heard anything about extensions for either, and I just I'm kind of worried that Bill is taking it too slow when we
might lose something Like I'm really high on Kyle Duger. I think he's one of the best play making safeties in the NFL, and that's someone who I think we really have to make a big effort to keep. So I don't know what you guys think about that.
Well, I'll lead off with that one. I will tell you that I think that they're already talking about it internally. They're not gonna They're not gonna play their hand. They aren't going to show their hand here to kind of keeping the cards closed to the vest. But I think they both realize. I think everybody realizes that, you know, those two guys could very easily be, you know, part of the backbone of this franchise for a few years to come, and I think we'll probably see that as
the season unfolds. You know, when you I think we can realize is probably one of the best guards in the NFL. Now, so you know, once he returns off of the pup, which is what he started on today for the first day of practice, then you know, I wouldn't be at all surprised to see this be a deal that just gets done under the table and gets you know, without a whole lot of fanfare, and hopefully they have something to announce before all of a sudden
done Dougger. In all honesty, I you know, unless something is already done, I can see them waiting a little longer on Dougger. And I'll tell you why, because I think they feel like Mapu's a guy that might come in and he could do that what Dougger's doing, maybe
for less money because of his rookie contract. I don't think that means that they are undervaluing Dugger, but I think they just mean, look, we need to do what is the best in the best interest of the franchise first and foremost, and if Duggart's gonna go out and command a ton of money, then maybe we still already have the replacement already in house.
Now.
The other side of that is is, well, maybe we try to resent the guy before he goes out and blows everybody away this year, and then we get him for pennies on the dollar. See what I'm saying.
Yeah, I think that. I don't. I don't think having Marte is an excuse to not keep Douger. I don't see like a problem with having you know, two really
like elite safeties. But I guess I think that's kind of what Bill wanted to do, like in a lot of places with this draft, where he kind of outside of Gonzales in the first round, he really drafted for needs for next year, like White, Martin Marte obviously, and then City, Sow and MASSI were there certain like non needs that are going to help a team in three, but more or less like going forward instead.
Of for now.
Okay, all right, guys, you want to comment on that either way?
No, I think I agree, And that's part of why I like the map Who pick so much. I think he adds this very similar presence to Dugger. He's versatile, he goes all over the field, he's fast, he can cover, he can rush the passer. I think he's a great addition. And I think if you have mop who gro out this year, he plays a good game. You can point to him and be like, you know, yeah, we want to pay you dugger, But we also got this guy doing this, and that can bring Darker's value down a
little bit, you know. So I think I think Mapu is a great pick for so many reasons. And I think, yeah, Owenu is a huge to keep. He's one of the best guards in the league. His pro football focus is off the charts, and he can play all over the line. He's hugely valuable, especially on a really thin line right now. So I think it's yeah. I would hope they would get something done under the table, not a lot of fanfare.
It would be nice to move forward this year, especially having him signed, knowing he's a key piece of a line because the line is so shaky right now, so having him secured for a few years, I think it's huge.
Yeah, anybody else want to chime in on that one? No, you're good with that? Shall share anything else?
I don't.
I know a lot of people in the first hour, like the panel was pretty negative about like how the record's gonna.
Be what the what the hell will they know? They're just a bunch of kids.
Yeah, I'm definitely closer to you, John, I think it's probably I think eleven and eleven and six is a bit over zealous, but I think it's I'd be stunned if we got left and eight wins, So I think it's probably a nine or ten win win team for this year.
Well, if you want to make the postseason, you'd better be a ten. Yeah, yeah, you'd better. You'd better be a ten.
I think the problem is going to be the the AFCs is I think too good. So I think we'll have a winning record.
I don't know.
I'm I don't know about the playoffs, so I think it might be pushing it because I just if we if we had ended up signing or trading for like a legit like threat in the passing game, I'd be feeling much more confident. But I like Juju, I like Kendrick Bourne, like I think they're good second and third receivers. But I don't know nobody. I don't think anybody outside of Ramandre on the Patriots, like in our passing game with Scar anybody.
Well, that's why I actually wanted them to go out and get Dalvin Cook. I was very and have been very much a proponent with that, because I think he could be that kind of guy, that change of pace guy, that could be, you know, the backup to Remondre if he's willing to accept that role. And we don't know that, but clearly he knows how to catch and run with the football, and I think that would be dynamic in the offensive backfield if they decided to go that route.
And it sounds to me like you're kind of like me, Sage. I really wanted them to go out and get d Hop and they just, you know, for whatever reason, he just wasn't gonna fit here. And I think we can probably all really kind of see the forest for the trees on that one and just say, you know, and been a great practicer and blah blah blah, and there's this mutual admiration society between him and Bill and YadA YadA. But you know, dude, if he's not a practice and
you know, you got to practice here. If you don't buy into the Patriot way, we don't want you. And that's just the way it is, right.
I don't see how Phil and a guy who basically takes every Wednesday off are gonna mash that well out.
Yeah, I just yeah.
I mean, now it's different if you have a mutual understanding you're taking a day off because they're trying to keep you healthy, that I think is a completely different story. But I think everybody, when you first come to a team for the first time, you got to show that
you willing to bust some tale. All right, come in here and bust some tale, and then maybe you get a favor or two if you need it, especially if you're you know, if you need to stay healthy for the long haul, because you've got extraordinary talent that your team needs out on the field.
Right.
So, I just don't know. If it was a fit, I would loved it. But you know, right now, to me, I think they're pretty good at widout. Could they use somebody else? Well, yeah, I can always use it, But I'm not sure that you know anybody they could really use. You know, is any is that much better from an availability standpoint that is going to be able to beat out who they already have. To me, I'd like to see them go out and get a guy like Cook and see if they can't make it a little bit
better with the offensive backfield. I think that will be a dynamic option for them should they decide to go that route.
Yeah, I mean, I fully agree with you. I think Cook does add that layer of like a dynamic, explosive guy on this offense. And if you're a defensive coordinator looking at this team, like who do you who are you scared about? Who are you game planning around? There's not that guy? Yeah, and I think you know, yeah, you can say what you want about how de hopo and messed with Patriots culture if you have him on
your team and you're a defensive opposing defensive coordinator. D Hops the guy that you're afraid of, right, He's the guy you're planning around. And I think Kendrick Bourne and Juju are a great wide receiver twos and they're great to compliment a guy like d Hop and that opens up the game from back to find them and get
them underneath and all that. So I think you do feel better about this team with d Hop And that's what kind of frustrated me when we weren't able to land them, because now I'm looking at this team and yeah, we got some good death, but who are you playing around? Who's explosive on this team? You don't have that guy?
Right all right back to the phones. Jody's in Atlanta. Hey, Jody, you're in the playbook.
Hey, what's going on, guys?
How you doing?
Yeah?
Doing good.
I just had a couple of points I wanted to bring up. One of the things that you guys talked about in the first hour was Bill Belichick on the hot seat. Personally, I do not want to see that whatsoever.
I want to Uh, people don't talk about the flip.
Side of it of him breaking the record with another team. I just don't want to see that, you know. I'd rather stick out, even if we have a couple of rough seasons, go ahead and solidify that. In Plus, nobody knows more football than Bill Belichick.
He's a terrible.
GM if everybody that and I don't really like his uh you know, draft sticks typically these last, you know, a couple of seasons or so. But I mean, this year was pretty good. But I just I don't want to see him go anywhere until that record is broken. I'd rather I'd rather just have him with us, you know what I mean. And then as far as like everybody just is going ahead and just given the Jets the pedestal of just like they're gonna be this stuff team.
Everybody also thought that the division with the Raiders and the Chiefs and the Broncos, that was going to be the loaded division, and he got the Chargers too, but that didn't pan out that way. That's the vision ended up not being that tough. Yeah, And I can totally see that happen with the Jets just kind of falling through. I think Buffalo took a step back. So I mean, anything can happen.
Okay, any thoughts, guys one way or the other. I mean, anybody want to agree, anybody want to disagree? What do you think?
What do you think, Charlie Well, I think this is really the season that everything should come together for the new era of the Patriots post Brady. We've gotten a couple of years. I think they outperformed expectations by making playoffs that first year with rookie mac Jones. But now new offensive coordinator, and we got a bunch of leaders like Matthew Slater and David Andrews who are just tired of losing and they want to get back to their
winning ways. So I think this is the season where it all comes together.
All right. I like that, Zach, what do you think?
I agree with everything Charlie just said, and I think this is one of the years post Brady where mac Jones doesn't have too much of an excuse, where if he doesn't perform to a high level, he doesn't have as much of an excuse. This year, he has guys he can throw to more than he has in the past couple of years. And I think this is one of the years where we could see the most elite Mac Jones, but he doesn't have an excuse to fall back to if he doesn't perform this year.
Okay, maya any thoughts. You've been smiling through all of this, so I know you got something there.
I agree that I think mac Jones is probably going to do better this year, also with a new offensive coach.
Yeah, I think it's big. I think having that you know, somebody who knows how he feels, knows how he acts, knows his tendencies, you know, just knows him period.
You know.
I mean there is a working knowledge there between the two even though they never coach played at Alabama together, but there is still that familiarity, right.
Yeah, And I think I think one thing that Jody, sorry to cut you off there, but one thing you touched on was that the division might not pan out the way people expected, the way it did with the AFC. Westlester, I can totally see that that's very feasible. I mean, the Dolphins have struggled a lot with health issues over the past couple of years. Aaron Rodgers, I mean, I know he's great. I know he's got a great history, But you'd be lying if you said he wasn't a
little crazy these days. He wasn't a little he wasn't a little off the rails these days, and you're lying to yourself or you're lying to somebody else. But so I think there's a very real chance that we could see the Jets the Dolphins like not not play the way that we think we expect him to be, not be this juggernaut that we're all seeing them for. I think you're right, there's a chance this division doesn't pan out. I don't know if it's a high chance, but I
wouldn't say it's not existing. There is there is a possibility this division is not what we think it is. And if that's true, and the Patriots played what we think they can, there's a chance that they can blow people away.
Yeah, Jody, what do you think what else you got?
Yeah, I was also gonna say, I mean, we all know having a number one receiver is gonna be like extremely helpful for the team. But the other flip side to that is, I guess there's nobody that the defensive coordinators are scared of. But that also gives Bill O'Brien just like versatility to kind of game plan week to week and the defense not necessarily gonna know which direction you're gonna go, because I mean, like credit to the
Cam Newton gear. I mean, that roster was terrible and they still were able to squeak out that many wins. I think it was seven wins that season. Yeah, but I mean they actually have a NFL roster at the receiving corpse.
Now.
I mean they may not be the number ones that some of the other teams have, but they have NFL receivers. So Bill o brian's gonna be able to scheme people open, he's gonna be able to make plays and that maybe other coordinators might not be able to do with those kind of players. So I don't know, there's always that upside to it too. It's just a little bit of being able to camouflage, which's gonna do every week.
Right, Okay, so what do you think so you're a little bit more optimistic in terms of the one loss record as well? Let me ask you another question so I can lead into the guys with this one. Do you think coach Belichick is on the hot seat and should he be?
No?
I don't, I think.
I mean, I think he's definitely.
Under some pressure to perform, and I don't think they can go anything under seven wins without him being really on on the hot seat. If something terrible like that happens, then you know, maybe, But I think Robert Craft wants
to give him the opportunity. I think Robert Craft I also would like to have that title, you know, of the most the winning his coach, and most of those wins coming with the Patriots organization, So you know, I think they give him a couple more seasons to let him try to write it out and kind of see where they go from there. And also everybody's saying, you know,
get a new head coach. I just kind of say, put a name to the claim, like who do you want a new head coach who's going to be a better football coach than Bill Belichick right now, I mean.
Our media, our media here seems to think that Gerd Mayo has been anointed as the next head coach. I'm not convinced to that. And I love Drudd. Okay, I love Girod. Let me let me be very clear about that, and I think he mean an outstanding coach. I'm not sold. Given the set of circumstances at the time that this comes about, I'm not sold he's the guy, And quite frankly, I think the guy right now with a little bit of an edge over everybody else is Bill O'Brien because
he's got the head coaching pedigree already. And if the Patriots have the success or the kind of success I think they could have this year, I could see it, if you know, I could definitely see it.
I mean offensive league and drawn Mao's defensive coach. Yeah, yeah, I'm gonna go away from Bill. Are you going to go with the same style?
That's you now you're talking. I could see Bill becoming the head coach and Grod being his DC and getting his started that way. I could definitely see that. And I got to tell you, I think a lot of people would be very happy with that.
I certainly don't hit it, and I think, say what you want about how Bill did as a GM and Hewson, that's one thing. But Bill O'Brien as a coach in Houston, he was great and he got that. Yeah, but about that Texans team to the playoffs, but they probably shouldn't have been there. I don't think they were that great. Yeah, years that he got them to the playoffs with Deshaun Watson and Hopkins while they were there, so I was like, as long as you don't give up Brian the GM roll,
I'm happy with him as the head coach. He knows is the way around football. He's coached at many levels. He definitely can win in this league. He can get teams to the playoffs and frankly, a playoff Berth would make a lot of people in Mainland happier right now.
Yep, Jody, thanks for the time today, buddy.
Absolutely, guys have going Yep, you got.
It, guys, let me just jump right into it. Then, So hot seat is he on it? And why or why not should he be on it? I'm gonna start with you this time.
I don't think he's necessarily on the hot seat yet, but I do think he has a lot of pressure on him because he's made some questionable decisions, like last season having Matt Patricia as offensive coach.
Yeah, it's I mean, what was he thinking. I mean, look, you try something, it doesn't work, then you have to go to you know, you have to have plan B and C ready to go. I don't think he had playing B and C ready to go soon enough because I don't think he expected to go as south as quickly as it did. And I think that's the biggest issue that we kind of all have with the realization that this was not a good idea. Right, Yeah, Okay, what do you think.
Zach, I think he is on the hot seat. He's he's on the hot seat as a GM. As a coach, he's one of the greatest coaches of all time.
Well, let me let me interrupt you. Then if this team, you know, because of personnel, fails short of their expected goal or their intended goal, could you see maybe this team deciding all right, Bill, you're still the coach, but we're gonna bring somebody into GM this thing.
Yes, Yes, I think you know, like I was saying, he's one of the greatest coaches of all time. He's the reason why Tom Brady is where he is right now. He fully created that whole Dynasty team. But as a GM, he's made some questionable calls. You know, he's he's had a couple of good signs, right like Juju and Hunter Henry, but he's missed out on you know you said earlier, Dalvin Cook and on d Hop. He didn't go aggressive
enough and he kind of pulled the plug there. And I think, as the GM, wait the end of the season, right, see how he does this season, and if the team performs, if the team makes a wild card, wait another season, see how he does. But if they miss out on the postseason this year, I think you take a serious look at other GMS, but keep him as a head coach because he's still a great head coach. He still makes good calls in the field. It's just him as a GM. I don't really see it very.
Long, Charlie, what do you think?
Well, I think Billichick as a GM this season, he seems to have taken a step in the right direction, bringing in O'Brien and bringing in Mike Giseki to hopefully fix the tight end position. That do what John new Smith couldn't provide us. We got tight ends, two tight ends who can play. We have Bill O'Brien who was the offensive coordinator, and Gronk and Aaron Hernandez. We're going
through all of their success on the field. So I think with the system that they have with Bill O'Brien at the helm, Bill Belichick should be in line for a good season, bounce back season for the Patriots. But would Bill Belichick want to still head coach with and give up some of him?
I don't know. I don't think he would. I personally don't think he would.
No, Yeah, after getting rid of his job as GM and head coach, I don't know if you'd want to stick around.
Yeah, you know, Hey, if I can't do both, I don't want to do either.
Yeah.
You know what, I can't see that I would blame him, but you know who knows. I mean, this is we're speculating here, and you know I tend to try to stay away from that. But it's fun to speculate about because I know it's been on the minds of fans everywhere, especially with the way this team is taking a little bit of a downward turn over the last three four years.
Kurrent.
What are your thoughts, man.
I mean, yeah, I kind of agree with Charlie said for the most point, and also what Zach said by his GM duties. I mean, I think it's interesting. I think the New England media tends to drum up this notion of him being on the hot seat more than it actually is. We're a little dramatic here in New England, but I mean there's been rumors coming out, Oh Craft's
unhappy or yadiyada'sunhappy with Belichick. I think if being part, you know, watching the Dynasty has taught us anything, we don't really know what's going on internally in the Patriots organization. We can say we do, but for the most part that's pretty well hidden. So I think this notion of Crap being unhappy with him is a little overplayed. But do I think that he should at least be a
question for how he's done into GM recently. Absolutely. I think in terms of play calling, there's nobody out there better. He's Bill Belichick. You can't fire Bill Belichick. He is the Patriots franchise. When you think of the Patriots franchise, you think of Tom Bray, you think of Bill Belichick. You don't fire that guy, you don't put that guy
in the hot seat. But when you take a look at his GM duties recently in terms of not getting d Hop and you know, I think when people were saying, when you missed on d Hop, he put too much incentives in the contract, it was too incentive space, Like we have so much catnext year, we're missing on receivers cousin incentives. Like you gotta have some question marks about the team. Want to see them addressed the tackle position. They addressed it by getting Calvin Anderson. I don't know
if that's the answer. So I think, yeah, if this team on the performs, you gotta look at it.
I think, you know, I think Calvin and Calvin Anderson's particular instance, and I know's he's not playing right away, didn't open with camp today because of a non football injury. But they did not make the move that everyone, I think most everyone expected them to make because they're happy with what they have on the offensive line. Now whatever that says, it says. But I think they like Reef, I think they like Anderson. I think they like you know, the guys that can you know, you know, mix and
match at the position. I really do, and I think that in itself is probably a signal to the team in that locker room that you know, hey, guys, we got confidence in you.
Right.
We want you to know we're not gonna go out there and just you know, shop the farm for whatever it comes across the way because we like who we have. And I think that sometimes you need to do even though maybe the better part of valories is the discretion and you want to bring somebody in you to cover yourself a little bit. But I think that's big in terms of team building, right.
Yes, I agree that it is big, and you should have confidence in your team. But at the same time, when you're when your offensive line performs as poorly as it did last year.
You still need you still need to make the adjustments.
Fairpoint.
He like, like Kuran said, he didn't in the off season, and that's a mistake on his part. It is important to have confidence, but you also need to understand that you have to make adjustments when a part of your team performs poorly.
All right, fair point, guys, Who've got a couple of minutes left here on the show, So I want to wrap it up with what you think the current greatest area of need on the roster is you know again, uh, you know today and over the next couple of days of practices. It's as I described already a couple times. If someone joined in Lake, this is really glorified OTAs there's no pads, there's no real competition, there's no real contact going on here. That won't start until next week
at some point. So this is just really a continuation of what we saw transpire over the course of the spring during you know, all the organized team activities. So we kind of know, but do we really know where do you identify the greatest area of need going into training camp. Let's let's start. Let's start with Charlie.
Well, I'm looking at the roster, looking at the depth chart, and we the biggest gap you see is safety, where you lose Devin mccordy, and we haven't really Brian anyone to fill that role, fill that role on the field, but also in the locker room. Juan Bentley is taking over as the signal caller on the field, but we still need that veteran presence in the locker room to hold down the fort. And I think you could go out and find someone who can do both in the Devin mccorty type role.
Just to say, Charlie, I think I completely agree with you. I think we're gonna see a lot this year how much not having mccordy is gonna impact this team. I mean, he was the quintessential leader. And one thing about Devin McCarty is he was never in the wrong place on defense. That guy knew more football than almost anybody on the planet. So I think the loss of him is gonna be really noticeable when we look at that secondary this year.
So he's not an easy guyer of place, but yeah, we need to get that done.
I agree.
What about you?
Then?
I think it goes back to the conversation we just had. I think offensive tackles our greatest weakness, and I think you're right. He didn't make move because he's happy with the personnel that he has. I'm not gonna sit here and say I know more football than Bill Belichick because that's just goofy. But to me, when I look at that team, I look at the depth chart, look at the tackles, Anderson Rife, whoever they're rotating McDermott out there, I think I saw Bill Murray was getting starting reps
to day and training camp. I don't know. I don't know if I trust that. I don't know if I trust that. I was I was hoping to see him address that need in the first round. I'm very happy the Christian Gonzalez pick, and then I was like, Okay, we're gonna address it in the second round, and then we did it, and that kind of had me asking some questions, right, like is is this the right answer here? Like should we just go with Keyong White? Should we
trust the position? I don't know. From the outside looking in, I think tackle, it'll be interesting to see how it shakes, Okay, Zach.
I agree with Charlie and Kerrent, and I think possibly it could also be wide receiver. I mean, you're putting your trust in Takwon Thornton, Booty and Juju, right, and.
Juju we haven't mentioned him all show. It's Kaysehan Boody. I want to really see if this guy, you know it is worth making the pick, and can he surprise people and be the expected, you know, expected big play guy that you know they thought he was at LSU.
Right, right, And we've seen multiple times in history that players don't always make a smooth transition between college and NFL. So how you know Boody performed in college, that's one thing. How he performs in the NFL, it's another thing. NFL in college are two different sports. And you're also putting your trust in Juju, who has had a couple really solid seasons, but it's also had a couple pretty rocky seasons.
He's a pretty inconsistent player, So it's a little tough to put a lot of trust into Juju and into Booty Booty just because you haven't seen him in the NFL yet. And I think you see at the end of the season if your wide receivers were falling up short, that's one of your main things you have to fix in the off season. But there is also a very real possibility that that's one of their big strengths at the end of the season as well.
Maya Canna saved the best from last year.
I agree with Zach.
I do think that wide receiver is something that needs to be like dealt with kind of we have Juju, and I'm hoping that we use Kendrick Bourne more.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I think that's that's gotta be a universal, like we get the guy, get the guy the ball, let him show what he can do. I mean, he was so upset last year, right, and we talked about that earlier today. But you know, clearly there were some issues there because he didn't like the way it was going. But now that you got somebody who we all considered legit in there doing it, all right, let's see what the guy's got. Does he have some
of the chops left? Can he play? Can he catch canny score? Can he playmate? Can he do in all of this stuff? Yeah, let's get the ball in his hands. I'm with you on that one. Okay, guys, thanks, really good work today, Thank you, very good work. All right, that'll wrap it up for this edition of the play of the Playbook for July. Our training camp edition days two and three will follow of course here at Jillette over the next couple of days, and then contacts expected
next week. So if you can get a chance to get out here, hey listen, it's free, but Checkpatriots dot com check the website here to make sure you've got the updated training camp schedule. If you're in the area, to come out here because there's lots of things for fans to do, and I think there was a crowd today. We're run eight to ten thousand or so that was out there, so it was a pretty good crowd for day one, and I'm sure it's going to continue to
be that way throughout most days as well. I know we're going to be back out there on Friday, right, so you guys are probably all looking forward to that. I am too, because we want to get a chance to really see these guys play up close and personal. Our next playbook show will be on August thirtieth, Wednesday, August thirty will be our final off season Patriots playbook And the best part about this is we're going to
turn it over to the podcasters. If you do a Patriots related pod Okay, I want you to contact Marine Matt because I want you as a guest on the show. We're going to We're gonna oh, you know, hey, right,
I want you, That's exactly right. But I know there are a bunch of really good ones out there, and I want this to be an opportunity to introduce you and what it is that you do on the New England Patriots to Patriot fans everywhere, and we'll be talking about all the important things on this show largely coming up after the preseason's over and right before the regular season starts. So we'll know a month from now, really a heck of a lot more than we know today.
But we should know what to expect with this Patriots team, and so it's time to opine and let us know what you think and how you feel about it. So we're going to bring on podcast host. If you host a Patriots podd I want to hear from you. Let Marine Matt know.
One other quick announcement is next week, year two of the Playbook Fantasy League opens up, so the link will be set out if people want to join.
Great, all right, we did this last year for the first time and uh we draft is to be determined. Okay, draft still to be DETERMINENTI if you're interested interested in the Patriots Playbook Fantasy League for this next season, again, you need to get a hold of you want them to email you, Matt, Okay.
Mail me, and I'm gonna have you tweet out the link as well.
So I'll tweet it out, all right, So follow on Twitter if you want that information or you can find uh you know, Marine Matt as well, and you can join in the fun for the off season playbook. So we'll do some Yeah, we'll do some podcasting next month, and we'll get ready for the regular season with the Fantasy League. Today's program brought to you by the Massachusetts
Office of Travel and Tourism. Great memories are made in Massachusetts, no matter how you choose to make them, indoors or outdoors, see or city vibes, solo or family style, whatever moves you, whatever the season, plan your perfect Massachusetts get away at visitshma dot com. All right, thanks Marine, appreciate you. Thanks to my students at Dean You guys, I'm sure will let me know how they did right, Let me know, Send me a tweet, send me an email. We'll go
from there until next time. So long, everybody.
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