Bedard: Patriots down on Winovich, Jennings

[Hammer of Thor]

I don’t have BSJ access, but Bedard wrote a column yesterday with assessments on the Patriots younger guys:
Bedard's Breakdown: With more run in the season finale, an update on where Patriots youngsters stand for 2021 | Boston Sports Journal

Like I said, I don’t have access and so haven’t read it, but NESN published a few interesting (from a disappointing perspective) nuggets here:
Chase Winovich's 'Mouth' Reportedly Has Patriots Concerned - NESN.com
NFL Rumors: Patriots' View Of Anfernee Jennings After Rookie Season Is Not Great - NESN.com

Key quotes on Chase:

Had a monster game against the Jets, which we also saw earlier in the season. In between? Just a sub-rusher role. Why? Because he can’t be counted on a down-to-down basis to Do His Job on the edge, and I’m not sure the team will ever trust him to do that — he’s almost certain to have competition at the position next year. There’s also the issue of his mouth, which is a concern internally because he rarely thinks he’s wrong and is a bit of a locker room lawyer (sounds like someone around here who writes about football). I’ve floated moving him to (inside linebacker) but that has been shot down because if of the lack of faith he will consistently do the correct things within the scheme.

On Jennings:

“(Jennings’) stock plummeted this season because he can’t run and made countless mental mistakes,” Bedard wrote. “Right now, he’s only a reserve and there’s not much enthusiasm beyond that. If that’s true, a failed pick because the Patriots could have selected offense here.”

Hope he’s got bad sources, particularly on Chase, because he clearly has the talent to be an impact guy.

edit: Asiasi is part of the “down” group, to no surprise, while they’re still bullish on Keene.
Why Patriots Reportedly Are Down On Young Tight End Duo - NESN.com

 

[203Pat]

Jennings didn't really seem to stand out but it has only been 5 minutes but Chase does seem to be just a sub rusher. The locker room issues, if true, are a major issue on a rebuilding team and if there is any truth to it unfortunately he needs to go.

 

[italian pat patriot]

I hope this is not true...

 

[lancerman]

Wouldn’t surprise me based off decisions we’ve seen

 

[doesntmatter1]

I have seen nothing from Jennings here or predraft to be excited about. Big, slow, and didn't seem to help stop the run. Sad. Maybe he'll make that 2nd year leap and surprise us. I'd be surprised lol.

 

[203Pat]

I have seen nothing from Jennings here or predraft to be excited about. Big, slow, and didn't seem to help stop the run. Sad. Maybe he'll make that 2nd year leap and surprise us. I'd be surprised lol.

He is the linebacker type we need to be moving away from and I thought we had with the Winovich and Uche picks who are much more athletic guys. Jennings seems to be that old school type, a big guy that can't run.

 

[Triumph]

Its almost as if the Pats place names on the war room wall and throw darts at them. You cant keep drafting like this and win anymore.

The Golden Goose lives in Tampa now.

 

[JMC00]

bedard is a douche and squeaky lapdog hack, he has no sources within the Pats. this is all speculation on his part

 

[zimmy]

It was obvious Jennings couldn't run when they selected him. He's a guy who needs to play the run, set the edge and provide some 3rd down pressure. The mental mistakes are worrying given he came from Bama.

The Winovich stuff rings true. We've seen evidence that he's got a mouth e.g. getting into it with Bill on the sidelines, and its pretty obvious they don't trust him as more than a sub player. I had wondered whether they might trade him to a team that values the pass rush more than we do.

 

[borg]

Wino is a specialist, not a 3 down starter

On a team whose offense can consistently score points and get early leads forcing opponents to pass, Wino will be a valuable piece.
On a team that relies on a QB sneak offense.....not so much

 

[Hammer of Thor]

Belichick needs to pay Tedy Bruschi a coaching fee and give Chase an offseason homework assignment of hanging around with him and absorbing everything he does. I think Bedard is right — given Chase’s skill set and abilities, he may never be able to fully set the edge against the run, but he can handle guards and burst into unblocked lanes with the best of them. And he clearly can rush from the inside. Winovich has the talent, motor, and enthusiasm to play Tedy’s position, and with the number of nickel and dime packages out there, he’ll only be pass covering in short zones which will limit speed issues.

Randy Johnson turned his career around in 1993 after an unexpected long talk with Nolan Ryan. The Pats should have Bruschi do the same with him and give him an ass chewing on what he needs to do to be a Patriot, and the success he could have following that route. If that doesn’t work, then trade him to a team that would be comfortable with him as is, and use the assets on someone who will fit in, because the last thing you need in a rebuilding process is a locker room lawyer who doesn’t listen to the coaches.

 

[borg]

bedard is a douche and squeaky lapdog hack, he has no sources within the Pats. this is all speculation on his part

Is your highlighted statement sourced?

 

[Rob0729]

Winovich had a solid rookie season and took a step back this year. I am not sure it was him or a talent drain in the front seven. I don't see the Pats dumping him at this point, but next season could be a make or break season for him. And even if he is a sub-rusher, the Pats need depth on the d-line. Having a guy as a pass rush specialist isn't a bad thing. Obviously, if there is an attitude issue, that could be a problem for his long term prospects.

As for Jennings, I am not ready to give up on the guy either. I bet the loss of Hightower was a huge blow to his development. The LB position was already thin before COVID and the loss of Hightower took away the only truly experienced starting LB the Pats had and the QB of the defense. I think Hightower would have helped Jennings with a lot of his mental mistakes and helped to not put him in position to make them like he was forced to.

2021 will likely be a make or break year for both these players. I am just not sure if you adequately evaluate these players based on what happened this year.

 

[jah]

Why would you float moving a player to ILB who has only shown promise as an edge rusher? I'd shoot it down too. Idiotic.

 

[upstater1]

He is the linebacker type we need to be moving away from and I thought we had with the Winovich and Uche picks who are much more athletic guys. Jennings seems to be that old school type, a big guy that can't run.

He played DL at Alabama and should only be thought of as such. When we drafted him, I thought we were hoping for Trey Flowers, not Donte Hightower.

 

[upstater1]

By the way, I don't trust anything Bedard writes.

 

[FreeTedWilliams]

I watched Winovich constantly fail to set the edge, he needs to learn the defense. Hall surpassed Jennings coming from nowhere. Both of them will get another year to prove themsleves. This year is tough without mini camp, pre season games and all the COVID testing and distractions, almost no practices, and all meetings via Zoom, which negates the veteran takes the rookie to the side and teaches him a few tricks of the trade talks that Thor was alluding to.

 

[borg]

By the way, I don't trust anything Bedard writes.

Even from 1200 miles away, it seems pretty clear who some of the Boston writers source for their scoops.
Reiss......the Kraft family
Curran.....Don Yee
Bedard....Bill's old school network

Regarding the good ole boys, it's not implausible Bill confides in them. It is more plausible Bill uses them to disseminate messages he wants in the public scope.
Just recently, Bill dialed up Charlie Weiss and directly addressed the Pats cap issues in a forum Bill could control.
Charlie ain't the only good ole boy willing to play ball and do favors for Bill, directly or indirectly
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Some teams no doubt prefer a third person approach when sending messages that have likely been ignored in-house

For example.

Player W ignores his assigned duties, free lances, argues with the HC in public, then brags to the media of his wonderfulness.
Team P opts to show tough love and benches Player W hoping this in-house message resonates
Player W later publicly questions the team's decisions regarding his limited usage
Having exhausted all internal alternatives, Team P enlists a third party to disseminate Player W issues publicly, essentially notifying the league of Player W issues that could minimize the player's $$ value in the future.
Mediot B is handed the "scoop" from the 3rd party and delivers the team scripted message to the public.
Media B extends the life of his story by going on talk radio to bask in his exceptionalism as a turn-over-every-stone reporter
Media B subtly promotes a certain good ole boy's podcast while on air thus completing the everybody-scratches-each-others-back circle of sports info dissemination
Player W and his agent must now confront the public scrutiny head on, unlike Team P's in-house first attempt.
--------------------------------------------------------
Floyd Reese chooses not to comment ....................................................................................until instructed

 

[luuked]

Just ignore whatever Bedard has to say. There is a good chance it's something he pulled out of his ass trying again to prove that the Patriots made a mistake by laughing him off when he tried to get a scouting gig.

Especially the part about Jennings is ridiculous. He is a rookie who was pushed into the lineup trying to play ILB while missing guidance from any kind of vet in that group as they had moved on or opted out. The comparison to Hall is not particularly useful because Terez had imho a much easier job being mostly a run thumper (i.e. think Elandon Roberts). Those players have it easier to flash when they guess the right gap and jump in there like a guided missile.

Winovich is not a three down player on the edge and the Pats knew that when they picked him. His snap count this year was a direct product of our inability to stop the run and create more clear passing downs. If they wanted him so much to become a stronger edge presence they'd ask him to beef up through the offseason at the expense of his rushing ability. But they clearly have not done so in the last two years.

His "mouth" being an internal issue might be true or not but I fail to see why that would make the team feel down on him.

 

[50-yard-line]

Jennings can't run? No kidding. They knew that in his draft profile. He wins with long arms and strength. If you put him in places where he has to quick twitch and run, why the hell draft him in the first place (because he isn't, and never will be, that guy).