Fun Competitions In Camp

[State]

Marcus Jones versus the Bolden rookie on STs. Both are very dynamic.

The two Andrewses at center. Fantastic.

Who is going to be the starting LT? Trent Brown really and truly should be moved to RT. But Reiff at LT? That’ll give Mac the hereby jeebies.

I would love seeing Judon mentoring Keion White.

And the rookie WRs will excite the crowd.

 

[Zuma]

I’m mostly interested in how the Oline shakes out.

OT: Does Strange and Sow get reps at OT or even Onwenu? Is Brown at LT or RT? Want to see Reiff, Anderson and Cajuste get quality reps. McDermott is serviceable, is Stueber already gone?
G: Is Onwenu on the move and is Hines good enough for backup or starter?
C: Who do the Patriots consider to be the backup C now and is that expected to change with Camp?

By far I am more concerned about musical chairs on the line. Continuity is so important…moving players around going into pre-season is a colossal mistake. Not only is lack of continuity a problem but it also gives the impression the coaches are confused about what they are doing. Find a good combo early and stick with it.

 

[Sicilian]

I’m interested in mostly how the Oline shakes out.

OT: Does Strange and Sow get reps at OT or even Onwenu? Is Brown at LT or RT? Want to see Reiff, Anderson and Cajuste get quality reps. McDermott is serviceable, is Stueber already gone?
G: Is Onwenu on the move and is Hines good enough for backup or starter?
C: Who do the Patriots consider to be the backup C now and is that excepted to change with Camp?

By far I am more concerned about musical chairs on the line. Continuity is so important…moving players around going into pre-season is a colossal mistake. Not only is lack of continuity a problem but it also gives the impression the coaches are confused about what they are doing. Find a good combo early and stick with it.

Feels like OL and DB have the widest range of permutations possible going into camp. You summed up OL, so I'll try my hand at the secondary:

1) Is Jon Jones going to play mostly inside, mostly outside, or split?
2) Is he also in the potential rotation at safety along with Jalen Mills?
3) If Gonzalez is ready for a regular role right off the bat, and Jon Jones is the other "every snap" kind of corner, which of Jack or Marcus Jones has a bigger role? Is Marcus going to play some outside again this year, or does the addition of Gonzalez push him inside exclusively?
4) How do they re-organize things without McCourty? more 2 high safety looks?
5) Do any of the long shot, bottom of the roster guys get into the mix at all? (Bledsoe, Speed, Bolden, Wade)

It has the potential to be a REALLY good and deep secondary, it'll be interesting to see how it all shakes out.

 

[Zuma]

Feels like OL and DB have the widest range of permutations possible going into camp. You summed up OL, so I'll try my hand at the secondary:

1) Is Jon Jones going to play mostly inside, mostly outside, or split?
2) Is he also in the potential rotation at safety along with Jalen Mills?
3) If Gonzalez is ready for a regular role right off the bat, and Jon Jones is the other "every snap" kind of corner, which of Jack or Marcus Jones has a bigger role? Is Marcus going to play some outside again this year, or does the addition of Gonzalez push him inside exclusively?
4) How do they re-organize things without McCourty? more 2 high safety looks?
5) Do any of the long shot, bottom of the roster guys get into the mix at all? (Bledsoe, Speed, Bolden, Wade)

It has the potential to be a REALLY good and deep secondary, it'll be interesting to see how it all shakes out.

Agree…big questions at DB. I think the talent is there to be very good but the questions come down to who plays where.

 

[Zuma]

I’m mostly interested in how the Oline shakes out.

OT: Does Strange and Sow get reps at OT or even Onwenu? Is Brown at LT or RT? Want to see Reiff, Anderson and Cajuste get quality reps. McDermott is serviceable, is Stueber already gone?
G: Is Onwenu on the move and is Hines good enough for backup or starter?
C: Who do the Patriots consider to be the backup C now and is that expected to change with Camp?

By far I am more concerned about musical chairs on the line. Continuity is so important…moving players around going into pre-season is a colossal mistake. Not only is lack of continuity a problem but it also gives the impression the coaches are confused about what they are doing. Find a good combo early and stick with it.

IMO the best possible Oline config is Strange-Sow-D.Andrews-Onwenu-Brown.

Fight me

 

[mgteich]

I’m mostly interested in how the Oline shakes out.


C: Who do the Patriots consider to be the backup C now and is that expected to change with Camp?

Nothing has changed. As soon as someone can beat out Ferentz, Ferentz will waived and replaced. Andrews will make the 53. Hopefully it isn't as a year-long inactive backup.

 

[crawhammer]

I'll be watching the WRs closely. The new top 3 specifically: JuJu, Parker, and Bourne. WR1, 2 & 3 are coming out of this group but I think the order is uncertain.

JuJu was at his best with AB terrorizing DBs on the other side of the field. That was 5 years ago. He didn't exactly knock anyone's socks off last season with Mahomes either. I think it's a legitimate question as to whether he can establish himself as the WR1.

Parker was a true WR1 once in his career in 2019 with Fitzpatrick hurling bombs at him downfield. We tried that here last season with Mac and it didn't turn out too good. Parker probably needs to be a bit more versatile with his route running, and even though I'm somewhat skeptical about JuJu, I do think he will command the CB1, which probably wasn't the case with Meyers, so this change should help Parker.

I like Bourne a lot as a WR3, and he's serviceable as a WR2, but I'm not sure he can fulfill the role of a WR1. He was very good in 2021 and it was asinine that he had a reduced role in 2022 (his snap% dropped all the way down to 44%). BOB should get him back on track and firmly in the mix. I'm expecting a productive season from Bourne.

It's literally slim pickings after those three so they all will need to have plus seasons.

 

[Sicilian]

I'll be watching the WRs closely. The new top 3 specifically: JuJu, Parker, and Bourne. WR1, 2 & 3 are coming out of this group but I think the order is uncertain.

JuJu was at his best with AB terrorizing DBs on the other side of the field. That was 5 years ago. He didn't exactly knock anyone's socks off last season with Mahomes either. I think it's a legitimate question as to whether he can establish himself as the WR1.

Parker was a true WR1 once in his career in 2019 with Fitzpatrick hurling bombs at him downfield. We tried that here last season with Mac and it didn't turn out too good. Parker probably needs to be a bit more versatile with his route running, and even though I'm somewhat skeptical about JuJu, I do think he will command the CB1, which probably wasn't the case with Meyers, so this change should help Parker.

I like Bourne a lot as a WR3, and he's serviceable as a WR2, but I'm not sure he can fulfill the role of a WR1. He was very good in 2021 and it was asinine that he had a reduced role in 2022 (his snap% dropped all the way down to 44%). BOB should get him back on track and firmly in the mix. I'm expecting a productive season from Bourne.

It's literally slim pickings after those three so they all will need to have plus seasons.

It does feel like there's one more addition coming to that group before the start of camp. Not a big splash by this point, but a "floor" guy. Someone who can be one of their top 4 if one of JuJu/Parker/Bourne gets hurt and neither Boutte or Douglas are ready for primetime yet (or ever). I have high hopes for Thornton in year 2, but he has to prove it before the Pats can afford not to hedge that bet.

 

[Zuma]

Nothing has changed. As soon as someone can beat out Ferentz, Ferentz will waived and replaced. Andrews will make the 53. Hopefully it isn't as a year-long inactive backup.

I hope you are wrong…and I’d bet money you are. It has to change. The 2022 Oline was not good enough…by a mile.

 

[n6249c]

As it is stacked up now, the CBs are far superior to the WRs. I wonder if it is going to be incredibly frustrating for WRs to get open. Maybe it will lead to psychological damage to the WRs

Hopefully it will lead to the WRs finding getting open against other teams childs play.

 

[NFLmac]

I’m mostly interested in how the Oline shakes out.

OT: Does Strange and Sow get reps at OT or even Onwenu? Is Brown at LT or RT? Want to see Reiff, Anderson and Cajuste get quality reps. McDermott is serviceable, is Stueber already gone?
G: Is Onwenu on the move and is Hines good enough for backup or starter?
C: Who do the Patriots consider to be the backup C now and is that expected to change with Camp?

By far I am more concerned about musical chairs on the line. Continuity is so important…moving players around going into pre-season is a colossal mistake. Not only is lack of continuity a problem but it also gives the impression the coaches are confused about what they are doing. Find a good combo early and stick with it.

But how soon can they decide what set of players they will go with to begin said continuity? Can coaches make the decision on starting line during training camp or after a certain number of pre-season games? I agree with the principle of continuity of playing the same set of OL, but I don’t think it will be realistic, imho.

 

[Ivan]

Where Cole Strange ends up is my biggest interest. Can Strange move out to tackle? Onwenu has shown G is his best spot. With all of the interior OL picks I’m wondering if they view Strange as a T possibility.

Where they lineup all of these guys is interesting. Maybe they think Sow can be a good RT. Can learn under Reiff (read somewhere he’s a great locker room guy) for a year.

I have been wondering the same thing, and if he can become a good left tackle for them it would greatly enhance the value of that pick. That’s the first time I didn’t know who their first round pick was.

 

[BTTA]

I'll be watching the WRs closely. The new top 3 specifically: JuJu, Parker, and Bourne. WR1, 2 & 3 are coming out of this group but I think the order is uncertain.

JuJu was at his best with AB terrorizing DBs on the other side of the field. That was 5 years ago. He didn't exactly knock anyone's socks off last season with Mahomes either. I think it's a legitimate question as to whether he can establish himself as the WR1.

Parker was a true WR1 once in his career in 2019 with Fitzpatrick hurling bombs at him downfield. We tried that here last season with Mac and it didn't turn out too good. Parker probably needs to be a bit more versatile with his route running, and even though I'm somewhat skeptical about JuJu, I do think he will command the CB1, which probably wasn't the case with Meyers, so this change should help Parker.

I like Bourne a lot as a WR3, and he's serviceable as a WR2, but I'm not sure he can fulfill the role of a WR1. He was very good in 2021 and it was asinine that he had a reduced role in 2022 (his snap% dropped all the way down to 44%). BOB should get him back on track and firmly in the mix. I'm expecting a productive season from Bourne.

It's literally slim pickings after those three so they all will need to have plus seasons.

Given that WR1 is a made up, video game position, yeah, I'd doubt there's one on the roster.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

It'll be interesting to see whether the starting receivers will be Juju, Parker and Bourne on the depth chart. I hope that by the end of camp we are regularly seeing Ty Thornton and that continues through the season. You can't coach sub-4.3, but whatever he needs to focus on to terrorize the opposition, I'm rooting for that.

I'm also interested to see which QB is considered to give us our best chance to win. If, as I expect, that's Mac Jones, I hope everybody shuts up, relaxes, and lets that go for a season.

The big "christmas morning" feeling is whether this defense gels into something to be feared.

 

[BTTA]

It'll be interesting to see whether the starting receivers will be Juju, Parker and Bourne on the depth chart. I hope that by the end of camp we are regularly seeing Ty Thornton and that continues through the season. You can't coach sub-4.3, but whatever he needs to focus on to terrorize the opposition, I'm rooting for that.

I'm also interested to see which QB is considered to give us our best chance to win. If, as I expect, that's Mac Jones, I hope everybody shuts up, relaxes, and lets that go for a season.

The big "christmas morning" feeling is whether this defense gels into something to be feared.

Of the group, Parker seems to me to not have a significant upside beyond what we've seen.

 

[crawhammer]

Given that WR1 is a made up, video game position, yeah, I'd doubt there's one on the roster.

WTF? Look around the league, there are plenty of real examples of WR1s...

Tyreek
Diggs
Chase
Copper
Adams
Keenan
Jefferson
Hopkins
AJ Brown
Deebo
Kupp
Lamb
Metcalf
McLaurin

That's about half the league. And I left out the rookies - Garrett, Pickens, Watson, Olive - all look like legit WR1s.

 

[mgteich]

Feels like OL and DB have the widest range of permutations possible going into camp. You summed up OL, so I'll try my hand at the secondary:

1) Is Jon Jones going to play mostly inside, mostly outside, or split?
2) Is he also in the potential rotation at safety along with Jalen Mills?
3) If Gonzalez is ready for a regular role right off the bat, and Jon Jones is the other "every snap" kind of corner, which of Jack or Marcus Jones has a bigger role? Is Marcus going to play some outside again this year, or does the addition of Gonzalez push him inside exclusively?
4) How do they re-organize things without McCourty? more 2 high safety looks?
5) Do any of the long shot, bottom of the roster guys get into the mix at all? (Bledsoe, Speed, Bolden, Wade)

It has the potential to be a REALLY good and deep secondary, it'll be interesting to see how it all shakes out.

Our base is having 5 DB's on the field

I hope that the starting CB's will be Gonzales, Jack Jones, and Jonathan as our nickel, with Marcus as the first CB off the bench.

That leaves Steve and Bill to develop for safety and LB/S roles for Mills, Dugger, Phillips, Peppers and Mapu.

For me, that is a very solid set of EIGHT defensive backs, with Mapu as a sort of wildcard, who may end up getting no SS snaps at all, which would be fine.

Of course, we'll have the usual 2-3 STO defensive backs (probably Schooler, Speed and perhaps Davis).
==========
With the Jones boys all, the hope is the Bryant and Wade are finally replaced. The wildcard is Bolden, who might make the roster, even if he inactive each week.

 

[n6249c]

…
I hope that the starting CB's will be Gonzales, Jack Jones, and Jonathan as our nickel, with Marcus as the first CB off the bench.
…
==========
With the Jones boys all, the hope is the Bryant and Wade are finally replaced. The wildcard is Bolden, who might make the roster, even if he inactive each week.

I hope the starting CBs are Gonzales, Bolden, and either Jack or Jon as nickel, with Marcus next in line.

I‘m really hoping Bolden proves to be a sleeper and the steal of the entire draft. I really want to have Deion saying “I TOLD YOU!” all season long.

Take a look at Bolden’s RAS numbers, then consider his dad was a pro CB for more than ten years so Bolden grew up around playing CB the way Bill grew up around coaching. Plus he transferred from FSU to Jackson State to be coached by Deion Sanders for three years.

One of the things I want to see in camp is how he takes to the NFL and especially how the Patriots knack of developing CBs will help him grow.

 

[Tunescribe]

Mac vs Zappe... anyone?

Glad the thread got through at least some thoughtful, meaningful and worthwhile posts before this came up.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

Of the group, Parker seems to me to not have a significant upside beyond what we've seen.

Maybe. Certainly nobody's ever gotten that 17.4 yards per catch out of him, since he posted 19 in 2015. And nobody's gotten 80% first downs out of the balls thrown him before. The downside is the totals: stagnant in the 500-600 yard range on 31 catches (and a 66% catch percentage)

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On the upside, the problem we have with Parker is that we have to get the ball to him. This is the kind of thing that makes me wonder what we could get in a WR that would magically fix everything. Our passing game will look limited compared with our memory of Brady (and it will likely look fine, if not absolutely stellar, compared with, e.g., passing production under Lamar Jackson.) I'm all about pumping up the production,. but I think going out and buying or drafting a "true number one" (a popular offseason war cry) neglects that we have to figure out why everybody we draft or acquire doesn't turn the team around. I think the answer is that QB, O line, and scheme have not produced the opportunity for success. Now that Meyers has been replaced by JuJu, I would love for everything to change for the better, but I think they're similar types, maybe a "now with 10% more upside" situation, not a huge difference.

Mac needs 3 1/2 seconds and doesn't get it. The line needs to give him that. He also needs to turn the page from day 1, not compile an out-of-building case in his own mind. BoB needs to do what we have seen him do so many times.