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CLICK HERE to Register for a free account and login for a smoother ad-free experience. It's easy, and only takes a few moments.It seems unlikely that either Tate or Price will beat out Holt and Edelman for reps. If I had to pick one for 2010, it would be Tate. He will active as a returner and will get opportunities. If he does well early, he could get lots of reps. Barring injuries, Price seems likely to be inactive for most the season. Certainly, I would rather have the three TE's active instead of a 5th WR.
I think Price has a very good chance of beating out one of those two guys. Edelman was a very nice surprise last year and I think he'll make more progress this year but keep in mind he was a conversion project and still has a lot to learn about how to play the position. I'm not trying to degrade the quality of Welker's play, but it's entirely possible that a portion of his production is inflated by the system the Patriots run. They use the umpire to set screens in crossing routes very frequently and the combination of routes/option routes they run probably give Welker every opportunity to find soft spots in zone coverage. With Edelman getting most of his snaps at Welker's spots it isn't unreasonable to think that he yielded the same benefits and we are thus more bullish on him than we realistically should be. Price on the other hand is a polished route runner, has amazing speed, and was a 2 year starter at Ohio.
They use the umpire to set screens in crossing routes very frequently
5 WRs (6 when Welker comes back) that we're predicting ahead of Aiken? I don't care who wins, I just don't want Aiken catching anything.
Unless you think that Price is going to play the slot, he's not even going to be in competition with Edelman. He'll be in competition with Tate, Patten, Aiken and Holt.
To me, the interesting question comes if Welker starts the season on PUP, and that's the question of who will serve as Edelman's backup until Welker returns.
Unless you think that Price is going to play the slot, he's not even going to be in competition with Edelman. He'll be in competition with Tate, Patten, Aiken and Holt.
To me, the interesting question comes if Welker starts the season on PUP, and that's the question of who will serve as Edelman's backup until Welker returns.
It would not at all surprise me to see Price see time at the slot with his quickness and speed. He could cause some serious damage in the seams compared to Welker and Edelman. He's certainly bigger than Edelman, but at 6'0" - 212lbs it isn't like he's too tall or too big to play the position. To say that he'll never see time at the slot in training camp seems kind of short-sighted. I don't think that Belichick would give a position over to a 2nd year player without some sort of camp competition to push the potential incumbent.
This will no longer happen as the umpire position has now been moved to the offensive backfield.