Thompkins

[strngplyr]

I think Edelman and Amendola (last year's #1 and #2 most productive WRs) are obviously locks for starting positions, but after that Dobson/Thompkins/LaFell/Boyce will be fighting it out for playing time and different roles. I think it's pretty wide open at this point due to various circumstances.

Dobson--obviously the most talented and has the highest upside, yet has injury issues at the moment

Thompkins--hard worker who has supposedly made progress from year one and would take Dobson's place

LaFell--has to progress and be more consistent, was a halfway decent FA signing with experience

Boyce--could be active on gameday due to kickoff return duties, depending on circumstances

I'm not sure I agree on Amendola, he's having a very quiet camp, as if he's expected to. I don't EXPECT to hear much about Edelman, Amendola hasn't really proven much, I expect to hear about every good and bad thing he's done, I know he's a lock because of his contract, but that doesn't mean he's a starter, at least not to me.

I think Amendola got the play time he did at the end of last season in large part because KT and Dobson were MIA with injuries. Week 1 was a fluke moreso than a sign of things to come in my eyes.

I could be way off, I just feel like KT has earned his spot, Dobson SHOULD have a spot, and I don't see Edelman losing his to anyone right now.

I also want to note, I'm not an Amendola hate by any means, I guess I'm just a bigger fan of the younger guys right now.

 

[Joker]

Justin Jones may well decide the fates of the last two WR's. Hooman is nicked up. Gronk is still coming along. This kid is showing up every single day of practice so far. Let's see what the scrimmages bring.

 

[PatFanCraig]

I don't think Amendola has the size/skillset that could even frustrate Browner the way Kenbrell did. I keep saying he has practiced with and learned from the hardest working WR in the NFL. Antonio Brown,who also will spend an entire day in the film room when he can. Kenbrell has been putting in overtime outworking training/practicing to try to catch up to his cousins production. He could be our biggest weapon behind Gronk. I think our best/most talented/most explosive starting lineup could be

TE Gronk
XWR Dobson
ZWR KT
Slot Edelman/Boyce getting some reps
RB Vereen with Ridley/White getting their share

Would like to sign Finley who has been cleared by his own and NFL Docs. He has been working very very hard with something to prove. He is just 27, can block and will come out faster/better than ever as a Route RunnerCatcher with all the work he has been putting in. He sent his med report to every team and is willing to do a complete workout and said he feels faster than ever.(same age as Graham) With our deep threats we lacked before I think our 2TE set Reboot will be more dynamic this time.

Team official website has Fleming at RG and he took some reps there. He has impressed with his power and completely stood up Ninko effortlessly twiced in a row.Hopefully he can play RG or compete with Cannon for it. Let Halapio/Stork compete for center and our OLine is Heated up and ready to breathe fire. Hopefully they listen to their scouts and try Halapio at Center. He played last year with torn pec muscle. Now Healthy,OLine coaches are completely impressed with his initial punch and power and reporting they believe he could move mountains. Obviously torn pec muscle kept him from using his jarring punch,or made it less effective. He may have been a steal. So hopefully our OLine is healthy and looks like

LT Solder
LG MANKINS
C Halapio/Stork compete
RG Cannon/Fleming compete
RT VOLLMER

Show me a better OLine in the NFL. Has it all. Size/length/athleticism/power on the edges. Guards with power and athleticism to protect the edge when forced to if OT has to pick off a blitz.Halapio if given opportunity could possibly be the most powerful Center in the NFL.

 

[Joker]

It's Connolly's job to lose at center. Halapio has ZERO chance of playing center for the Pats this season.

 

[strngplyr]

It's Connolly's job to lose at center. Halapio has ZERO chance of playing center for the Pats this season.

Yeahhh, Halapio hasn't even sniffed a snap at the position, has he? It's been all Wendell/Connolly/Stork, right?

 

[supafly]

I'm not sure I agree on Amendola, he's having a very quiet camp, as if he's expected to. I don't EXPECT to hear much about Edelman, Amendola hasn't really proven much, I expect to hear about every good and bad thing he's done, I know he's a lock because of his contract, but that doesn't mean he's a starter, at least not to me.

I think Amendola got the play time he did at the end of last season in large part because KT and Dobson were MIA with injuries. Week 1 was a fluke moreso than a sign of things to come in my eyes.

I could be way off, I just feel like KT has earned his spot, Dobson SHOULD have a spot, and I don't see Edelman losing his to anyone right now.

I also want to note, I'm not an Amendola hate by any means, I guess I'm just a bigger fan of the younger guys right now.

I respectfully disagree re: Amendola. The chemistry that he and Brady had were apparent early on when he hauled in 7 catches in the very first quarter of the first time they played together in the preseason. That was then followed up by his dominant and gutsy performance in the first regular season game as well.

If you go back and look at a comparison of Amendola vs Edelman last year, you'll see the only difference was the injury situation with the games that he missed. Otherwise, he was on the exact same par as Edelman was in terms of targets/receptions and catch percentage. As a matter of fact I believe that Amendola had a better YPC as well.

I'd also disagree that he's having a "quiet" camp. I've read a couple of reports that have stated that he and Brady have continued to develop a good rapport. I'm not sure why so many are down on Amendola when he was the 2nd most productive WR on the team with 54 catches last year. Disappointing due to our expectations? Yes, but I don't believe that he's earned the reputation that he has here.

I think some of the problem was that we didn't have anything in terms of receiving options last year, especially with Gronkowski being hurt too. It wasn't too difficult to scheme against us, and cover the miserable options that were trotted out there very effectively. Hopefully that is different this year. Ultimately, it will come down to his ability to stay healthy anyway.

 

[supafly]

I'm not sure I agree on Amendola, he's having a very quiet camp, as if he's expected to. I don't EXPECT to hear much about Edelman, Amendola hasn't really proven much, I expect to hear about every good and bad thing he's done, I know he's a lock because of his contract, but that doesn't mean he's a starter, at least not to me.

I think Amendola got the play time he did at the end of last season in large part because KT and Dobson were MIA with injuries. Week 1 was a fluke moreso than a sign of things to come in my eyes.

I could be way off, I just feel like KT has earned his spot, Dobson SHOULD have a spot, and I don't see Edelman losing his to anyone right now.

I also want to note, I'm not an Amendola hate by any means, I guess I'm just a bigger fan of the younger guys right now.

I think one thing that may have some blurred lines to it is the term "starter" on this offense. We all know that Amendola certainly won't be starting every game, so in that regard I would agree with you. I do believe that he has a more productive season than last year, however, as long as he remains healthy. Of course that's always up in the air, and that's the only real knock on him.

We'll have different looks and different schemes vs that week's opposition, so I would imagine that there will be lots of contributing pieces, which may make trying to decipher a depth chart or starters more difficult than other teams.

 

[Joker]

Stork wasn't even AT practice today. Even while he was, he had all kinds of problems with snaps and reads.Connolly is obviously the way they intend to go with Wendy as a reserve/cut.

 

[supafly]

Stork wasn't even AT practice today. Even while he was, he had all kinds of problems with snaps and reads.Connolly is obviously the way they intend to go with Wendy as a reserve/cut.

As long as that un-dynamic duo is improved upon, I'm happy as a fan. Connelly and Cannon sound much better than Wendell and Connelly in my opinion.

I agree with you that Wendell could be a cut, although I think some of that will depend on how much/little the rookies develop or stand out in a positive way as well. I'm assuming that deep down, the coaches are likely hoping that the rookie OL can look good enough to warrant such a cap saving move such as dumping Wendell, but that's just my opinion.

I think a lot of us would be relatively satisfied with Wendell as the 6th OL though, with some versatility and experience. I don't want to see him starting, however.

I don't know how much of a difference it makes, but Belichick was throwing praise at him yesterday for making some marked improvements. Who knows what we can take from it, though?

 

[AzPatsFan]

Stork wasn't even AT practice today. Even while he was, he had all kinds of problems with snaps and reads.Connolly is obviously the way they intend to go with Wendy as a reserve/cut.

I concur and want Cannon a veteran to earn the RG job, as Connolly moves back to C.

Stork has certainly had some rookie "growing pains with snaps, fumbles etc. But I don't think he has had a bad snap with Brady or Mallett. His problems have occurred with the spread shotgun QB, who everyone admitted in the Spring, needed to acclimate to taking snaps under Center.

I'd suggest he is only now learning how.

There never was a need to panic over the O-line. It was good enough to get the Team to 3 consecutive AFCCG games and a Super Bowl, when healthy. There were IR players who now appear to have returned, satisfactorily. The problem was that the developmental and reserve pool was empty and the Pats will have to replace both Connolly and Mankins within the next few years as they age. The Draft appears to have answered that problem, as the newcomers do not appear to be stiffs. In due course, this season or next, the newcomers will earn their jobs.

 

[Deus Irae]

Consider the following to refer only to the 'main' 6:

Pure slot receivers on the Patriots this year

None


Mostly slot, but hybrid receivers on the Patriots this year

Amendola

Mostly outside, but hybrid receivers on the Patriots this year

Edelman
Boyce
LaFell


Outside receivers on the Patriots this year

Dobson
Thompkins


Slotting the receivers based upon "protection"

Edelman (100 catches, new contract)
Dobson (2nd rounder, 2nd year, best of the rookies last year)
Amendola (Big money to eat, if cut)
LaFell (Big money to eat, if cut)
Thompkins (nothing but his skills, but he was ahead of Boyce all last year)
Boyce (4th round pick in 2nd year = nothing)

I think most of us would expect Boyce to be low man on the totem pole, which means that most of us would expect

Edelman
Dobson
Amendola
LaFell
Thompkins

if only 5 of the WRs were to make it (although we've all seen enough curveballs from BB that I doubt any of us would be lining up along the Tobin if it worked out differently). From reading posts around here, the real question seems to be centered around who'd be cut if the team only carried 4 WRs. In a case like that, we'd probably be looking at one cut from among

Amendola
LaFell
Thompkins

and that's where positional redundancy and versatility could come into play. I consider carrying 6 WRs more likely than carrying 4, myself, so I expect Thompkins to be on the team, and this to be a non-issue, but time will tell.

 

[supafly]

Consider the following to refer only to the 'main' 6:

Pure slot receivers on the Patriots this year

None


Mostly slot, but hybrid receivers on the Patriots this year

Amendola

Mostly outside, but hybrid receivers on the Patriots this year

Edelman
Boyce
LaFell


Outside receivers on the Patriots this year

Dobson
Thompkins


Slotting the receivers based upon "protection"

Edelman (100 catches, new contract)
Dobson (2nd rounder, 2nd year, best of the rookies last year)
Amendola (Big money to eat, if cut)
LaFell (Big money to eat, if cut)
Thompkins (nothing but his skills, but he was ahead of Boyce all last year)
Boyce (4th round pick in 2nd year = nothing)

I think most of us would expect Boyce to be low man on the totem pole, which means that most of us would expect

Edelman
Dobson
Amendola
LaFell
Thompkins

if only 5 of the WRs were to make it (although we've all seen enough curveballs from BB that I doubt any of us would be lining up along the Tobin if it worked out differently). From reading posts around here, the real question seems to be centered around who'd be cut if the team only carried 4 WRs. In a case like that, we'd probably be looking at one cut from among

Amendola
LaFell
Thompkins

and that's where positional redundancy and versatility could come into play. I consider carrying 6 WRs more likely than carrying 4, myself, so I expect Thompkins to be on the team, and this to be a non-issue, but time will tell.

Certainly agreed on in terms of Boyce being the low man on the totem pole. My only real uncertainty would be how effective/ineffective he may be on the kickoff returns, although I highly doubt that alone would be enough to keep his position safe, even if he's looking well.

I also imagine that we'd have heard about by now, if he was seeing success there.

 

[BradyFTW!]

Yeahhh, Halapio hasn't even sniffed a snap at the position, has he? It's been all Wendell/Connolly/Stork, right?

Yeah, we do have one poster here who thinks that because Halapio played center in high school he can step right in as a rookie and play it in the pros. I think him being cut outright is several orders of magnitude more likely than him playing any C this year.

 

[Kontradiction]

Yeah, we do have one poster here who thinks that because Halapio played center in high school he can step right in as a rookie and play it in the pros. I think him being cut outright is several orders of magnitude more likely than him playing any C this year.

Not going to happen. The Gators could have stood to see improvement at the center position in several years when Halapio was there and never moved him. There's a reason for that. That said, he could probably play there in a pinch if injuries totally annihilate the position. But I doubt they have plans to try him there full time.

 

[patsinthesnow]

Lafell is confusing for projected depth charts. He was given low end WR3 money (Brandon Gibson of the Dolphins and Andre Roberts of the Redskins both received more money as WR3s). His #s over his 4 year career suggest he is a WR3 at best as well.

IMO, Dobson & KT have higher ceilings and may be better WRs right now. With Amendola above him on the depth chart, that leaves him at WR5.

It was a relatively small contract, so nothing really to complain about. I just wonder, was Lafell given 3 years 9 million as a depth WR, or was it an insurance WR3 policy incase Dobson/KT failed?
========================
The WR depth chart I expect:

1. Edelman
2. Amendola
3. Dobson
4. KT
5. Lafell

The WR depth chart I hope unfolds:

1. Edelman
2. Dobson
3. KT
4. Amendola
5. Lafell

 

[luuked]

I consider carrying 6 WRs more likely than carrying 4, myself, so I expect Thompkins to be on the team, and this to be a non-issue, but time will tell.

Given how we ran out of WRs before the AFCCG (once again we were down to Slater playing WR snaps) I would be surprised by anything but 6 WR.

 

[hwc]

I doubt that Bill Belichick loses much sleep worrying about who is WR#1 who is WR #3 and who is WR #5. I suspect all he cares about is having quality players at WR #1 thru WR #5, knowing that he's going to need at least five guys getting significant snaps to make it through the season. There are always plenty of snaps to go around.

 

[MrNathanDrake]

Boyce has a role as a PR/KR. He's the most explosive WR on the team and still has a lot of potential. I don't see him being cut unless he's really dropping the ball(literally and figuratively) in TC.

 

[Brady_to_Moss]

I was just reading Reiss's cha with fans. Why is Tompkins getting so much flak? People really don't like him? If he's giving it his all and looking good why the hate? If he can help the team....I don't understand of the hate at all. It's like he beat his wife with some of these fans

 

[JMC00]

Amendola will never replace Welker, let me say that again "Amendola will never replace Welker". Amendola is an injury waiting to happen. Pats got screwed signing him.

Did they really get screwed? They can cut him after this season. Also he doesn't have to be Welker with Edelman here thru 2017.