PATRIOTS NEWS Patriots Rookie Minicamp Thread

[mgteich]

I think you have a point there Woz. Theres an old adage ''football teams are built in the trenches'' so going by that wolf should have taken the best LT on the board......unless he didn't think highly of those that were left.

They disagreed so strongly with this board that they passed on an OT at 34 and drafted a swing OT at 68 who has played only RT.

The fact of the matter is that one the first 8 were gone, the team moved to addressing the WR position as a highest priority. They simply didn't think that they saw a LT starter at 34 that was very high on their board.

OK, nothing is new. Folks here strongly believe that they can draft much better than our NFL staff. OK.

 

[Real fan 02]

It's not even training camp yet. Let's see the reports from training camp and perhaps some preseason action before declaring who will and who won't make the roster.

Zappe clearly showed enough promise last season to warrant a chance at making the 53 but that doesn't ensure him a spot either.

The reason why we were continually atop the AFC for years is because we had an equalizer at QB.. a game changer. Zappe nor Mac were even close to being such. Ultimately is why we were 4-13 with a pissed off dam good defense.

I agree let's wait until camp. Everyone will be competitive and the QB who makes the least mistakes will likely be the starter week 1.

 

[Ross12]

1) We have 4 returning starters in a group had lost of injuries. IMO, all are at least OK.
2) We have Jake returning from last year. He showed that he is at least a possibility as a backup LG, in addition to backing up at C. As was said, we also signed Leverett to back-up at LG and C.
3) We have Robinson as a backup RG (Mafi could also return I suppose).
4) both the unmentioned Okarafor and Wallace are possible backups at RT.

AS YOU SAID
We are OK at 4 OL positions. This is NOT terrible for a rebuilding team with horrible 2023 OL play. This is our weakest unit, not awful at all.

LET'S FOCUS ON THE DUMSTER FIRE
This board strongly disagrees with the coaches and staff.

They believe that Okarafor can start at LT. They also seem to believe that Anderson can compete for the job, and be at least a backup LT. Wallace is a wild card. No one knows his future. He could be a future starter or backup anywhere on the OL. For this year, he is NEEDED only if Okarafor and Anderson are not able to cover the LT position.

Finally, we could end up starting Okorafor and having Lowe as the backup (and Wallace as the backup RT). This would be by far our worst position, but our OL would NOT be a dumpster fire. Of course, we would add more help next year, after failing to adequately address this ONE position.

BOTTOM LINE - THIS IS SIGNIFANTLY BETTER THAN LAST YEAR
(2) Okorafor/Anderson?/Lowe
(2) Strange/Leverett (Andrews could even start here)
(2) Andrews/Andrews (Leverett can also be a backup center)
(2) Sow/Robinson
(2) Onwenu/Wallace

PS (3): Mafi, Jordan, Hearn, Wheatley, Steuber

I think many posters don’t realize that there are a lot of teams with a weak LT. Those teams aren’t all going 4-13 annually because of one player. Nor does a great team suddenly become a bottom dweller when their LT gets an injury.

If the rest of the OL plays okay then they will overcome potentially bad LT play. But we also don’t yet know if the LT is actually bad.

 

[KCSVEN]

Not sure what "analytics" you're using, but It's BS,.



You can stick to whatever you want... Don't share it with me because I'm not buying your delusions.

The way they calculate that makes the #'s completely meaningless except for the extreme outliers, which there are none for Maye. Why would you even bother posting that knowing how its calculated? We already know the adjusted completion % is over 75%, so he was on target overall at over 75% at worst.

The other proof has already been posted, but it is clear you have no interest in analyzing things with an open mind, won't post them again.
You picked the wrong QB to bet against, the final proof will come when he plays.

 

[One-If-By-Sea]

But we also don’t yet know if the LT is actually bad.

That is right. Okorafor, Wallace, and Onwenu are all RTs. We have three RTs and no LTs. The only proven LT guy is recovering from malaria and heart valve issues. The rest are bums. So we don't know if LT will be bad. What is your guess?

 

[Ross12]

That is right. Okorafor, Wallace, and Onwenu are all RTs. We have three RTs and no LTs. The only proven LT guy is recovering from malaria and heart valve issues. The rest are bums. So we don't know if LT will be bad. What is your guess?

They are planning on playing both Okorafor and Wallace at LT.

 

[Clonamery]

They are planning on playing both Okorafor and Wallace at LT.

I think that is his point. It's all a ? at LT. There's a plan but.

 

[Ross12]

I think that is his point. It's all a ? at LT. There's a plan but.

Right and I said we don’t know yet if those players are bad.

 

[Wozzy]

All I see is Wallace’s bad agility, his refusal to bench and how Wirfs did everything he did at 6 pounds heavier.

Wallace isn’t completely worthless though, he might also be stronger than he looks.

 

[40yrpatsfan]

They are planning on playing both Okorafor and Wallace at LT.

Mayo said about the Wallace pick that it gives them another OL who can play multiple positions. I'm not sure they really know who's gonna end up where at this point. If Strange isn't going to be 100% by September, they could be thinking of moving Sow to LG, Onwenu to RG, Oko to RT, and Anderson-Wallace at LT.

They like Wallace and feel he'll eventually be their LT, but I highly doubt they'll roll him out there for game 1 this year.

 

[One-If-By-Sea]

They are planning on playing both Okorafor and Wallace at LT.

I know. It was tongue-in-cheek.

 

[One-If-By-Sea]

Mayo said about the Wallace pick that it gives them another OL who can play multiple positions. I'm not sure they really know who's gonna end up where at this point. If Strange isn't going to be 100% by September, they could be thinking of moving Sow to LG, Onwenu to RG, Oko to RT, and Anderson-Wallace at LT.

They like Wallace and feel he'll eventually be their LT, but I highly doubt they'll roll him out there for game 1 this year.

They signed Onwenu to RT, not RG, money and have said Onwenu is their RT.

 

[Real fan 02]

I hope Zappe has a great camp and preseason and gets traded for a 5th rounder. We'll open the season with Brissette starting, Maye as the backup, and Milton as the 3rd QB.

That would be a great thing. As of today Brissett has the edge. We will see by the end of camp who's the leading guy to start. Being that this is a new offense I also believe the joint practices and pre season games also mean something too.

 

[PatsFan2]

I really don't know how you can say that. The guy can throw the ball on the money in live action, he's shown that. He needs to be coached up to improve his consistency and improve on certain types of throws. People had the exact same criticisms of Josh Allen when he came out.

I would say the Pats taking him is a strong sign that he can be coached up into a good NFL quarterback.

 

[gobesmug]

Would be nice if they signed David Bakhtiari as a vet option for LT

 

[PatsFan2]

Yeah I don’t think that’s the case. The arm strength alone won’t keep him in the league. Just putting in the work won’t fix his accuracy issues. No team will trust him to throw the football. For example: DL Justin Ernest benched 225 lbs 51 times at the combine which is a record. The dude was very strong. Would that skill alone make him a good NFL QB or player at any other position? Negative. Whether he thinks he is an NFL QB or not it doesn’t matter…the position requires you to also have other skills in order to play the position and those skills were absent.

Zappe will make the team because Milton’s only real skill at QB is his strength.

Let's give up on the guy before he even plays I mean dude wasn't a day 1 or 2 selection he was a day 3 selection which I call a BB type value pick.

 

[Real fan 02]

Let's give up on the guy before he even plays I mean dude wasn't a day 1 or 2 selection he was a day 3 selection which I call BB type value.

Exactly! Allen, burrow, Mahomes, Jackson are all in the league because of why? TALENT. We had no talent whatsoever at the QB position is why we're were 4-13 and looked like an 0-17 offense.

 

[Zuma]

They signed Onwenu to RT, not RG, money and have said Onwenu is their RT.

And players have never changed position or side of the line before. It just doesn’t happen.

 

[One-If-By-Sea]

And players have never changed position or side of the line before. It just doesn’t happen.

The objective for high performance on the OL is to have continuity and consistency. Shuffling positions on the OL is not trivial, not like moving chess pieces, because each position has various techniques and assignments. And the Pats are working towards a new OL blocking scheme which makes consistency and repeatability more important.

Sure, guys can move on the OL, but it is not trivial or something desired. In reality, the Pats will move the OL positions as little as possible.

You are feeling snarky this morning?

 

[Real fan 02]

The objective for high performance on the OL is to have continuity and consistency. Shuffling positions on the OL is not trivial, not like moving chess pieces, because each position has various techniques and assignments. And the Pats are working towards a new OL blocking scheme which makes consistency and repeatability more important.

Sure, guys can move on the OL, but it is not trivial or something desired. In reality, the Pats will move the OL positions as little as possible.

You are feeling snarky this morning?

I did hear past O lineman say here that they are asked to learn every position on the line.