mid week observations and random thoughts

[BobDigital]

To be more on the nose though... less than 1.5 days from the preseason game. Here are guys i'll be watching. And i don't plan to list many I know can stay with starters.

Offense - Devito, Morton, Raridon Atkin, Chism, Larison, Miller, Brown, Butler, Lomu Crownover, Hudson.

Want to see both QBs a lot. I don't think DeVito should automatically get the back up spot. Morton is making a case and that battle should be honored. I really don't care about WRs aside from Chism. Williams has shown he can do well with these guys.. for him it is about getting on Drake's page. And the other 5 have played enough vs startarts i know who they are. I want to see Larison and Miller is more action. Does Larison look 100% back. How is Miller? As for the 4 back ups i named... I want to see them for myself. Particularly Hudson. He was brought in here to be the vet presence... who can for sure do the back up job.. but seems behind others. Has he lost something? As for Brown and Butler. Some bad reports about Brown make me nervous. Do we need help on the interior. Is Butler the man for that 5th IOL or no?

Defense - Swinson, Jacobs, Farmer, Britt, Muma, Obiazor, Punty, Canada, Brown

Swinson is obvious. Jacobs is the surprise of camp so far. Is he another Ponder? Love to see it. Farmer i know can play, but i want to see how much he has improved in year 2. Britt/Muma have experience but how will they look? Obiazor? I am just curious. I have heard nothing. Punty is one of the top guys I will be watching. Very excited to see him Canada is almost certainly not making the team, but be nice to feel more confident in our depth in our 4 or 5th CB goes down. Brown is a vet safety, but i want to see how he looks in our defense.

 

[rkarp1]

just asking...
will the big disappointment be Ponder?
he was a very pleasant surprise last season, mostly playing situational football, and getting after it.
if Landry cannot go to start the season, and Ponder is called on to do more, will he be up to having more responsibility on his plate?
or do we see Jacas playing on early downs, and Ponder then coming in fresh to continue getting after the QB?

 

[patchick]

CB - top 3 will be good if healthy. Charles Wood has really stepped up to be that 4th solid CB depth option. Punty has a chance to over take him by years end though, his talent is clear to see. Canada feels ahead of Dial and Minor right now for a PS or emergency spot.

I think the final CB spot will be super competitive because you didn’t include Kindle Vildor, who has had an excellent camp. This is a group I’m feeling increasingly good about top to bottom.

I wouldn’t be surprised if they tried to make room for both Morton and Crownover, keeping only 3 RBs and cutting Chism for the initial cut.

 

[Triumph]

I disagree, and find that thinking short sighted
Doubs can play X,Y and Z. Most likely, Boutte can as well.
in 1 year, Pop and Hollins will be gone
also, in 1 year, you may realize Williams and Chism can't play
in 2 years, Brown is starting to age out and has an easy out in his deal.
in 2 years, Doubs and Boutte could be WR's 1a and 1b

Boutte would want a contract the same as Doubs and possibly better.

Brown has 1000 yards and 7 TDs in a down year with Hurts throwing the ball. I expect Browns production to noticeably increase with the more accurate Maye as his QB. Furthermore, I envision Brown is going to see more targets than Diggs. There are just so many targets to go around. Maye threw for approximately 500 attempts last season @ a 72% completion rate. So, its not like there is a bunch of room to improve there. Throwing 600 attempts equates to 6 more attempts per game and at a 72% completion rate accounts for 4.25 added receptions per 17 games. Then, factor in the games where NE is leading where they would run the ball to burn clock.

 

[rkarp1]

Boutte would want a contract the same as Doubs and possibly better.

Brown has 1000 yards and 7 TDs in a down year with Hurts throwing the ball. I expect Browns production to noticeably increase with the more accurate Maye as his QB. Furthermore, I envision Brown is going to see more targets than Diggs. There are just so many targets to go around. Maye threw for approximately 500 attempts last season @ a 72% completion rate. So, its not like there is a bunch of room to improve there. Throwing 600 attempts equates to 6 more attempts per game and at a 72% completion rate accounts for 4.25 added receptions per 17 games. Then, factor in the games where NE is leading where they would run the ball to burn clock.

he wont get that here, or anywhere right now.
maybe he will next year. maybe he wont.
he might get hurt and never get it.
would he take $30m now, with the opportunity to go into free agency again in 3 years?

 

[Wozzy]

just asking...
will the big disappointment be Ponder?
he was a very pleasant surprise last season, mostly playing situational football, and getting after it.
if Landry cannot go to start the season, and Ponder is called on to do more, will he be up to having more responsibility on his plate?
or do we see Jacas playing on early downs, and Ponder then coming in fresh to continue getting after the QB?

He had a sack and a batted ball yesterday against the Colts, so probably not.

 

[patfanken]

I dont see Kraft writing Boutte any checks.

Boutte had a good - not great - 2025 season and now expects to be paid. It doesn't work that way. Furthermore, if the Pats cave to Bouttes demands it would send a message to the team to act the same way to get what you want.

Henry just got more money because he didnt act like a fool.

What do You mean they should "act in the same way? Do you mean they should show up to every practice, work your ass off, make play after play (so far) and keep your mouth shut about your contract situation. I damned well hope everyone is getting THAT message.

Christ T, he made that trade request in April and in April it was an appropriate request given the signing of Doubs and AJB "on the way". But in the end, are the Pats a better team with Boutte on it, or are we better off without him and a future 5th round pick???

And, btw, Kraft DOESN'T decide about who he writes checks to, that is the decision of the guys who run his football operations, and you know it. Just like you know that Boutte hasn't "acted like a fool"

 

[Wozzy]

What do You mean they should "act in the same way? Do you mean they should show up to every practice, work your ass off, make play after play (so far) and keep your mouth shut about your contract situation. I damned well hope everyone is getting THAT message.

Christ T, he made that trade request in April and in April it was an appropriate request given the signing of Doubs and AJB "on the way". But in the end, are the Pats a better team with Boutte on it, or are we better off without him and a future 5th round pick???

And, btw, Kraft DOESN'T decide about who he writes checks to, that is the decision of the guys who run his football operations, and you know it. Just like you know that Boutte hasn't "acted like a fool"

The thing that flies over your and others heads is Williams and possibly DeGennerro might be better players…. so yeah, they would be better with the pick.

 

[DoubleDeluxe]

The thing that flies over your and others heads is Williams and possibly DeGennerro might be better players…. so yeah, they would be better with the pick.

Flies over others heads, really?
You aren’t smarter than anyone else, your opinions bear no greater weight.
KW isn’t going anywhere, a Boutte trade/not trade will not impact that.
If Boutte stays we will play our best WRs.
If KW proves worthy he will have adequate opportunity.
The thing that flies over your head apparently is that DeG is quite possibly not better and will spend the year on the PS.

 

[Water Boy]

Assuming there are no injuries leading into the season, trading Boutte is the logical resolution to the crowded WR corp. It's best for the team and him.

If you love him, let him go.

 

[Gumby]

It was in the last week I believe.
Doubs had been quiet and people were discussing if it was possible to cut or trade a FA you just signed in the offseason.
Now those may have been hypothetical posts, but really?
Discussing that because he was quiet the first week of camp, pretty ridiculous.

FYSA: the only ones talking about trading or cutting Doubs were talking about the POSSIBILITIES AFTER 1 JUN 2027, if he doesn’t show enough in the 2026 season. The usual suspects (who just come here apparently to argue) then proceeded to proclaim how stupid folks were for wanting to trade a newly signed FA in 2026 preseason.
A 2026 cut/trade was never a viable discussion point honestly made by anyone.

 

[DoubleDeluxe]

FYSA: the only ones talking about trading or cutting Doubs were talking about the POSSIBILITIES AFTER 1 JUN 2027, if he doesn’t show enough in the 2026 season. The usual suspects (who just come here apparently to argue) then proceeded to proclaim how stupid folks were for wanting to trade a newly signed FA in 2026 preseason.
A 2026 cut/trade was never a viable discussion point honestly made by anyone.

You could be right.
I just remember someone saying something about it would be a bad look to cut/trade someone you just signed. Perhaps I made the improper judgment that meant this year.
But even still, it was being discussed because he had a quiet start to camp, hadn’t even taken a single competitive snap against another team as a Pat.

 

[Gumby]

I dont see Kraft writing Boutte any checks.

Boutte had a good - not great - 2025 season and now expects to be paid. It doesn't work that way. Furthermore, if the Pats cave to Bouttes demands it would send a message to the team to act the same way to get what you want.

Henry just got more money because he didnt act like a fool.

Wrong.

Henry got money cause he is decent & a VET in a shortage commodity. (And was ALSO agreeable (not foolish), but that not the defining franchise-motivating factor.)

Boutte didn’t get money yet, cause he is ON A ROOKIE CONTRACT and in a commodity with a LOT of decent, but few REALLY GOOD players. Those factors motivate the franchise to sit and wait to see (call & see how the river plays out).
- If he remains at Decent in 2026, it is in teams interest to lowball or let him walk. If he shows a jump to Good or Really Good, the team will be eithermotivated to offer him a mid-season extension or be in a quandry as to Boutte vs Doubs vs ?? in 2027.

 

[mike_usagisan]

A good OC will design plays around the good WRs we have, even when those skill sets are similar. If Boutte is better than Pop or KW or Chism, it's better to keep him and play him than to put in a guy who will be less effective.

 

[WazzuWheatfarmer]

Good stuff here. I also like Will Campbell to make a big jump in his second season. I really hope AVT can stay healthy at LG
because I think that solid veteran presence will be beneficial for Campbell. But either way, I love Campbell and I think he’s going to keep developing into a perennial Pro Bowl LT for the Pats.

 

[The Gr8est]

I think the final CB spot will be super competitive because you didn’t include Kindle Vildor, who has had an excellent camp. This is a group I’m feeling increasingly good about top to bottom.

I wouldn’t be surprised if they tried to make room for both Morton and Crownover, keeping only 3 RBs and cutting Chism for the initial cut.

Morton is a guy I am paying attention to.

When the Pats drafted TFB I didn’t like the pick. They already had three QBs? Where were they going to put him?

Likewise when the Pats drafted Morton I didn’t like the pick. His arm seemed mediocre, but then I read that he was injured all of the last season, and he has shown a better arm in camp. He will be interesting to watch.

 

[rkarp1]

He had a sack and a batted ball yesterday against the Colts, so probably not.

yes, Ponder does that well, or at least he did last season
but with out Landry, he will also need to tackle well, set the edge, and perhaps drop back into coverage
we don't know if he can do all that yet

or maybe you do, because apparently you know everything