Heading into tonight, here are some things I'm curious about:
1) How the tackles look: Not overly concerned with the interior line because I feel like those guys will be in good shape for the most part, but obviously I'm curious to see who plays tonight at tackle and if the Patriots can at least have one guy look relatively solid. They can keep a tight end to help out like they did in 2021 if they need to, but that requires at least one tackle playing "good enough."
2) Drake Maye and the operation: I'm expecting him to have rookie moments, but I'm curious to see how he looks at the line, the cadence, no delay of games/false starts, etc. Obviously it would be nice to see him settle into somewhat of a rhythm and complete some throws, and I'm hoping that when the night is over he's at least left us with something to build off of heading into next week.
3) The rookie wideouts and who they make plays against: Really hope to see these guys make some plays against the upper echelon of Carolina's depth chart. They've had moments in practice, but it would be nice to see them do it against opposing starting NFL defensive backs. Obviously same as Maye, hoping nobody lines up wrong, no dropped passes, etc.
4) Who gets work on the interior defensive line With Barmore set to miss time, we need someone to emerge here. This was the time Ekuale stepped up before he got hurt last year, and they need some of these interior guys to shake themselves up to the top heading into the season. Not sure who it's going to be as there hasn't been much buzz this preseason, but it's absolutely an area to keep an eye on.
5) Who emerges on the CB Depth chart: This is a talented but thin group with not much margin for error. Definitely curious to see if anyone makes plays and starts to make a case for themselves, as the Patriots remain in need of quality depth at this position.
6) Running back: Is Kevin Harris going to emerge, and how will Antonio Gibson look? With Rhamondre in the fold for the future, who will be spelling him throughout the season is definitely something I'm wondering about.
Overall, looking forward to seeing it play out, and I'll be logging the plays and will hopefully have that available for people as well, although I'll probably need another day or so to get the defensive plays done. Good times.
