New England Patriots News 5-13, AFC East Notes
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Posted Under: Patriots News
🕑 Read Time: 9 minutes
New England Patriots > Patriots Blog
Good morning, and a very Happy Mother’s Day to all of the Moms out there. Here are your Sunday’s Patriots news 5-13, & AFC East Notes
Quick Hitters: One of the treats of the spring is getting to hear the assistant coaches speak, as in most of the NFL, that isn’t very often. Patriots offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia was on hand and asked about his newest acquisition in top draft pick Isaiah Wynn. Scarnecchia spoke highly on the rookie’s potential stating, “he was a really good player in the best conference in America…he played left tackle and guard so, that’s what I like about him. He’s smart, as tough as they come…we look at three traits, smart, tough and athletic for the position. We’re going to give him the opportunity to play left tackle, guard and we’ll see. That is what training camp and the preseason is for.
Ivan Fears, the Patriots running back coach was smiling too when talking about fellow first-round pick and fellow Georgia Bulldog Sony Michel.”They loved the kid down there at Georgia, all you could get was great accolades about him as a player and as a person. We’ve only had the one meeting this morning in the meeting room but it seems like we’re going to have some fun.”
Josh McDaniels made it clear that he’s very grateful to be back in New England for another season from a personal and professional standpoint. His family is heavily rooted here but he did make it clear, he’d like to be a head coach again. McDaniels was disappointed by not worried about having Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski at the voluntary workouts thus far in the spring.
Brian Flores, the team’s linebacker coach and the defensive coordinator without a title, who will be calling the defensive signals this season, isn’t worried about titles, just helping all of the players get better. “I try to think as a player. What’s the best way to teach this? What’s the best technique for this specific player?” And as for the style, the Patriots defense will play this year? “I’m passionate about this game, passionate about coaching this team. This is going to sound like a Bill Belichick-coached team: tough, smart, dependable, cool under pressure. That’s been a good formula. I’ll go with that one.”
Some good news to hear…Malcolm Mitchell who missed all of 2017 with knee issues after coming on late in his 2016 rookie season is expected to be a full participant for the OTAs beginning on May 21. Mitchell caught 32 passes for 402 yards and four scores, with the vast majority coming down the stretch. He added 6 catches for 70 yards (including five in the fourth quarter) of the Patriots Super Bowl comeback win over the Falcons.
Patriots Offensive linemen align their helmets after practice. (SBalestrieri photo)
Patriots Sign Six Rookie Draft Picks and Nine UDFAs:
The Patriots announced that they had signed all of their Day 3 Draft picks and nine rookie UDFAs.They inked fifth-round draft pick LB Ja’Whaun Bentley, sixth-round draft picks LB Christian Sam and WR Braxton Berrios and 2018 seventh-round picks QB Danny Etling, DB Keion Crossen, and TE Ryan Izzo. Terms of the contracts were not announced.
The UDFAs, who fans may not be read up on as much consisted of:
CB A.J. Moore: Moore is a slightly undersized corner for the boundary at 5’11 but played primarily nickel at Ole Miss and ran a 4:40 in the 40-yard dash. Interesting stat- in 39 games, Moore didn’t have an interception.
TE Shane Wimann: Wimann is a 6’3, 255-pound tight end from Northern Illinois. He had 30 receptions and seven touchdowns in 2017. He has average speed but shows nice hands extends his arms well showing a nice catch radius. Below average blocker.
DT John Atkins: Another Georgia Bulldog, the big man inside (6’3, 321) is primarily a run stuffer and was known as the man who helped keep Roquan Smith clean. Phone booth worker inside with very little pass rush ability.
CB J.C. Jackson: Jackson is solidly built and in our opinion is just realizing his potential. We wrote about him in detail here. He is an intriguing player that may fight for a roster spot and earn some reps at a very crowded position.
DE Trent Harris: Harris led the Miami Hurricanes with 8.5 sacks and 37 tackles in 2017. Nicknamed “Toolbox Trent” because of his array of moves. Smaller for a defensive end, he may move to LB with the Pats. Our analysis of him is here:
WR Chris Lacy: Lacy is a 6’3, 205-pound wide receiver from Oklahoma State. He has good size and decent top end speed but struggled in the underneath routes and didn’t have great production. Some experience as a returner.
RB Ralph Webb: Webb was a very productive player from Vanderbilt who reportedly got a decent signing bonus from the Pats, which usually means he may be a keeper. While a workhorse type of player who brings it every day in practice and the games, his play speed will be something to watch. He was considered too slow for the NFL by most draftniks.
DT Frank Herron: Herron, despite a standout performance at the East-West Shrine game didn’t come with high expectations into the NFL Draft. He had only so-so production at LSU with 21 tackles and a forced fumble. An early-season suspension may have been a red-flag which hurt his stock.
WR Darren Andrews: Andrews’ name was a surprise as no one had listed him as a Patriot target. Andrews was a shorter, stockier wide receiver who was a good slot receiver at UCLA. He is quick out of his breaks and finds the open spots on the field. Suffered a torn ACL at the end of the season, he may not be 100 percent yet.
From Mike Regalado on Fansided: “Andrews is not the quickest receiver, but if the Patriots need someone to go out and reel in short-yardage passes consistently, especially from one of the best signal callers in history, Tom Brady, then the former Bruin is their man. Andrews runs clean routes, has a solid position on defenders and can grind out yards after contact.”
Patriots Cut Garcia, Illness Takes Its Toll on Promising Tackle:
More bad news for Antonio Garcia, the Patriots third-round draft pick in 2017 (85th Overall) out of Troy. The team is releasing Garcia with a non-football-illness designation, ESPN’s Field Yates reported on Friday
His rookie season never got off the ground as the illness he suffered, blood clots in his lungs caused him to be placed on IR and the medication to combat those caused a loss of about 40 pounds.
After the Patriots moved up to take him in the 3rd round last year, he was considered the heir apparent to LT Nate Solder. He took part in the early portion of training camp including joint practices with the Jaguars. Then his illness sidelined him for the remainder of the season.
Earlier this spring, he posted on Instagram that he was cleared for football again by his doctors and his weight was again up to his college playing days. He had been taking part in the voluntary portion of the off-season workouts. This has to mean he’s had another setback. Very sad to see a young man’s dreams taken away so close to realizing them. We all hope he makes a full recovery.
Patriots Will be 4-Men Short During OTAs:
With OTAs starting next week, the Patriots will be short at least four players and all of them from the offensive line.
New additions Isaiah Wynn and Trent Brown are both coming off of shoulder surgery in the offseason and aren’t expected to be ready. Marcus Cannon went on IR late last season and isn’t expected to be ready until training camp and Joe Thuney just had foot surgery and likewise won’t be ready until training camp.
As Dante Scarnecchia said, he’s very excited to work with the group that they have. But he won’t see them on the field until camp starts in late July.
Patricia Story Makes an Appearance 22 Years Later:
Former Patriots defensive coordinator and current Detroit Lions head coach Matt Patricia is facing questions over a sexual assault case from 22 years ago when he was a college football player on spring break at South Padre Island.
The Lions’ standard background check came back clear because they checked only for criminal convictions. Patricia was arrested and charged but the charges were later dropped. The Patriots released a statement that they too had never heard of this incident which was eight years before Patricia was hired in New England.
According to the indictment, Patricia and his friend and former college teammate, Greg Dietrich at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, then 21, had sex with the woman without her consent through the use of “physical force and violence.”
The alleged victim was a 21-year-old Indiana college student on spring break who had met the football players on the beach. She told police that she was asleep in a friend’s room at the Radisson hotel at about 6 p.m. when Patricia and Dietrich burst into the room and took turns assaulting her, the newspaper reported.
The case was dropped because the woman told prosecutors that she couldn’t take the stress of a trial, which is very common in those cases. During a sexual assault trial, often times the victim is more vilified than the accused.
In these cases, it all comes down to whether or not there was consent. The sex act is usually not even a question. There is no way to know which side is telling the truth in this case, as there just isn’t enough information to make any kind of definitive statement on whether the case had merit. Perhaps more information will come to light in the coming weeks.
The South Padre Island area normally has about five sexual assault cases every spring break. Patricia is adamant he did no wrong on that night in question and the Lions are standing by him. If indeed he is innocent of those charges, then this was a very unnecessary blight on what has been a very stellar NFL career.
But make no mistake, the crime of sexual assault or rape is a vile act and has no place in our society. We’ll reserve judgment for now as there isn’t enough information to accurately sift through.
Eastbound and Down…AFC East Notes:
Josh Allen Lost for Words Meeting Bills Legend Kelly:
The Buffalo Bills quarterback of the future met the quarterback of the Bills glory years and he was more rattled meeting Jim Kelly than he was in his first NFL practice. Head coach Sean McDermott introduced the pair after the session and Allen was in awe.
“I’m still shaking from meeting him,” Allen admitted.
Allen is well aware of the Bills history with Kelly and the famed K-gun offense that went to four straight Super Bowls during his tenure.
“I can’t say anything else but he’s a special man. He’s been through a lot,” he said. “And to be in the spirits that he is and to come out here and show support for the Buffalo Bills, that just shows to me how much he means to Buffalo and Buffalo means to him. It’s awesome.”
Kelly who just had another bout with cancer in his jaw, walked slowly with the aid of a can and still has trouble speaking but appeared upbeat and smiled, giving a thumbs up for photos.
Allen has a long way to go in his development but forging a relationship with a Bills legend is definitely getting off on the right foot with the fanbase. Buffalo has been searching for a franchise QB since Kelly retired in 1996.
Dolphins Looking For Fitzpatrick to be the Game Changer on Defense:
The Miami Dolphins defense was generous to opposing quarterbacks in 2017. The Fins QB rating against their defense a year ago was 94.8, fifth worst in the NFL. They’re hoping that their first pick and 11th over Minkah Fitzpatrick is going to go a long way in changing things in that respect.
Miami’s corners are good, where they were leaky was at safety, especially free safety where tight ends and running backs routinely feasted. Fitzpatrick was the best defender on the national champion Alabama Crimson Tide defense.
The Dolphins may decide to run a version of a 4-2-5 defense which the Patriots call their “big nickel” where a safety takes the place of a linebacker. Fitzpatrick will no doubt be tasked with coverage in that role. It is a role he’s perfectly suited for.
On offense, the Dolphins are rolling the dice in 2018 and hoping that QB Ryan is ready to go and healed from his ACL injury and finally ready to assume the mantle of being “the guy” for Miami. Behind him is just Brock Osweiler, David Fales, and the recently signed Bryce Petty.
Jets Tight End Position Not Conducive to Helping a Young QB:
The New York Jets believe that they finally have their franchise QB in Sam Darnold and he’ll be watched closely if he takes the field in 2018 as many expect he will and take over the reins from Josh McCown.
But what nearly most successful quarterbacks have, and especially what a young one will need is a go-to guy, a tight end that can be used as an emergency valve when the pocket begins to collapse all around him.
A look at the Jets tight end situation isn’t going to make anyone quake in fear of shutting them down. Clive Walford has 70 career receptions, 768 yards, and 10 scores. Eric Tomlinson and Neal Sterling have 26 combined catches between them. Two second-year players, Bucky Hodges and Jordan Leggett are looking for their first NFL receptions.
The pressure will be on 4th round draft pick Chris Herndon to not only make the team but to put in quality reps and provide some meaningful production this season. Herndon is still a very raw prospect and while he didn’t have any great production at Miami, he is very athletic and could be a factor down the road with the right coaching and experience. But for Year 1, it could be a struggle for both the young TE and QB.
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