Patriots News 8-25, What To Watch For In Preseason Finale
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Good morning. Here are your Patriots news and notes for August 25. The Patriots and Commanders wrap up the preseason tonight ahead of the big roster cutdown from 90 players to the initial 53-man roster.
Jerod Mayo has said that everyone healthy will play, which runs counter to what most teams are doing: resting their starters for the Week 1 season opener. There are still a lot of questions that must be answered before the roster cutdown.
The roster bubble players are looking to stake a claim on the initial 53-man team, and with several veterans banged up, it will present an opportunity to do just that.
We’ll get to the “what to watch for” farther below, but it is far from the normal preseason finale for the Patriots, where the starters are sitting. This week is an “all hands on deck” scenario.
Matthew Judon: The trade that sent Judon to Atlanta was considered to be just about money, with the two sides not being able to find acceptable common ground. However, SI NFL insider Albert Breer said the issues went deeper than that.
“Judon was not as well-liked by the coaches and front office people as you might have thought,” Breer told NBC Sports Boston. “And that was really part of it. In the end, they were just sick of him. They felt like there was a public face of Judon, and there was Judon behind the scenes.
“Judon, behind the scenes, has become a little bit of an operator, and his act had worn thin with people inside the building. It’s something that was an issue in Baltimore, too. So it’s not saying he’s a bad guy, but there was some of this sort of cheerleader stuff on social media that a lot of people in the organization would roll their eyes at.”
Judon has softened his stance on getting a new contract before the season starts and said, “The Atlanta Falcons know nothing about me as a football player and about me as a man,” Judon said, via ESPN.
“They really know my previous résumé. So, I can’t really demand or ask for anything that I haven’t worked for. And that’s where I’ve been my whole life. So, I’m [going to] work for it, man.”
Mac Jones: The former Patriots’ quarterback finished an outstanding preseason against the Atlanta Falcons, going 13-18 for 113 yards and a touchdown. With this performance, Jones probably cemented himself as Trevor Lawrence’s backup for the Jaguars.
Jones had been battling with fellow backup quarterback C.J. Beathed, who missed the game due to an injury. During the three games of the preseason, Jones completed 73 percent of his passes for 421 yards and three touchdowns.
Rumors persist that Minnesota may try to trade for Jones since J.J. McCarthy went down with a season-ending injury. Still, he’s shown that with the proper supporting cast on offense, he could ably fill in for Lawrence if the situation arises with any kind of injury.
He Said It: Jaguars’ coach Doug Pederson fired a shot across the bow against the Patriots regarding Mac Jones’ development (or lack thereof) after the Jaguars final preseason game.
“Mac has played extremely well in the last couple of weeks and has really bought into what we do,” Pederson told the media in his post-game press conference.
“He’ll still revert back to his Patriots ways every now and then, and we have to remind him he’s in Jacksonville. But he’s done a good job managing and running the offense, getting everybody involved. He sees the field well and throws a good ball, so he’s done a good job.”
J.C. Jackson: The former Patriot’s cornerback, who is still unsigned for the 2024 season, has been suspended by the NFL for one game for violating the league’s personal conduct policy for missing a probation violation hearing related to a criminal speeding charge in 2021.
Jackson left the Patriots in 2022 and signed a big-money contract with the Chargers. He quickly flamed out with the Bolts and found his way back to the Patriots, where he missed the season’s final four games due to injury.
Patriots 4th & 2 Podcast: Unfortunately, we couldn’t do a mid-week podcast due to a death in my immediate family. Last week, Derek Havens and I discussed and broke down the Eagles game. Please check it out. We looked at the latest breaking news, especially the trade of Matthew Judon.
Russ Francis/Chuck Fairbanks: The former Patriot tight end and head coach should be in the Patriots team Hall of Fame, and the fact that Francis isn’t in is an absolute travesty. Francis and the Raiders’ Dave Casper changed how teams used the tight end position. This will be discussed in our Sunday posts until it happens. Casper is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Francis’ numbers stand up well against Casper’s, yet he isn’t even in the team’s HOF.
The Patriots and Commanders will meet later tonight to finish the preseason tilts and prepare for the regular season. While many teams rest their starters, the Patriots have adopted an “All hands on deck” scenario. And this is the first time this season that the Patriots handled it like a normal game week scenario instead of the training camp mode. However, with 90 players present, it did present some different situations and difficulties.
Jerod Mayo has said that everyone who is healthy will play, as many roster battles remain. The injuries include Hunter Henry and Mitchell Wilcox at tight end. Matthew Judon has been traded, with the defense along the edge, Josh Uche and Oshane Ximines are banged up.
However, several other questions remain at WR depth, such as the starting OL and the QB situation. Here are some of the things we’ll be looking for tonight.
If you read the tea leaves, it seems like Jacoby Brissett will be the starter in Week 1, barring a complete meltdown. This may be the final chance for the coaches to see what Maye can do in a competitive game until he can start.
Maye has improved his game slowly but surely, especially since the Eagles game. He looks very comfortable running the offense, and his confidence has grown as well. His trajectory keeps pointing upward.
This week is also important because the coaches may use it as a barometer to see how ready he is to assume the starter’s role around mid-season. The Patriots’ schedule is daunting, and the team may be better served by having the veteran Brissett handle the first bit of that.
Another reason to sit Maye, at least initially, is that the team wants to keep him upright. And with the uncertainty of the offensive line, especially at left tackle, this may present issues in running the offense. Although Maye’s athleticism shown through last week, Brissett’s experience may prove to be beneficial.
This week, the Patriots have switched things up along the offensive line and have finally moved Mike Onwenu to right tackle with rookie Layden Robinson at right guard, David Andrews at center, Sidy Sow at left guard, and Chuks Okorafor at left tackle.
This is intriguing since it put Onwenu at tackle for the first time in camp. During free agency, Eliot Wolf said that Onwenu was the best tackle on the market. And for Robinson, it is his opportunity to run with the top unit. His play has been trending upward. Fellow rookie Caedan Wallace was the top backup at both right and left tackle.
It should be noted that left tackle Vedarian Lowe was out with a left oblique injury, and tackle Calvin Anderson also missed some time this week. Perhaps we’ll see this unit starting tonight, and see how they work together.
Tyquan Thornton has had a good summer, his blazing speed has shown up at times this summer. But the Patriots need to see it in a game. Tonight would be a great time to showcase that ability to take the top off the defense, With Alex Van Pelt’s offense, the philosophy of running the ball and then using play action, to throw deep fits Thornton’s ability perfectly. Time to show up.
Pop Douglas and Ja’Lynn Polk seem perfectly matched to keep the chains moving. Douglas is small but very quick and has shown the ability to be virtually uncoverable at times. Polk the rookie wide receiver is the contested catch guy. With these three, they need all of them (and the QBs) to come together.
Jaheim Bell has the opportunity to make a case for the #3 tight end with a strong performance. With Hunter Henry and Mitchell Wilcox out, it is a sink-or-swim time for the rookie. He hasn’t flashed as I had hoped he would by now.
After the trade of Matthew Judon, Josh Uche and Oshane Ximines were injured this week, leaving the unit thin. This week the starting edge players were Anfernee Jennings and 2nd-year player Keion White.
The onus is on Jennings who does a great job of setting the edge, but he’ll now be looked at to provide more in the pass rush department. The Patriots rewarded Jennings with a new contract after a breakout campaign after Judon was injured in Week 4. He has a limited tool box in as a pass rusher, but I wouldn’t sell him short, especially after his 2023 season.
White is at his best playing with a hand on the ground, but can also play upright. He’s had a terrific summer. After that, William Bradley-King and Jotham Russell are the only stand up edge players healthy at this time.
Because of the injuries, the Patriots signed Kobe Jones and Christian McCarroll as free agents. While the odds are really stacked against them, showcasing some pass rush ability against Washington, would give them some good tape to either stick around or aid in finding a job elsewhere. I imagine they’ll both get plenty of reps this week.
Joey Slye has come on and outkicked Chad Ryland this summer, but not by such a margin that he’s the prohibitive favorite. Ryland had a nightmarish practice early in the week, but overall their numbers this summer are very close.
It should come down to the game against Washington, where hopefully they’ll both get opportunities to show their stuff. Right now it would probably take a big night for Ryland to beat out Slye, but there could be a case for keeping both, at least for a time.
Dolphins QB Tua Tagoviloa unloaded on former head coach Brian Flores earlier this week. While conducting an interview on “The Dan Lebatard Show with Stu Gotz”, he was asked on the difference between a head coach who believes in him, Mike McDaniel, and one who didn’t believe in him, Flores.
And in answering, Tagoviloa didn’t hold back.
“To put it in simplest terms, if you woke up every morning and I told you, you suck at what you did, that you don’t belong doing what you do, that you shouldn’t be here, that this guy should be here, that you haven’t earned this right. And then you have somebody else come in and tell you, ‘Dude. You are the best fit for this. You are accurate, you are the best whatever, you are this, you are that.’ How would it make you feel listening to one or the other?”
You hear it, regardless of what it is, the good or the bad, you hear it more and more. You start to actually believe that. I don’t care who you are. You could be the president of the United States. You have a terrible person that’s telling you things that you don’t want to hear, or that you probably shouldn’t be hearing, you’re going to start to believe that about yourself. That’s sort of what ended up happening and it’s been two years of training that out of, not just me, but a couple of the guys as well who have been here since my rookie year all the way ‘till now.”
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“No, that’s something that I wanted to do. I talk about it all the time. We brought in 17 new coaches. I have to have belief in my coaching staff to go out there and really get the things done. We meet all the time inside the building, and we’re all on the same page.
“One thing I would say from my perspective, the most important thing is fundamentals. The X’s and O’s, no matter what team you’re talking about, it’s really the same thing they’ve been running since college. It’s about linking that communication. For me, when you look at a game that you just lost, a close game for example, you can always point back to fundamentals, whether they’re good or they’re bad. Tackling, running, catching, throwing the ball. All the basic things that young kids are learning now. Those things still exist at this level.”
Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo after he was asked about spending time with all of the positional players during team practices.
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“Talent sets the floor; Character sets the ceiling.” Bill Belichick
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It makes sense (sort of) that the starters on offense would play a little. Reason: they are implementing an entirely new offense that will take well beyond a single summer camp in terms of implementation and ironing out wrinkles via practice repititions. It’ll be a work-in-progress in the regular season. Secondarily, chaning out 3-4 guys on the o-line is also something that takes more time than one off-season + summer camp. On D, I can’t see why the starters would play much at all. Get out healthy. I’d expect to see backups and guys that are getting cut in on… Read more »
Nice to see Thornton evolve in the new offense. To me, the “stretch the field” long passes to a guy like that were almost not worth calling the past 2 years years. Why? the pats could not block a play where the QB had to hold the ball ~4 seconds. And even if they did give the QB 4 seconds, the QB was shell shocked expecting less time and a hit coming. As such, Thornton was almost ungradeable. He was also hurt a lot and that’s on him. Thornton likely won’t produce a ton in Sept/Oct as the o-line will… Read more »