Some news and notes for this morning:<\/p>\n
1) Coming out of minicamp, it’s starting to seem like there might be some uncertainty when it comes to the wide receiver position, which given the acquisitions this offseason seems a little concerning.<\/p>\n
The team signed both Nelson Agholor and Kendrick Bourne, with the two seemingly being two nice additions to the roster.\u00a0 Agholor was a player some had thought might thrive with a change of scenery and better coaching, while Bourne was a player who many fans out in San Francisco were sad to see go because he was quietly a solid player for them.<\/p>\n
But according to reports, both players were inconsistent during minicamp.\u00a0 Agholor’s speed was evident but he reportedly had a fair number of drops, while the same could apparently be said for Bourne, which is obviously not the type of news we were hoping to hear with just over a month until training camp starts.<\/p>\n
Two players who reportedly made impacts were Isaiah Zuber and Devin Ross, with Ross being rewarded with a contract on Monday.\u00a0 Ross was on the club’s practice squad for part of last year but clearly put in the work and he’s earned an opportunity to be in the mix of players who we’ll see next month competing for a roster spot.<\/p>\n
That being said, what seemed like a pretty solid group seems to have some questions, which could make things interesting.\u00a0 Reports out of camp were positive on Gunner Olszewski, who has continued building himself physically and several have said he looked explosive with the ball in his hands, which could make him a dark horse candidate to be a factor.\u00a0 The same can be said of Tre Nixon, who has also gotten some attention and Karen Guregian of the Boston Herald recently wrote<\/strong><\/a>, “He looks like he could be player”.<\/p>\n However, from all indications, Jakobi Meyers looked the most impressive and the media members on hand seem to believe he’s poised for a solid year, although the hope was to have him as part of a talented group to allow him more opportunities.\u00a0 But so far, he’s reportedly been the best-looking player of the group and that’s sort of not ideal.<\/p>\n N’Keal Harry had moments where he looked like he’s made some progress, but he’s been said to “look choppy” and still lacking the fluidity that is expected from a player of his caliber, which still makes him a question mark.\u00a0 Harry has been subject to trade rumors all offseason and his situation remains one to keep an eye on.<\/p>\n For now, for a group that was supposed to be improved heading into this year, it instead seems like one that has quite a few question marks.\u00a0 For a Patriots team that’s trying to get back to becoming a championship contender, the only way this works out is if guys emerge as difference-makers because the early indications haven’t been encouraging from the players who were supposed to make an impact.<\/p>\n That could obviously change, but there’s a cloud of doubt over this receiving corps that is unexpected and if they plan on bouncing back from last year’s 7-9 campaign, the Patriots will need things to unfold differently when they hit the field again next month.<\/p>\n 2) For anyone who rooted for former special teamer Nate Ebner in the last Olympics, the 32-year old had also been looking to compete for a spot in the Games this summer but it sounds like that won’t be the case.<\/p>\n Ebner has instead reportedly suffered an injury that he says will require surgery and his recovery time it “did not align with trials for the Games”.<\/p>\n From his Instagram account:<\/p>\n pic.twitter.com\/8ZB1d3XY20<\/a><\/p>\n — Nate Ebner (@NateEbner) June 22, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n