FOXBORO, Mass. — The New England Patriots already boasted one of the NFL’s best receiving corps entering the 2017 offseason. Then they went and added Brandin Cooks.
With Cooks joining the fray and the likes of Julian Edelman, Chris Hogan, Malcolm Mitchell and Danny Amendola all returning, this group of Patriots receivers might be the deepest and most talented Tom Brady has been blessed with during his 17 years as New England’s starting quarterback.
“It’s a very competitive group, and we’re looking forward to having a lot of guys do a lot of things that they do well for us,” wide receivers coach Chad O’Shea said Thursday at Patriots organized team activities. “And we’re just excited about the competition of the group.”
And the depth goes beyond just those five aforementioned names. As of Friday morning, the Patriots had 11 wide receivers on their 90-man roster, all vying for a spot on the final 53-man list or, for those who qualify, at least a place on the practice squad.
Cooks, Edelman, Hogan, Mitchell and special teams ace Matthew Slater all are roster locks. Amendola, who restructured his contract last month but still is owed $1.35 million in guaranteed money this season, is a safe bet to stick around, as well.
That leaves 2016 practice squadders Devin Lucien and DeAndrew White, undrafted rookies Austin Carr and Cody Hollister, and newly signed veteran Andrew Hawkins, all of whom have their work cut out for them as offseason workouts heat up.
This wealth of talent should make for some fierce competition during OTAs, minicamp and training camp, among both players fighting for a spot on the team and those hoping to secure a larger role in coordinator Josh McDaniels’ offense.
“We’ve added competition to our receiver group, and it’s been beneficial,” O’Shea said. “It’s really been challenging for everyone in our room to work as hard as they can. The competition is really going to bring out the best in all of the players, and I think that’s the attitude that they’ve taken, which has been great. They really have looked at it as a really good thing that we have competition.
“I know that could go either way with some players, but for our players in the receiver room, it’s really been a real positive that they’ve embraced the challenge of competing with players that are real good at their position.”
All eyes will be on Cooks each time the Patriots hit the practice field this summer, eager to see how the 23-year-old’s game translates to New England’s system. Cooks surpassed 1,000 receiving yards with the New Orleans Saints in each of the past two seasons, and he looked good Thursday in his first practice in front of the New England media.
Among the long shots, one player to watch is Carr, who led the Big Ten in catches, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns last season as a senior at Northwestern.
“It’s very challenging to come in and learn our offense,” O’Shea said, “but I think that what we ask these guys to do is come in and work as hard as they can and do the things we asked of them. And Austin has done that. He’s come in and worked really hard to try to learn our offense, and they have to. There’s no other option for him other than to just work really hard and try to learn it.”
Asked whether the Patriots will consider rostering six receivers (plus Slater) this season rather than the usual four or five, O’Shea said that decision won’t be made until much later this summer.
Thumnail photo via Zack Cox/NESN.com
