As the NFL Scouting Combine week becomes NFL Scouting Combine weekend, let’s run through a few of your New England Patriots questions.
This week, we’re tackling potential J.C. Jackson replacements, impressive receiver prospects, the future of the Patriots’ offensive line and more.
@MasonsBetter
Chris Olave. That’s the question.
Big fan. I think he’d be perfect for the Patriots and should be a real consideration at pick No. 21. Fast, great hands, excellent route-runner, a lot of experience in a big-time program (Ohio State), weapon on special teams. There’s much to like.
For a few hours Thursday night, the chances of Olave potentially falling to New England appeared to evaporate when he was unofficially clocked at 4.26 seconds in the 40-yard dash, which would have been the fifth-best time in history.
His official time, though, wound up being a slightly less jaw-dropping 4.39. Still a very strong number, but not one that’ll guarantee Olave will be snatched up within the top 15 picks. That’s good news for Patriots fans who want to see the former Buckeyes star sporting a Flying Elvis.
Olave met with the Patriots this week and spoke highly of Mac Jones in his combine news conference, saying he believes Jones will develop into one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks.
@Ashley1992_
Hi Zack, I keep hearing talk about the Pats drafting a wide receiver, which receivers do you think are the best fit in our system?
We’ve spotlighted a number of them this week, including projected first-rounders Olave, Jameson Williams, Treylon Burks and Jahan Dotson, intriguing Day 2 options John Metchie and Wan’Dale Robinson, and perfect late-round fit Slade Bolden.
I’ll use this space, then, to single out two other potential targets from smaller schools, both of whom turned in impressive workouts Thursday night.
One is Skyy Moore from Western Michigan, who helped his already burgeoning stock with an excellent showing at the NFL Scouting Combine. He showed fantastic quickness on film and proved he has the straight-line speed to go with it by posting a 4.41-second 40-yard dash. (His initial 4.39 was unofficial.)
Moore, who’s been projected as a second-rounder, could give the Patriots the elite quicks they’ve lacked in the slot since Julian Edelman retired. In fact, his NFL player comp in Pro Football Focus’s 2022 draft guide is none other than the Super Bowl LIII MVP. Like Edelman, Moore also is a former quarterback (and cornerback), though he switched over after high school.
Per PFF, Moore dropped just six collegiate passes with his 10 1/4-inch hands — biggest among receivers at this year’s combine and massive for his 5-foot-10, 195-pound frame — and forced 26 missed tackles last season, which led the nation.
Another big riser from Thursday was North Dakota State’s Christian Watson. He also had his final 40 time neutered a bit — it initially was a blazing 4.28 seconds — but he still ran a very impressive 4.36 at 6-foot-4, 208 pounds to go along with an 11-foot, 4-inch broad jump that led all wideouts.
That size/speed/explosiveness combo is an intriguing package, and Watson showed solid route-running chops and versatility in college, also contributing as a rusher and kick returner for the FCS’s premier program. He impressed at the Senior Bowl — one of the Patriots’ favorite scouting settings — and met with New England while he was down there.
Watson was viewed as a fringe Day 2/3 prospect entering combine week. He carries the requisite quality-of-competition concerns as someone who played outside of college football’s top flight, but he certainly boosted his stock in Indianapolis.
In the late-round sleeper category, Rutgers’ Bo Melton had a great all-around workout, running a 4.34-second 40 and 6.98-second three-cone drill (second-fastest) with a 38-inch vertical and a 10-foot, 1-inch broad jump at 5-foot-11, 189 pounds. Melton was a two-year captain, caught 164 passes in college, was special teams contributor and played for a friend of Bill Belichick in Greg Schiano.
And then there’s pint-sized Memphis wideout Calvin Austin, who aced every test he took Thursday night. Austin ranked in the top three at his position in the 40 (4.32), vertical jump (39 inches), broad jump (11 feet, 3 inches) and short shuttle (4.07). He’s only 5-foot-8, 170 pounds, but that’s a superb showing for a player who also impressed at the Senior Bowl.
@KP_Booth
Are there any UFA CBs available to replace Jackson? Or any who might be available in trade?
This isn’t a particularly deep free agent class for cornerbacks, but there are a few interesting names out there.
Kansas City’s Charvarious Ward is one who could pique the Patriots’ interest with his man-coverage skills and top-tier tackling ability. Steven Nelson, Casey Heyward Jr., Darious Williams and D.J. Reed also are available, though Williams and Reed (both 5-foot-9) don’t fit New England’s typical profile for outside corners. Tampa Bay’s Carlton Davis is another impending free agent, but he’s expected to receive the franchise tag.
From a pure storyline perspective, I’d love to see Stephon Gilmore back in New England, but I doubt he’d be interested in a reunion after his messy exit last season. Gilmore played well following his trade to Carolina and is set to hit the market.
The Patriots have until next Tuesday to franchise Jackson — at which point they could either keep or trade him — but multiple reports this week have suggested they’re unlikely to do so.
“At this point, it would be a surprise if the Patriots use the franchise tag on cornerback J.C. Jackson,” The Athletic’s Jeff Howe wrote Thursday. “The team has yet to relay their firm plans with Jackson, but it doesn’t sound like they want to tag him. While Jackson is expected to be one of the highest-paid players in free agency, there are some cornerback-needy teams that don’t intend to pursue him due to the projected price tag. His market will be very interesting to monitor — again, assuming the Patriots don’t tag him.”
The franchise tag for cornerbacks carries a one-year price tag of roughly $17.3 million, so it would be an expensive avenue for the cap-strapped Patriots to pursue.
@pats300levelpod
Is Jonathan Jones a potential surprise cut this offseason? Even though the secondary is depleted, he has a $7.7 mil cap hit this season and they Patriots would get almost $5.7 million in cap savings if they cut him Prior to June 1
I don’t like the idea of parting ways with another quality cornerback when the Patriots might already lose Jackson. But with that contract situation (New England can save $5.68 million against the salary cap with just over $2 million left behind in dead money by trading or releasing Jones), Jones does at least belong on the list of surprise cut candidates.
But, again, the Patriots need all the cornerback depth they can get at this point. The only ones currently under contract for 2022 are Jalen Mills, Jones, Myles Bryant, Joejuan Williams, Shaun Wade and special teamer Justin Bethel.
Jones suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in Week 6 but reportedly is progressing well, with NFL Media’s Mike Giardi reporting this week that he should be full-go for offseason workouts.
@MRyan_10
I know it’s not the shiny new toy everyone wants for the offense but I think the best pick for the Patriots in the range of #21 is gonna be Trevor Penning. Sure up the protection for Mac10 then grab Metchie who Max already has a rapport with in the second, Beavers in the 3rd
I’ve said for months that I would not be surprised if the Patriots drafted an offensive tackle in the first round, and Penning is someone who could come off the board in that late first-round range. We could also see them trade back, acquire some additional picks and then draft one later in the first or early in the second.
Tackle is a future need for the Patriots even if Trent Brown re-signs, unless they plan to shift Brown to left tackle and play Mike Onwenu on the right side (which wouldn’t be a bad setup). This very well could be Isaiah Wynn’s final year in New England.
Metchie and linebacker Darrian Beavers sound like solid second- and third-round options. Both would make sense for the Patriots.
@riraho5
Isn’t drafting a WR with a knee injury a bad idea because they will be limited in camp and then get stuck behind learning this complicated offense?
It’s definitely something teams need to consider, along with the obvious risk of additional injuries down the line and the fact that, since those players typically don’t test before the draft, clubs won’t have a fully accurate picture of their athletic profiles. Malcolm Mitchell came into the 2016 draft with a history of knee injuries, and he wound up playing just one season for the Patriots.
Conversely, if a team is confident the injury won’t be a long-term problem, players like these can wind up being excellent value picks. Williams, for instance, might have been a top-10 pick had he not torn his ACL in the national championship game. Now, he’s projected to go somewhere in the 20s.
Patriots decision-makers will be debating that risk-versus-value equation when they evaluate Williams and Metchie, who tore his ACL in the SEC Championship.
@ByronFarmer11
With the lift of the covid rules could you see Popovich return to the team for the OLine?
I thought that would be a possibility. Cole Popovich stayed local after being removed from the Patriots’ coaching staff, reportedly following a dispute over COVID vaccination rules, coaching linemen at nearby Franklin High School. The Patriots also kept him listed on their team website until recently.
But Popovich took a job as the offensive line coach at Troy in January, so he’d need to leave that gig to rejoin the Patriots. There’s been no indication that he plans to do so.
It’s unclear who will coach the Patriots’ O-line with Carmen Bricillo following Josh McDaniels to Las Vegas. Reports have suggested Matt Patricia could take over that position group — he was New England’s assistant O-line coach in 2005 but hasn’t coached offense since — and Billy Yates is a candidate for more responsibility after serving as assistant O-line coach this past season.
Yates played for the Patriots from 2004 to 2008 and coached under Patricia in Detroit.
