One day after hosting one of Mac Jones’ collegiate pass-catchers for a pre-draft visit, the New England Patriots reportedly are working out another.
Alabama slot receiver Slade Bolden has a workout scheduled with the Patriots on Wednesday, NFL reporter Jordan Schultz reported Tuesday.
Bolden, who also met with New England representatives at the NFL Scouting Combine, has long been viewed as an obvious Patriots target.
In addition to being college roommates and close friends with Jones, the Patriots’ current starting quarterback, Bolden told reporters at the combine that he modeled his game after Julian Edelman and often would talk with Crimson Tide offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien (who previously held the same role in New England) about Wes Welker.
Bolden never posted eye-popping numbers in Alabama’s loaded offense (42 catches, 408 yards, three touchdowns in 2021) but was a favorite of head coach Nick Saban.
“He’s a very consistent, dependable player in so many ways,” Saban, a longtime friend of Patriots counterpart Bill Belichick, said of Bolden in December, via Bama Central. “He’s an outstanding special teams player. He does a really good job for us in the passing game. He plays with toughness. He’s a really good competitor.”
Saban also has spoken highly of fellow Alabama wideout John Metchie, a projected Day 2 pick who reportedly visited the Patriots on Tuesday. Bolden won’t hear his name called until much later, with many analysts projecting he’ll go undrafted.
“Overall, Bolden is an ordinary size-speed athlete with clear limitations,” The Athletic’s Dane Brugler wrote in his 2022 draft guide, “but his toughness on special teams could help him secure an NFL slot role.”
