With the New England Patriots and Las Vegas Raiders set to square off Friday night at Allegiant Stadium, it’s time for one final preseason Patriots mailbag.
@edrotella
If Wynn gets traded how would he be replaced?
The Patriots reportedly have called teams about a possible Isaiah Wynn trade. While that doesn’t guarantee he’ll be moved before Week 1, it does signal that Bill Belichick is at least considering it.
This has been a weird spring and summer for Wynn, who skipped voluntary OTAs, struggled through a position change and then dealt with an undisclosed injury that sidelined him for more than a week. He returned to the field this Monday in Las Vegas but was unable to finish Wednesday’s joint practice, putting his status for Friday night’s game in question.
If he doesn’t suit up for that, Wynn will have gone an entire preseason without playing a single game snap at his new position of right tackle — a position he, remember, has never played at the NFL or college level.
Finding a trade partner for Wynn would be financially beneficial, as it would wipe his entire $10.4 million salary off the Patriots’ books. But any plan to replace him would come with risk, as well.
If Wynn is moved, the top three internal options to start at right tackle (not necessarily in order) would be:
— Justin Herron, who has been much better as a left tackle in his NFL career
— Yodny Cajuste, who’s had the best summer of his four-year pro career but has played offensive snaps in just three career games (and was benched in one)
— Mike Onwenu, who’s been the Patriots’ starting right guard since the start of spring practice
Of those three, Onwenu has the best NFL track record at right tackle, even if the Patriots seem to prefer him inside. It was notable that Onwenu kicked out to tackle when Wynn, Trent Brown and Herron all sat out last week’s preseason game, with Cajuste slotting in at left tackle.
But if Onwenu shifts to right tackle, who starts at right guard? Arlington Hambright? James Ferentz? Hambright rotated there with Onwenu for a stretch in camp but has started just one NFL game. Ferentz is a serviceable backup center but would be an undesirable Week 1 starter at guard. Will Sherman, Chasen Hines and Drew Desjarlais would be the other players in that mix.
The Patriots also could replace Wynn with an external addition, via trade, free agent pickup or waiver claim. But would they really want to add a brand-new starter to a position group that’s already struggled to communicate effectively? And could they trust Matt Patricia and Billy Yates to get that player up to speed in two weeks?
My choice, in the event of a Wynn trade, probably would be to start Cajuste at right tackle, but I wouldn’t be at all surprised if Onwenu wound up there before long.
@beatty_jay
No news about the TEs this preseason. Everything ok with Hunter and Jonnu?
I’d say this has been an encouraging summer for both of the Patriots’ top tight ends.
Jonnu Smith has looked much more comfortable than he did last season, with New England using him in a variety of ways and Mac Jones frequently targeting him. Hunter Henry has seen fewer targets and missed some time with an injury, but he was a full participant this week and showed off his strong connection with Jones during an efficient two-minute drill Wednesday. Jones capped that drive with a tight-window touchdown to Henry on the final play of joint practices.
Expect the Patriots to use Smith and Henry on the field together much more often this season now that they no longer employ a traditional fullback. As for who will back them up, Devin Asiasi is the favorite to win that spot over Matt Sokol and Jalen Wydermyer, but he’s not a roster lock.
New England could opt to roll with just two rostered tight ends and another on the practice squad — a risky move with their expected uptick in 12 personnel (1RB, 2TE) usage — or keep preseason standout Lil’Jordan Humphrey as a wide receiver/tight end hybrid. The 6-foot-4, 225-pound Humphrey has played some tight end this summer and could provide depth at both spots.
@ketelwan
Most roster predictions list Brenden Schooler as making the team as a ST player… can you expand on what Schooler brings to the team, what his role could be beyond special teams, or anything else to help us fans get to know him better?
I’m part of the camp that has Schooler making the roster as a special teamer. In fact, I think he’s a borderline lock at this stage.
What will he bring? Think of him as a more athletic Nate Ebner, whom he actually had a chance to meet last week in Foxboro. I doubt he’ll have any sort of role outside of the kicking game, but he should play on most of the Patriots’ special teams units, including possibly serving as the personal protector on the punt team. He’s made standout plays on kickoffs and punts in each of his first two preseason games and should get a lot of run Friday night, as well.
Beyond his on-field profile, Schooler has a pretty fascinating backstory. A football nomad of sorts, he played at four different high schools and three different big-time college programs (Oregon, Arizona and Texas). He had a whopping six different collegiate head coaches and went through multiple position changes, bouncing between safety (his listed position with the Patriots) and wide receiver.
Schooler’s freshman-year defensive backs coach at Oregon once told The Oregonian that the 25-year-old “practices like Usain Bolt runs.” We’ve seen some of that this summer.
You can read more on Schooler’s winding road to New England right here.
@FindACure5034
Thoughts on Cam McGrone?
I don’t see him making the 53.
McGrone entered camp with a ton of hype — an unusually high amount for a second-year fifth-round draft pick — after an ACL tear wiped out his rookie season. We expected him to be, at the very least, a contributor in the Patriots’ new-look linebacking corps, if not pushing for a starting job. That just has not happened. McGrone has run with the scout team all summer, and he hasn’t looked good in his preseason appearances, boasting the worst Pro Football Focus grade (28.6) of any Patriots defender.
With Ja’Whaun Bentley, Raekwon McMillan, Jahlani Tavai and Mack Wilson all above him in the inside linebacker hierarchy, the practice squad looks like the most likely landing spot for McGrone.
@Patsguy100
do you think mack wilson has done enough to win the starting job, or are starting LBs still looking like bentley/mcmillan? also, any possibility of peppers playing LB since the safety group is stacked? haven’t heard much about him this camp
Based on what we’ve seen in camp, I’d be surprised if Wilson opened the season as a starter. Those likely will be Bentley at one spot and either McMillan or Tavai at the other (they rotated in last week’s preseason game and this week’s joint practices). I do expect Wilson to play a lot, though, and I think his speed, physicality and playmaking ability will be assets for a position group that needed to get faster this season.
As for Peppers, it was good to see him up his participation level this week in Vegas, as he’s been limited for much of the summer with an injury. He, Adrian Phillips and Kyle Dugger all can play either safety or linebacker, which gives the Patriots a lot of defensive flexibility. They’ll be able to throw a variety of different looks at opposing quarterbacks.
@BigBadWolff88
What’s up with Damien Harris injury ?
No update yet on Harris, who left Wednesday’s joint practice and did not return. We’ll see whether he dresses for Friday night’s game. Even if he doesn’t play — and I expect the Patriots will be cautious if he’s anything less than 100% — him being on the sideline in uniform would be a positive sign.
If Harris misses time, the Patriots have a rock-solid No. 2 in Rhamondre Stevenson, who had a strong camp and could push for lead-back status regardless this season. Ty Montgomery also has looked good in his first New England summer. He’s still listed as a wide receiver, but he became a full-time running back early in camp and should help offset the loss of the retired James White.
@ashley1992__
Hi Zack, Does LaBryan Ray and Sam Roberts both make the team in your opinion?
I had both rookie defensive linemen making the cut in my latest 53-man roster projection, beating out veterans Henry Anderson and Carl Davis, among others. Ray flashed at least once in nearly every training camp practice, and Roberts made impact plays in each of the first two preseason games. Neither is a lock, in my view, but both have made strong cases for roster spots.
Another who could sneak on is DaMarcus Mitchell. I had him just missing out in my last projection, but he’s seen a lot of prominent reps on special teams of late and has emerged as a dark-horse roster candidate.
Ray and Mitchell both are undrafted rookies, as is Schooler. Roberts was a sixth-round pick.
@CantGuardJimmy
Does Kevin Harris have a chance to make the 53-man in your opinion
Not a great one. The sixth-round rookie is the low man on the Patriots’ running back depth chart, and unlike fellow draftee Pierre Strong (fourth round), draft status alone won’t earn him a roster spot.
Outside of a brief pop for Strong in his return from an early-camp injury, this has been a quiet summer for both of the Patriots’ first-year backs. I don’t expect either to have much of a role to start the season, though I am intrigued to see how Strong develops over the next few months. He’s easily the fastest member of the Patriots’ backfield.
Third-year pro J.J. Taylor also is on the roster bubble after working almost exclusively with the scout team this summer. It might take a significant injury to Damien Harris for him to stick around.
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