What Patriots Veteran Needs To See From Rookie Specialists

FOXBORO, Mass. -- One of the New England Patriots' longest-tenured players will be teamed up with two of their newest this season.

Joe Cardona has been the Patriots' long snapper since 2015. New England's punter and kicker both are rookies -- Bryce Baringer and Chad Ryland, respectively -- whose spots were solidified after the team cut Corliss Waitman and traded Nick Folk to Tennessee.

It's rare for an NFL team to enter a season with a pair of first-year specialists. The Patriots were the first to select a kicker and a punter in the same draft since the Oakland Raiders took Sebastian Jankowski and Shane Lechler in 2000.

Cardona said both will be expected to handle themselves like veterans.

"Ultimately, as an operation, we have to make sure we're getting a lot of work in to put out a good product," Cardona told NESN.com on Tuesday. "At the end of the day, they have to be accountable to the locker room, and as a veteran player, that's my job that they're ready to go."

Ryland will have especially large shoes to fill. The Patriots have enjoyed an enviable streak of kicking consistency that's spanned more than two decades, transitioning almost seamlessly from Adam Vinatieri to Stephen Gostkowski and then to Folk. Ryland will be just the second rookie to kick in a game during the Bill Belichick era after Gostkowski, who succeeded Vinatieri in 2006.

Folk didn't have those players' postseason pedigrees, but he was one of the NFL's most reliable legs during his 3 1/2 seasons in New England. From 2020 to 2022, he converted more than 90% of his field-goal attempts and made a league-record 64 straight from inside 50 yards. He also was highly respected within the locker room.

"Obviously, it's tough when you have a teammate who you went through a lot with," Cardona said. "Nick was just a great teammate -- still is a great teammate. A true professional and the most mentally tough teammate I've ever had."

Special teams captain Matthew Slater, the only player whose Patriots tenure predates Cardona's, echoed that praise, calling Folk "probably the most professional guy I've ever worked with."

Slater also said the Patriots have "a lot of confidence" in Ryland and Baringer, who won what Belichick called "very competitive" roster battles this preseason.

"They've done a great job," Slater said. "They competed at a high level all offseason, and most importantly, they're fantastic human beings, and I think that sets them up to have a great deal of success.

"There are growing pains for all of us as we transition to this league. They may have some. We'll support them and just take it day by day."