Patriots' Position Battles to Watch Ahead of 2024 NFL Season
The quarterback competition will be the primary topic of the New England Patriots' preseason.
No. 3 overall pick Drake Maye is the future of the franchise, but the conversation stems around whether he is ready to step into the starting job in Week 1.
Jacoby Brissett is one of the best insurance policies a team could have at quarterback, and if Maye is not ready, the Patriots should not feel inclined to race their top draft pick on to the field.
Which players will catch the passes from Brissett and Maye is a small mystery as well.
The Patriots have a plethora of decent options on their wide receiver depth chart, but how they will be ordered on that depth chart in Week 1 is far from determined.
Quarterback
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The Patriots are in no rush to get Maye on the field.
That should be the line that hangs in the minds of the coaching staff as they evaluate the No. 3 overall pick.
New England is at the start of a long rebuild and it is not expected to compete for a playoff spot now that it has its quarterback of the future.
The Patriots should take a cautious approach with Maye to make sure he is 100 percent ready to start an NFL game.
Brissett's presence helps the Patriots with their decision-making. They could call on the veteran signal-caller to start the first few weeks and then eventually make way for Maye.
A decision does not have to be made right away, but it should happen two weeks out from the season opener so that Brissett or Maye can have the proper time to prepare without having to worry about a competition.
Wide Receiver
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The Patriots have a lot of fascinating pieces at wide receiver, but no clear-cut No. 1 option.
Demario Douglas is the closest thing to a top pass-catcher that the Patriots have and he will probably start the regular season on the top of the depth chart.
Kendrick Bourne, JuJu Smith-Schuster, K.J. Osborn, Tyquan Thornton and Ja'Lynn Polk will fight for the other spots on the roster.
Polk, the No. 37 overall pick, should emerge as the No. 2 to Douglas in New England's best-case scenario. That would give the Patriots a nice foundation for the future along with Maye.
Bourne and Smith-Schuster are good veteran options to have, Osborn is an intriguing new addition as a depth piece from Minnesota and Thornton needs to perform better to overtake the other three.
At minimum, the wide receiver competition should be fascinating to watch because any of those players could fill the No. 2-No. 6 roles.
Kicker
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Chad Ryland's kicker job is under threat after just one year in the NFL.
Ryland went 16-for-25 on field goals in his rookie campaign. He was 7-for-14 from 40 yards and further in 2023.
The trouble with distance kicks put Ryland on the hot seat going into the 2024 season.
The Patriots signed Joey Slye to compete with Ryland. Slye was 22-for-30 from 40 yards and out for the Washington Commanders in 2022 and 2023.
Slye has an 82.3 career accuracy percentage on field goals. He is 35-for-45 from 40-49 yards and 20-for-32 from 50-plus yards in his career.
Ryland must improve from distance in order to keep his job, and if not, the Patriots could go with a veteran to ensure points in a season where a lot of field goals may be kicked with the offense being a work in progress.
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