5 Positions Where New England Patriots Still Have Questions Headed into 2015
At this point in the offseason, the New England Patriots have made additions at every position on their roster that was considered a need.
That doesn't necessarily mean they've answered all the questions that faced them at those positions. With the 2015 NFL draft in the rearview mirror, they don't have many more opportunities to add talent to the roster. That being said, the Patriots have made moves at the trade deadline in each of the past two years and could be in the mix to add talent before or during the season via trade.
The free-agent market is down to scraps, but the Patriots could still add a talented player with starting experience—and I'm looking in the direction of one Dan Connolly, who remains unsigned nearly two whole months after he became a free agent.
It's strange to talk about the Patriots and their needs, when they'll invariably be competing for one of the top two seeds in the conference and a potential return trip to the Super Bowl. Nonetheless, they have question marks just like any other team.
Cornerback
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The Patriots have lost some starting talent in Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner, but they carry over three cornerbacks who all started multiple games for them last year.
Logan Ryan, Kyle Arrington and Malcolm Butler all have starting experience in the Patriots defense, and even though the team just released Alfonzo Dennard, they were ahead of the curve even though they were behind the eight-ball after losing Revis.
The Patriots have also added four new cornerbacks to the roster this offseason—three free agents and one rookie draft choice. Free-agent acquisitions Bradley Fletcher, Robert McClain and Chimdi Chekwa, along with highly athletic seventh-round cornerback Darryl Roberts, will compete for opportunities with the three incumbents.
They are a deep group, but one that still lacks certainty at the top of the roster.
Wide Receiver
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Brandon LaFell, Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola proved that they can be a formidable trio when all three were on the field during the stretch run of the 2014 season and through the playoffs.
Either Edelman (the starter) or Amendola (the backup) can pick up the slack in the slot if the other is off the field for whatever reason—which is good, because Edelman missed two games in 2014 and Amendola missed four games in 2013. The Patriots do not have the same level of security at the X receiver spot, though, where an injury to LaFell would put the Patriots in a sticky situation.
It's not time to give up on third-year wide receiver Aaron Dobson just yet; he was learning in his first year and got injured in his second year, but his time could be running out if he doesn't show his mettle in training camp.
The question here isn't whether the Patriots have starting-caliber talent; they do. The question is whether they're prepared for the distinct possibility that someone might get injured at some point this year.
Guard
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The Patriots have never drafted a college interior lineman in the first three rounds of the draft—former Patriots left guard Logan Mankins played tackle at Fresno State, so he doesn't count. Their fourth-round interior linemen are no strangers to earning a starting job in their first year in the league, though—just ask Florida State product Bryan Stork.
Stork's former teammate, guard Tre' Jackson, will have a chance to do the same thing and become a starter in his first year on the offensive line. The Patriots have a deep group of young, unproven guards in Jackson, Jordan Devey and Josh Kline, along with veteran center-turned-guard Ryan Wendell. It seems likely that there will be an open competition for the starting guard spots.
At this point, there's no reason not to re-sign Connolly at a veteran minimum contract, since it appears he's not getting enough buyers at whatever price he's currently asking. That way, the Patriots would still have two veteran fallback plans in their starting spots if their young guards don't pan out.
Besides, after the mess on the offensive line during the first four weeks of the 2014 season in which the Patriots were shuffling their offensive linemen like a deck of cards, you'd think the Patriots would value a little consistency up front.
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Running Back
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This is another position where the Patriots have made additions to the roster but haven't necessarily answered all the questions. There's no doubt that they've added plenty of depth to the backfield and have found a different back for any situation. The big question facing the Patriots at running back is whether they have found one back who can come onto the field in every situation.
There aren't many of those backs in the NFL, and the Patriots have never built their offense in that mold. The unit of LeGarrette Blount, Jonas Gray and Brandon Bolden can hammer the ball between the tackles; Travaris Cadet, James White and Tyler Gaffney can all contribute in the passing game.
But none of them has shown the ability to be a jack-of-all-trades in the NFL. The Patriots may involuntarily be tipping their hand at times when defenses have a minute to identify which back is on the field—that being said, New England could use that to its advantage and throw the defense off-balance by throwing when Blount is on the field or running when Cadet is lined up behind Brady.
The backfield-by-committee approach has worked for Bill Belichick in the past. Regardless, having a true every-down back never hurt anyone, and the Patriots are currently missing that on their roster.
Strong Safety
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The Patriots are always full of surprises at strong safety. In 2012, it was the surprise selection of Illinois safety Tavon Wilson. In 2013, it was the surprise selection of Rutgers safety Duron Harmon. In 2014, Harmon was expected to be the starter but was surprisingly usurped by Patrick Chung, who had been surprisingly re-signed after struggling in his first stint with the Patriots.
Thus, no one should have been surprised when the Patriots made Stanford safety Jordan Richards a second-round pick in 2015, after many pundits had predicted him to be a sixth- or seventh-round pick and after the team gave Chung a three-year contract extension.
Now, between Chung, Richards, Harmon and Wilson, the Patriots have a surprising number of players who could arguably be a starter but an unsurprising amount of uncertainty, given some of the other knowledge we have on those players.
Chung was the starter in 2014 and was on the field for first and second down most frequently. Harmon primarily saw time on passing downs. Richards is also seen as a safety who is limited in coverage but can come down in the box and provide support against the run and in short coverage on tight ends and running backs. The Patriots will probably patch something together in 2015, but the question remains whether that solution can last beyond the 2015 season.
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