Winners and Losers of New England Patriots' Offseason So Far
One player's new opportunity is another player's missed opportunity.
The New England Patriots have given several players a chance to prove they're worthy of a starting spot, but other players are missing their chance to do the same. Draft picks and free-agent signings could be making an impact on the Patriots roster, but in order for them to make an impact, someone else has to fall to the wayside.
We still have a long way to go in the offseason journey before the starting lineup is set in stone, and even after the final cutdowns of training camp and into the regular season, things could still change as players outperform or underperform the expectations coaches have of them when the bullets are real.
There are a lot of things yet to be determined, but for now, these are some of the winners and losers of the Patriots' offseason so far.
Winner: Tre' Jackson
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The Patriots went through some turbulent times on the offensive line in the first four games of the 2014 season, with a lack of consistency and continuity spelling Tom Brady's doom, but that didn't stop the team from making more changes to the unit in 2015.
Veteran guard Dan Connolly was not signed back to the team, and the Patriots used a fourth-round pick on Florida State guard Tre' Jackson and another fourth-round pick on Georgia Tech offensive lineman Shaq Mason, signaling the beginning of a competition at guard.
Jackson was described by NFL.com's Lance Zierlein as possessing "the talent to be a dependable, quality NFL starter," but added that Jackson "needs to work on weight and conditioning in order to improve his feet and reach his potential."
Jackson has been one of many offensive linemen earning opportunities to play in front of Tom Brady at organized team activities, and if he plays up to his potential in training camp, the job should be his for the taking.
Loser: Ryan Wendell
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The Patriots made a quick decision to move Ryan Wendell from center to guard to help stabilize their offensive line in 2014, giving them the ability to put their five best offensive linemen on the field at the same time.
Wendell could still get the opportunity to start at right guard again in 2015, but he has missed the team's first three open practices of the offseason for undisclosed reasons. Wendell was spotted at the beginning of the Patriots' second practice, but he made his way off the field before the session got underway.
With Wendell out, plenty of other players have earned practice reps on the offensive line. Caylin Hauptmann, Shaq Mason and Tre' Jackson are among the linemen who have earned extra playing time. If Wendell misses any significant portion of the offseason workout program, he could risk losing his spot to a younger player who could prove himself worthy in Wendell's absence.
Winner: LeGarrette Blount
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With Shane Vereen and Stevan Ridley both finding new homes this offseason, the Patriots are auditioning for the No. 1 spot in terms of both a between-the-tackles back on first and second downs and a scatback on third downs.
LeGarrette Blount has not been the latter in his career, but he has certainly been the former, and he was the primary back in that role last season after Ridley's injury. Blount had 60 carries for 281 yards and three touchdowns in five regular-season games for the Patriots last year, and has proved he can be effective as the bell cow in the past.
He'll have some competition from Jonas Gray and Brandon Bolden, but the starting job appears to be Blount's to lose.
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Loser: Jonas Gray
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The Patriots got one good game out of Jonas Gray in 2014, but it was a heck of a game, as he became the only back in Patriots history to rush for more than 200 yards and four touchdowns in a game. The next week, the whole story changed. He was late to a practice and was held out of the following week's game against the Detroit Lions.
From that point on, Gray had 24 carries for 84 yards and one touchdown for the remainder of the season as the Patriots turned to LeGarrette Blount as the primary ball-carrier for the running game.
Gray has enough talent to be an effective back, but while he showed his immense potential on that one Sunday night against the Indianapolis Colts, that's not enough to form a career projection. The Patriots could still ask Gray to man a No. 2 spot in the backfield, but at present, it appears that job is Blount's to lose.
Winner: Logan Ryan
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No Darrelle Revis plus no Brandon Browner plus no Kyle Arrington plus no Alfonzo Dennard equals a lot more opportunities for young cornerbacks on the Patriots roster to make an impact.
One problem: There weren't very many experienced cornerbacks left once the Patriots got done taking the ax to last year's secondary. Logan Ryan and Malcolm Butler are the only remaining cornerbacks on the roster with any kind of significant experience in the Patriots defense, and Butler was absent for the first few practices of the offseason because he showed up late to one of the first practices, according to Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald.
With Butler out, Ryan has been one of the top cornerbacks getting opportunities at practice, along with Bradley Fletcher, Daxton Swanson, Bradley Fletcher and Darryl Roberts. The Patriots could hold a wide-open competition for the two starting jobs, but Ryan looks like one of the clear front-runners right now regardless of what happens with Butler.
Loser: Sealver Siliga
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With no more Vince Wilfork, it looked like Sealver Siliga had a clear path to one of the top spots on the Patriots depth chart at defensive tackle. He has a similar build and a similar skill set to Wilfork's, with an ability to plug multiple gaps and soak up blockers to help the linebackers make plays at the second level and help his fellow defensive linemen get matched up in one-on-one situations.
Siliga could have had an opportunity to play a significant number of snaps. Now, with the addition of Malcom Brown, it appears the Patriots will be rotating pieces in and out of the lineup.
There's a deep group of interior defensive linemen, including Brown, Siliga, 2014 first-round pick Dominique Easley, veteran Alan Branch and Chris Jones. All five players should earn roster spots, but it's hard to say for certain who will be featured on the line.
For now, though, Siliga has missed the first few practices of the offseason for undisclosed reasons, and he's missing opportunities to prove he could be a key component on the defensive line.
Winner: Scott Chandler
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From 2010-2012, the Patriots ran a two-tight end set that gave opposing defenses nightmares. With Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez, the Patriots had two solid options over the middle who each presented a different set of challenges. Gronkowski was the big-bodied tight end who could also mash in the running game, and Hernandez was a finesse receiver-type tight end who could line up all over the field and cause matchup problems.
Once Hernandez was put behind bars for murder, though, the Patriots had to start asking themselves what direction they'd take their offense. The answer, at first, was a lot of three-receiver sets. The Patriots tried to get back to a two-tight end formula with the acquisition of Tim Wright, but the lack of success caused the Patriots to release Wright less than one year after trading for him.
Signing Scott Chandler, however, has opened up a whole new realm of possibilities. Now, the Patriots could go back to a two-tight end set the likes of which they couldn't run before. Now, they have two big-bodied tight ends who are capable blockers, so with both men on the field, there's a legitimate threat that the Patriots could have a numbers and/or matchup advantage in either the running game or the passing game.
Chandler has spent much of his OTAs working with Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski off to the side, seemingly preparing for such formations to be used on a regular basis.
Loser: Malcolm Butler
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Malcolm Butler went from a Super Bowl hero to the doghouse thanks to one missed flight.
With Darrelle Revis, Brandon Browner, Kyle Arrington and Alfonzo Dennard all gone, Butler appeared to have a clear path to a starting role in the secondary. Now, with his latest transgression, Butler's absence has given way to opportunities for his teammates to show what they can do.
Bradley Fletcher, Logan Ryan, Darryl Roberts and Daxton Swanson have all earned more playing time as a result of Butler's absence, and while the 2014 undrafted free agent could still earn back his starting spot, he'll have to do just that: Earn it.
With so many names being added to the secondary over the course of the offseason, the competition won't necessarily be easy.
Unless otherwise noted, all practice observations and quotes obtained firsthand.
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