Rounding Up New England Patriots' Offseason Buzz, Post-Minicamps
With the New England Patriots having closed up shop until training camp opens, now seems to be as good a time as any to get you caught up on all the latest buzz around the team.
Who is competing for starting spots? Which backups are getting the most opportunities with the starters recovering from injuries? How are those starters coming along in their rehab from injury, by the way? And what about players who were signed and have failed to live up to expectations?
These are all questions currently facing the Patriots, and questions that can be answered based on recent reports.
But enough preamble, let's take a look at what's going on with your New England Patriots.
Tom Brady's Appeal Set for Tuesday, June 23
1 of 5
Time's up. The wait is over, and Tom Brady's appeal is set to begin on Tuesday, June 23. The summer is only two days old, but the heat will be way high in anticipation of Brady's appeal.
The Patriots quarterback is set to miss the first four games of the season due to his suspension for his role in Deflategate, but while it can be expected that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will probably shorten the suspension, Brady is hopeful to be exonerated completely upon appeal.
The Patriots would be turning to inexperienced quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo if not. The second-year signal-caller may have more athletic traits than Brady, and thanks to a year's worth of studying the offense, Garoppolo may already have a firm grasp on the playbook. That being said, Garoppolo does not yet possess Brady's uncanny ability to read defenses, make accurate throws and make the right decision every time.
In a best-case scenario, Brady is available for every game for the Patriots this coming season, but unless Brady wants to take this all the way to court, he may have to settle for only 14 games this year.
Patriots Cut Fred Davis
2 of 5
Well, that was quick.
The Patriots gave tight end Fred Davis a shot at redemption, after the seven-year veteran missed the 2014 season due to suspension. That opportunity slipped through his fingers both figuratively and literally. He dropped a few too many passes in OTAs and minicamp, and the Patriots dropped him shortly after they went home for the break until training camp.
Davis figured to be a part of a deep competition for roster spots at tight end, possibly competing with veteran Michael Hoomanawanui and rookie A.J. Derby (with Rob Gronkowski and Scott Chandler locked into roster spots). Head coach Bill Belichick seemed optimistic about Davis' progress at minicamp.
"Fred's been here through the whole process, the OTAs; it's a different kind of system for him," Belichick said. "He's been out of football for a little while but [he has] worked hard, very hard, to try to pick things up and learn a new system. He's making progress."
Instead, the Patriots decided it would be better to let him go now so he can hopefully find somewhere else to catch on and so that they could split up the extra snaps between Hoomanawanui and Derby.
Patriots Signed First-Round Pick Malcom Brown
3 of 5
File this one under "no surprise."
The Patriots and first-round pick Malcom Brown officially struck a four-year deal on Friday, the team announced. As with all rookie contracts for first-rounders, Brown's contract comes with a fifth-year team option that can be exercised before he begins his fourth year in the NFL.
The news is no surprise because of the rookie wage scale that dictates how much each player will make based on their draft slotting. It's also not a huge deal because he was already present for the team's workout program, so there was never any concern about a holdout.
Brown will compete with Sealver Siliga and Dominique Easley for snaps on the interior of the defensive line, and all three could be used in 3-4 fronts from time to time. His presence provides yet another layer of versatility for the front seven, which is certainly shaping up to be the strength of the defense.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
James Morris Could Be One of Patriots' Top Backup Linebackers
4 of 5
Jamie Collins, Dont'a Hightower, Jerod Mayo and Dane Fletcher are all absent from Patriots practice. Someone has to take the snaps at linebacker, right?
Well, that someone has been James Morris, a second-year linebacker whose body of work so far is limited to four preseason games. That was the point at which he suffered a season-ending injury that forced him to watch from the sidelines as his teammates made it to the Super Bowl and brought home the Lombardi Trophy.
Morris has taken a lot of the top snaps at linebacker with everyone else absent. Hightower could be out of action through training camp and his availability for Week 1 is in question. Collins has been in and out of practices. Mayo's status is unclear. No matter what's up with everyone else, Morris' importance to the team could be magnified in training camp as the team tries to find its best unit in the front seven.
Rotation Continues in Patriots Secondary
5 of 5
Over the past two months, the Patriots have been moving the pieces around in their secondary trying to find the best combination that works for their defensive scheme. With Darrelle Revis, Brandon Browner, Kyle Arrington and Alfonzo Dennard all gone, the Patriots are likely to switch to more of a zone scheme than the man scheme they ran in 2014.
One day at practice, there were at least 10 different combinations of cornerbacks lined up together in the secondary, and that's just the cornerbacks—not including all the different combinations of safeties.
Right now, it would appear that Logan Ryan and Malcolm Butler are the front-runners for starting spots at cornerback based simply on their experience in the Patriots defense. Daxton Swanson also has experience in the system, but he bounced on and off the practice squad in 2014 and he's not expected to make a big impact.
The Patriots are probably going to take a much different approach to their secondary in 2015 than they did in 2014. Last year, the Patriots mostly fielded the same two cornerbacks with a rotating door in the third spot. This year, it's likely to be a wider range of cornerbacks sharing the load.
Unless otherwise noted, all practice notes and quotes obtained firsthand.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
.png?w=480)
