New England Patriots' Top Candidates for Breakout Season in 2017

It's almost impossible to be surprised by the New England Patriots anymore. They win three out of four games without Tom Brady? No big deal. They stage the largest comeback in Super Bowl history? Well, the Atlanta Falcons should have just "run up the score," as Bill Belichick supposedly has so many times before.

Even when a relatively unknown player breaks out and becomes a star for New England, we view it as business as usual. Brady aside, this isn't a franchise built around stars—but plenty of players become stars playing in New England.

Just look at Malcolm Butler, the former undrafted corner turned Super Bowl darling turned shutdown corner. Look at Dion Lewis, the Cleveland Browns castoff who has emerged as a rushing-receiving-returning triple threat.

There's practically zero doubt that some player is going to emerge from the shadows and step into the Patriots spotlight this season. Here, we're going to run down some potential candidates.

Duron Harmon

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Could Duron Harmon become New England's next star safety?

We'll start our list off with safety Duron Harmon, who was actually pretty darn good in 2017. In fact, he was rated 28th overall among all safeties by Pro Football Focus for the entire season. We're still considering Harmon a breakout candidate, though, because he was only a rotational safety last season.

Given Harmon's level of play last year, there's a chance he moves to the forefront of the defense this season. Strong safety Patrick Chung took a step back in 2016, finishing the year rated as the league's third-worst safety by Pro Football Focus.

New England signed Harmon to a new four-year, $17 million contract this offseason, so the four-year veteran will be around for the foreseeable future.

It wouldn't be too surprising to see Harmon take over the starting job from Chung in the preseason or early in the season. If he does so, Harmon will have the opportunity to break out and into the spotlight.

Joe Thuney

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Guard Joe Thuney should have a chance to improve in Year 2, assuming the Patriots give it to him.

If you've followed any of my Patriots draft coverage over the past couple months, you've probably seen me list guard as a position New England may try to upgrade on drat weekend. This is because then-rookie Joe Thuney was a weak link on an otherwise solid line in 2016.

Pro Football Focus rated Thuney 138th overall among guards for the season and credited him with allowing 32 quarterback pressures.

My belief is that New England may try to bring in competition for Thuney at left guard. If they don't, though—or if Thuney retains the starting job—then there will be a lot of room for him to show growth in his second pro season.

Thuney did show some growth during the postseason last year—Pro Football Focus rated him sixth among 29 playoff guards—so continued development could make him a breakout player in 2017. Sure, guards don't often get a ton of attention, even when they improve, but you can bet Brady and Co. would love to see this happen.

Rex Burkhead

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Could Rex Burkhead become a star with the Patriots?

OK, so you might consider this cheating since he wasn't on New England's roster in 2016, but we just have to consider running back Rex Burkhead a breakout candidate. The 5'10", 210-pound back is tough enough to pound a defense between the tackles and versatile enough to then split out wide and catch passes.

However, we only saw Burkhead scratch the surface of his potential with the Cincinnati Bengals over the past four seasons. He logged just 87 carries with the Bengals, 74 of which came last season.

Burkhead averaged 4.6 yards per carry in 2016, while catching 17 passes for 145 yards. Considering the Patriots handed him a one-year, $3.15 million deal this offseason, it would seem New England envisions a larger role for him.

In fact, the Patriots might even see Burkhead as a possible lead back—which would put a damper on all those thoughts of Marshawn Lynch or Adrian Peterson joining the team. Whatever the case, we should see Burkhead break out with his new team. It certainly wouldn't be the first time a former Bengals back became a big piece of New England's offensive plan.

Lawrence Guy

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The addition of Lawrence Guy might be the most underrated move of New England's offseason.

We're going to double cheat on this entry. Not only did defensive end Lawrence Guy play for the Baltimore Ravens in 2016, but he was one of the league's better 3-4 defensive ends. Pro Football Focus actually rated him 14th overall at the position for the season.

Here's the thing, though. Guy isn't exactly a household name, and he realistically could become one on New England's defense. If the Patriots didn't believe so, they probably wouldn't have given the 27-year-old a four-year, $13.4 million deal.

What makes the signing of Guy interesting is that he has primarily played as a 3-4 end. The Patriots have recently been running more 4-3 as a base package. At 6'4" and 305 pounds, though, Guy has the right size to kick inside as a rotational tackle in 4-3 looks.

Therefore, the Patriots may have just gotten themselves a primary end for when the team is in a 3-4 alignment and a quality rotational tackle. Depending on how the Patriots utilize him and how often he gets on to the field, Guy could become a true defensive star this season.

Elandon Roberts

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Elandon Roberts is another Patriots who could take a big step forward in Year 2.

Last year, the Patriots took a chance on former Houston linebacker Elandon Roberts in the sixth round of the draft. They were rewarded with five starts, 45 tackles and a forced fumble in the regular season. Pro Football Focus rated him 51st overall among linebackers for the season.

Realistically, the Patriots discovered the 5'11", 235-pound linebacker by accident.

"Personally, I first saw him when I was watching Keenan Reynolds, the Navy quarterback," Belichick explained, per Zack Cox of NESN.com. "And when I was watching that, I kept noticing the middle linebacker from Houston."

Like many of the players on this list, Roberts played in more of a rotational role last season, along with the likes of Shea McClellin and Kyle Van Noy. Heading into Year 2, though, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Roberts step up and claim a more significant role.

If Roberts does gain a larger role, or even a full-time starting gig, he should definitely have an opportunity to become a breakout player in 2017.

*All contract information via Spotrac.com.