PatsPropaganda

An Independent Patriots Blog

How Will Pats Replace Edelman?

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The Patriots were dealt a big blow Friday night, as Julian Edelman tore his right ACL and will be sidelined for the 2017 season. Luckily for New England, wide receiver is arguably the deepest position on the roster, and the loss of Edelman does not appear to put the Patriots Super Bowl hopes in jeopardy.
On paper, the injury is far worse for Edelman himself then the team, as one has to wonder if the 31 year old Edelman will ever be able to return to the elite play we have come accustomed to seeing every Sunday out of the Kent State product. Obviously, that is certainly the more pessimistic angle, especially after witnessing other NFL players (Adrian Peterson, Chris Harris Jr., and Jeremy Maclin come to mind immediately) return from ACL injuries and continue to play at a high level, but these concerns cannot be dismissed, seeing as so much of Edelman’s livelihood as a slot weapon is predicated on being able to make sharp, quick cuts to create space.

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Check out Patshow Episode #3!

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In case you missed it live earlier today, here’s episode three of Patshow! Plenty of Julian Edelman discussion, a visit from our first guest (a puppet Fitzy) and a 53-man roster projection.

Next show will be Wednesday but in the meantime if you’ll be tailgating for Patriot-Giants this Thursday be on the lookout for yours truly shooting some fan interviews for next week’s show. Thanks to all for tuning in and be sure to follow/fave/share all things @Patshow6!

What Happened With Ealy?

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When the Patriots acquired Kony Ealy this offseason by moving down eight spots in the draft, it was a low risk move that made a lot of sense.

With the departures of Chris Long and Jabaal Sheard, New England had a need at defensive end, no matter how nebulous that position name is within their defense. The retirement of Rob Ninkovich only furthered that need, which made Ealy’s slow start to camp, when he was missing in action the first day, even more troubling.

Ealy was remarkably unspectacular in the training camp practices I witnessed. In early preseason game action he looked just as bad. Yes, he started to make some plays here and there but it just wasn’t enough and Ealy was released after the Patriots third preseason game.

He was slow off the ball, unable to defeat blocks and was just generally ineffective and not impactful.

What happened? How can an experienced pro who was a standout in Super Bowl 50 get completely untracked in New England? When Bill Belichick says it just didn’t work out, no hard feelings, what’s at the root of why it didn’t work out?

Most of it fits into New England’s defensive scheme, which is unique. It’s not the first time a promising veteran defender hasn’t been able to do what the scheme requires, with Terrence Knighton being the latest example last season.

Let’s look a little deeper at what the Patriots ask their defensive ends/outside linebackers/edge players to do, and why it can be difficult for some players to grasp.

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Patriots 53-Man Roster Projection v 3.0

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Another stab at a 53-man roster here and I feel like there’s almost too kept Patriots in this one. I could easily see a couple of these guys ending up cut to make room for the random external free agent (or trade) that none of us can see coming right now.

QB (3) T.Brady, J.Garoppolo, J.Brissett — I toyed with cutting Brissett but I refused to do a below-53 projection. Just haven’t seen the progress out of him this season that makes me think he’s anything special. Still would like to continue developing him, but with no Brady suspension this year, going with two would be fine.

RB (6) J.White, D.Lewis, R.Burkhead, M.Gillislee, J.Develin, B.Bolden — I really consider Bolden a special teamer. He’s another one who I could easily see cut and replaced by Burkhead. You can just never rule out the special teams love from BB.

WR (5) B.Cooks, C.Hogan, D.Amendola, M.Mitchell, M.Slater — Slater’s a special teamer too obviously. The other four are all capable but it’s strange to see three outside guys and just one inside guy (Amendola). Will be interesting to see how they adjust schematically.

TE (2) R.Gronkowski, D.Allen — Just don’t see anything special from O’Shaughnessy or Hollister or Lengel. All could be cut and brought back if necessary I believe.

C (1) D.Andrews
G (3) S.Mason, J.Thuney, T.Karras
T (5) N.Solder, M.Cannon, C.Fleming, L.Waddle, T.Garcia – Toyed with putting Garcia on IR to open another spot. He’s been out most of camp and even when he was in he didn’t look ready for the NFL yet. Might be best to let him work behind the scenes to get bigger and healthy. Can’t see him cut of course. Kept Fleming and Waddle both because I had the space, but again, one of them is likely gone.

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2017 Pats Will Need Some New Clutch

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With the retirement of Rob Ninkovich and the injury to Julian Edelman, the 2017 Patriots must replace two players who came through in some of the biggest moments over the last few season. Whether it was Ninkovich’s timely takeaways or Edelman’s clutch catches, the team would not have two more Super Bowls if not for those two players.

Even Chris Long and Jabaal Sheard had their moments, as did Martellus Bennett. Taken altogether and it’s clear the 2017 will have a different flavor to them, and nowhere will it be more apparent than in the biggest moments. Because as we learned the difference between 42/46 and 49/51 were whether or not our players made the plays with the season on the line.

Will a new crop of players be able to step up and into then spotlight? Let’s take a look at some Patriots who need to find their “clutch”.

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Pats Posits: No. Not Edelman.

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Injuries. For the 2017 Patriots, they’re all that stand between them and another Super Bowl run, and in Friday’s preseason win over the Detroit Lions, their championship hopes might’ve taken a significant a hit.

Julian Edelman went down in a play eerily reminiscent of Wes Welker‘s non-contact fall in Houston 2009. Now, we wait for official word with an estimate of how long he’ll be out.

There’s plenty to unravel if Edelman’s lost for long. But at least on the surface, with Chris Hogan and Brandin Cooks leading the way, the passing attack is somewhat prepared to absorb this.

Otherwise it was the tale of two halves. Both the Patriots starting offense and defense played a complementary and often dominant first half. Then the back ups and roster hanger-ons stunk the place out in the second half.

It’s hard to talk about the good and the bad without a depressing undertone from seeing the engine of the offense go down in a non-contact heap. But let’s do our best to figure out what it all means in the Posits.

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Five Patriots Things to Watch vs. Lions

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The Patriots take on the Lions tonight in their third preseason game of the summer. While there are plenty of players to keep an eye on, it’s important not to get too worked up about what happens tonight (outside of major injuries). Because let’s face it, you’re more likely to hear a Patriots fan praise the work of Roger Goodell than you are to see the Patriots miss the playoffs this season.

Still, the stage is set for plenty of individual players to show what they’ve got and there are still expectations of what we’d like to see from the team before things get real.

Here are five things to watch tonight as the Pats can hopefully get through one final preseason game without a significant injury before turning the page to what is surely shaping up to be a scrubfest next week against the Giants.

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