2024 Season News and Discussion

cshea

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This is where I stand. I'd be "happy" with a 3-win season at this point.
I get the value of the lower draft pick but man, it's really hard to turn around that kind of disaster.

They hopefully have the QB of the future on the roster so it's not like last year where a top pick was their only viable path to a QB reset. I get that if they land a top 3-5 pick again they can trade down like the Bears did to a QB needy team for a coup but I'd happily sacrafice draft position for a 6-11/7-10 season with Maye showing promise and the coaching staff looking competent.
 

sezwho

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This is where I stand. I'd be "happy" with a 3-win season at this point.
Nah, believe it or not I’m still hoping for push to 500. We can get a tackle at pick 12 instead of three, move a little up as necessary, and I don’t have to watch another tragic comedy season.
 

Van Everyman

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Wanting your team to tank may make sense in the abstract but it sucks as a fan and seems like it has negative repercussions organizationally and culturally.

The better outcome is that they play hard, show improvement and maybe ruin the seasons of a well known foe or two, but come up short in enough games that their record puts them in a position for a good draft pick next year.

Maybe that’s what “team tank” is actually rooting for but it’s worth clarifying.
 

tims4wins

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Wanting your team to tank may make sense in the abstract but it sucks as a fan and seems like it has negative repercussions organizationally and culturally.

The better outcome is that they play hard, show improvement and maybe ruin the seasons of a well known foe or two, but come up short in enough games that their record puts them in a position for a good draft pick next year.

Maybe that’s what “team tank” is actually rooting for but it’s worth clarifying.
Yeah I'm still rooting for them to win every week. I just won't be too upset if they lose by 3 every week.
 

Over Guapo Grande

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As has been said over and over- players won't buy into full tank mode. They are playing for their contracts... heck, their lives (see: Tua). If you can build a culture of compete- as you add more talent, that culture thrives. And grows.
 

Salem's Lot

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As a fan I want the team to play hard every week and be coached to win so that I can feel confident that I they have the right coaching staff in place going forward.
 

Ralphwiggum

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Fuck, this sucks.

I can't root for them to tank, though. From a fan standpoint I want to see them be competitive, play hard and win some games. But also, for a rookie coach I think it would be really hard to rebound from a 2 or 3 win season from a culture/locker room perspective.
 

rodderick

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As has been mentioned, it's a good way to add additional picks if you have the QB in place.
I mean, I'm not stupid, I understand it leads to higher draft picks across the board. But the marginal increase in value of the players you could grab at other positions with said picks is just smaller than having a wider range of QBs to pick from. I don't think you gain anything substantial from tanking for a tackle, for instance. Football only has one position through which hitting a home run in the draft can alter your franchise, everything else is complementary and to me not worth sacrificing wins for.
 

Shaky Walton

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Fuck, this sucks.

I can't root for them to tank, though. From a fan standpoint I want to see them be competitive, play hard and win some games. But also, for a rookie coach I think it would be really hard to rebound from a 2 or 3 win season from a culture/locker room perspective.
Same place. Drafting in the top 5 or so has its advantages, but given that many NFL stars emerge from later first round and later round pics, and many early picks don't pan out, I don't think that the negatives associated with being a 2-3 win team are worth the trade. For the reasons you mentioned. I also think that it will be harder to attract free agents if the Pats are not showing some improvement.
 

Curt S Loew

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I mean, I'm not stupid, I understand it leads to higher draft picks across the board. But the marginal increase in value of the players you could grab at other positions with said picks is just smaller than having a wider range of QBs to pick from. I don't think you gain anything substantial from tanking for a tackle, for instance. Football only has one position through which hitting a home run in the draft can alter your franchise, everything else is complementary and to me not worth sacrificing wins for.
I mean, you said little to no reason. I'm not advocating for it, but it's there. You're not tanking for a tackle. Just more bites at the apple.
 

BaseballJones

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So let's say the 2024 draft class was available to the Pats next year and they had the #3 pick, but they also already had Drake Maye. Would the Pats be better off taking either WR Harrison or WR Nabers, or OT Alt or OT Fashanu?
 

cshea

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So let's say the 2024 draft class was available to the Pats next year and they had the #3 pick, but they also already had Drake Maye. Would the Pats be better off taking either WR Harrison or WR Nabers, or OT Alt or OT Fashanu?
They trade down with the Giants for picks and take whicever of the 4 they prefer. Gun to my head, it'd be one of the receivers.
 

Cellar-Door

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So let's say the 2024 draft class was available to the Pats next year and they had the #3 pick, but they also already had Drake Maye. Would the Pats be better off taking either WR Harrison or WR Nabers, or OT Alt or OT Fashanu?
Alt, but really trade down is the best option there
 

cshea

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Kinda can't answer that question at this point. I mean, I'd say OT is the bigger need at the moment but it's 7 months before the draft. We don't know what the draft class looks like or even what the team will look like after free agency.
 

RedOctober3829

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I guess what I'm getting at is that if the Pats have a chance in 2025 to grab a great OT or a great WR with their first pick, what should they take?
OT is without a doubt the overwhelming priority. If they get the OT taken care of with their own pick, they really should trade back up into R1 for a WR. In the lower 20's there could be a guy like Emeka Egbuka from OSU or Isaiah Bond from Alabama available. Of course they could do the opposite and pick McMillan or Burden high up(provided they're that high) and then trade back up for a guy like Emery Jones.
 

BaseballJones

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Kinda can't answer that question at this point. I mean, I'd say OT is the bigger need at the moment but it's 7 months before the draft. We don't know what the draft class looks like or even what the team will look like after free agency.
True. I just think that while a lot of people (me included at times) clamor for the stud WR, the reality is that without a good offensive line, it's hard to make any offense go on a consistent basis. It's not sexy, building from the line out, but it sure seems pretty important.
 

Cellar-Door

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I guess what I'm getting at is that if the Pats have a chance in 2025 to grab a great OT or a great WR with their first pick, what should they take?
tackle if they are similar levels, tackles are basically impossible to get, almost all the top ones get drafted in the 1st (usually top half), they never hit FA, and there have been only 1 or 2 traded recently, where WRs come out of the 2nds often, and a good number have been traded, usually 1 or 2 every year.
 

Eric Fernsten's Disco Mustache

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Others here have followed the draft closer than I have, so can improve on the below

My sense is that there's kinda a three-part segmentation of NFL positions, re: the draft
  1. Positions where (a) it's relatively easy to tell who has the physique/talent that translates to the NFL, and (b) there are a limited number of highly valuable performers at those positions.
  2. Positions where (a) it's hard to tell who has the goods, and (b) fewer people have the goods, goods are still valuable
  3. Positions where (a) it's hard to tell who has the goods, and/or (b) more people have the goods / the goods are less valuable
I think this translates to draft strategy because positions in the first group you more or less gotta take in the first few rounds, or else you're rolling the dice with really long odds. The second group gives GMs heartburn and produce a whole bunch of first-round busts. And the third group gets taken late in the draft

So-- and I know everyone here can do this in their heads-- but which position is in each group?

Group 1: Easy to tell, not many
  • OT
  • DE / Edge rusher
Group 2: Harder to tell, not many
  • QB
  • WR
Group 3: Harder to tell, lots / less valuable
  • OG
  • punter/kicker

W/r/t what the Pats do in the first couple of rounds, I'd really love us to end up with more than two picks because I think we could use a bunch more talent in group 1 positions. LT, 'natch. I'd like to get Keion White some help at the other end of the DL.

The thing about WR is that we need a WR#1, and not any more slot receivers. I wish I had more confidence in receivers taken in the first round. A glance at last year's top ten receivers in the league shows guys taken all over the draft.

A bunch of this last page should maybe be moved to the 2025 draft thread
 

BaseballJones

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The 2023 draft class is looking pretty good so far, isn't it?

CB Gonzalez - looks like a true stud CB - not perfect, still needs to learn, but elite skill set
DL White - an absolute monster alredy
LB Mapu - wait and see
OL Andrews - wait and see
K Ryland - LOL no
OL Sow - legit NFL player
OL Mafi - already gone
WR Boutte - potential, still wait and see
P Baringer - extremely talented punter
WR Douglas - one of their better WRs, great pick in the 6th round
Speed/Bolden - gone

Gonzalez, White, Sow, Baringer, and Douglas - that's five good players (three of them are outstanding) from that class. That's pretty good.
 

lexrageorge

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The 2023 draft class is looking pretty good so far, isn't it?

CB Gonzalez - looks like a true stud CB - not perfect, still needs to learn, but elite skill set
DL White - an absolute monster alredy
LB Mapu - wait and see
OL Andrews - wait and see
K Ryland - LOL no
OL Sow - legit NFL player
OL Mafi - already gone
WR Boutte - potential, still wait and see
P Baringer - extremely talented punter
WR Douglas - one of their better WRs, great pick in the 6th round
Speed/Bolden - gone

Gonzalez, White, Sow, Baringer, and Douglas - that's five good players (three of them are outstanding) from that class. That's pretty good.
I am likewise OK with the way the 2023 draft has worked out. Hopefully, Sow can get healthy in the next few weeks, but otherwise looks good.

I do think you overstate the success of the receivers. They were fine for where they were drafted. But Boutte hasn't done anything yet, and the track record of "late bloomers" at the WR position is borderline non-existent. Douglas is at best at best a complementary piece; he'll never be a true #1 WR, maybe not even a WR2. About what you hope to get from a 6th, but he's not going to fulfill one of the two key needs for this team (LT, and true #1 receiver, which is essentially a must-have in today's NFL).
 

Eric Fernsten's Disco Mustache

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OT is without a doubt the overwhelming priority. If they get the OT taken care of with their own pick, they really should trade back up into R1 for a WR. In the lower 20's there could be a guy like Emeka Egbuka from OSU or Isaiah Bond from Alabama available. Of course they could do the opposite and pick McMillan or Burden high up(provided they're that high) and then trade back up for a guy like Emery Jones.
I agree with the 'If you have a top 10 pick look to trade down' strategy

One way to think about this is that with the teams current and many needs, it would be better to have 4 picks in the 20-50 range, then a top 5 pick in each of the first and second round

And we won't really know for ~6 months, but right now we want to be careful that the WR we target projects as a WR1 in the pros. A bunch of the 1st and 2nd round receivers look to play inside.

I haven't seen much of them so defer to others, but Bond is a little on the small side. Egbuka seems to line up in the slot a lot. If Ayomanor from Stanford is available in the second round, or Nic Anderson from OKState in the third, they might be a good value for us there
 
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I am likewise OK with the way the 2023 draft has worked out. Hopefully, Sow can get healthy in the next few weeks, but otherwise looks good.

I do think you overstate the success of the receivers. They were fine for where they were drafted. But Boutte hasn't done anything yet, and the track record of "late bloomers" at the WR position is borderline non-existent. Douglas is at best at best a complementary piece; he'll never be a true #1 WR, maybe not even a WR2. About what you hope to get from a 6th, but he's not going to fulfill one of the two key needs for this team (LT, and true #1 receiver, which is essentially a must-have in today's NFL).
Douglas is at worst a solid slot #3. That’s a lot better than most 6th round picks and better than “about what you hope for”

6th round picks you hope for a guy who can be a 2-3 year stopgap backup before he washes out of the league. Douglas is one of the few who seems like he has a medium term (if not long term) place in the NFL.
 

j-man

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mayo is a top 10 coach due to miami sucking NYJ are only Def Tenn Indy and Jax are winnable so is Rams ari chi u have a path to 5-7 wins
 

Zedia

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Speed/Bolden - gone
Bolden is still on the PS. Coincidentally, Speed was released from the Colts PS today. At the time he was waived by the Pats last year, Reiss thought they would bring him back.

@MikeReiss


The Patriots released rookie core special teamer Ameer Speed today. He was a seventh-round pick out of Michigan State. This could be roster manipulation due to injuries, with intention to bring Speed back on the practice squad if he clears waivers. Speed was at practice today.
 

SeoulSoxFan

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I get the value of the lower draft pick but man, it's really hard to turn around that kind of disaster.
Nah, believe it or not I’m still hoping for push to 500. We can get a tackle at pick 12 instead of three, move a little up as necessary, and I don’t have to watch another tragic comedy season.
Believe me, I'd be rooting for them all season. I think a 3-win season is very unlikely (because Mac Jones).

But if it does happen, it'll be better in the long run.
 

lexrageorge

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Believe me, I'd be rooting for them all season. I think a 3-win season is very unlikely (because Mac Jones).

But if it does happen, it'll be better in the long run.
Given the fact that Trevor Lawrence has been sacked 7 times this young season, and the fact that Lawrence is on my fantasy team for some reason, the chances that the Pats face Mac Jones in London next month are certainly not zero. So there's one win. The Yets are good for at least one more. That's at least 3 right there.
 

Eric Fernsten's Disco Mustache

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Y'know, it's very much possible that the Pats could end the year with 5-6 wins-- which is what lots of us were predicting-- with very competitive loses like the Seattle game in another 5-6 games... and still end up with a top 5 pick

It's not like complete misery is the only route to better talent
 

Cellar-Door

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Y'know, it's very much possible that the Pats could end the year with 5-6 wins-- which is what lots of us were predicting-- with very competitive loses like the Seattle game in another 5-6 games... and still end up with a top 5 pick

It's not like complete misery is the only route to better talent
yeah, 4th pick last year had 5 wins, 6th pick had 6 wins and 8th pick had 7. If you don't need a QB you can win quite a few games and get good picks.
 

KingChre

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Does he not know how the Practice Squad works? It's not like the Patriots were preventing him from being signed by another team if there was interest. Oh well no big loss there, good luck to him.
 

P'tucket rhymes with...

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That's it? When I read he was cut for a tweet, I assumed it was some sort of foaming at the mouth diatribe. Have to assume he was being a PITA on a day-over-day basis or something else.
 

BigSoxFan

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I’ll never understand fringe NFL players intentionally doing anything that might jeopardize their employment status.
 

ShaneTrot

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I’ll never understand fringe NFL players intentionally doing anything that might jeopardize their employment status.
These are young guys in a high testosterone profession, I am shocked this doesn't happen more often. I said some dumb things in my first job out of college.
 

Cellar-Door

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Reagor doesn't lose anything really by forcing his way out, he gets his $440k guaranteed and doesn't have to show up. Probably can now go home and work out and wait for someone to have a returner injury.
 

wibi

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I’ll never understand fringe NFL players intentionally doing anything that might jeopardize their employment status.
You cant understand someone who has been treated like they are above everyone else in HS and College acting like a fool when they arent treated the same way in the NFL?
 

BigSoxFan

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You cant understand someone who has been treated like they are above everyone else in HS and College acting like a fool when they arent treated the same way in the NFL?
I mean, I get all that. Understand wasn’t the proper word. It was just a way of calling them idiots.