1 – In an historic Patriots’ offseason filled with dreams of burning some cash in free agency and weaponizing an inept offense, it took a middling veteran free agent wide receiver signing to set what would seem to be the most realistic tone for what to expect in 2024 in New England.
When former Vikings wide receiver K.J. Osborn met with the local media via video call this week, he used the word “grind” throughout his comments to describe what he expects joining a four-win team that’s completely overhauling its front office, coaching staff and, to some degree, roster.
“Oh man, it’s going to be a grind. It’s going to be a grind,” Osborn said the situation he signed on for. “Obviously it wasn’t the best season last year. Obviously it starts with the top down. Obviously we have a great owner and a great head coach. And it starts with the quarterback position. And then everybody around him making that guy better, making that guy comfortable, offense, defense, special teams. And we build. It doesn’t happen overnight. I know what I signed up for. It’s going to be a grind, man. I want to be a person that helps this organization get back to where it needs to be.”
Unlike some of the more optimistic words and guarantees set by first-year head coach Jerod Mayo or at-times aggressive rhetoric of de facto GM Eliot Wolf, Osborn might have the most realistic tone when it comes to what is going on these days in the football offices at Gillette Stadium.
This doesn’t seem to be a quick-fix plan, at least not based on the frugal foray into free agency. There is no franchise QB in place, at least not before the team uses its No. 3 overall pick in April’s draft. In fact right now there are massive holes at arguably the three most important positions on offense – quarterback, left tackle and No. 1 pass catcher.
Yup, 2024 could be and likely will be a grind in New England.
The Patriots will likely be a team that wins in the low single digits once again. Probably will be picking in the top-10 if not the top-5 of next year’s draft.
That’s OK. At least as long as you’re not expecting a lot more than that.
Mayo and Wolf seemed to learn the pitfalls of setting too-optimistic expectations in free agency. Over-promising and under-delivering leads to disappointment and angst in the fan base.
So it was that Osborn, an unexpected spokesman to some degree, set a more proper tone for the coming months in New England.
“It’s going to be a grind.”
2 – That said, it’s not like Osborn doesn’t have hopeful expectations for himself and his team. A guy who admittedly spent most of his career working on the inside with the Vikings and alongside central talents like Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen, Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson, Osborn made it clear he’s “excited to get more opportunities” in New England. As a player who missed just one game over the last three seasons and reached 48 or more receptions each year in that span, Osborn seems to bring the availability, reliability and upside potential to increase his role on a wide receiver depth chart that is filled with question marks. Given health and consistency questions about JuJu Smith-Schuster, Kendrick Bourne and DeMario Douglas, it’s not a stretch to consider Osborn the No. 1 receiver on the Patriots depth chart at this still-early point in the roster-building process.
3 – Mayo is clearly in the very early stages of building his reputation as a head coach. He’s learning on the fly. Sure he’s already made some mistakes, but is surely the kind of leader who’ll use those to better himself moving forward. It was interesting to hear what guys like Osborn and free agent running back addition Antonio Gibson had to say about their first in-person interactions with the youthful former All-Pro linebacker Mayo.
Osborn said Mayo was “easy to talk to” and declared that “he’s a player’s coach,” which the receiver previously experienced with former Patriots backup QB Kevin O’Connell taking over as head coach of the Vikings last season.
“Definitely a different vibe from a head coach, just from the one day I met him,” Gibson said. “Nothing against coach (Ron) Rivera, but he sat down and just having like, just different conversation. It didn’t sound like a coach. It sounded like he was talking to one of the guys. I felt like that’s something that might be a positive thing in the locker room, for him to be able to relate and communicate like that. And kind of understanding both sides of it.”
“Also he showed my daughter a hell of a time. Brought her to the office and just treated her with love. I appreciate that for sure, especially the first time meeting him.”
Mayo has said he’ll coach from a place of love and so far his players are feeling that love.
4 – New Patriots tight end Austin Hooper has a unique perspective on Alex Van Pelt, having worked with his new offensive coordinator for a couple years with the Browns. Hooper hauled in 84 passes with seven touchdowns over two years in Cleveland with Van Pelt, and made it clear the coach is part of the reason he’s looking forward to life in New England.
“Really smart guy,” Hooper said of Van Pelt this week during a video call with reporters. “Good energy in the building. And that’s a huge part of it. Most people just think of the three hours you see on Sunday but as you guys know there’s many more hours throughout the week where you’re spending a lot of time together and it makes work so much better when you enjoy the people you work with. Makes sense, right? So his style, his approach, his offense, his understanding of his personnel and who he is as a man and a coach, it’s going to make it really fun to be in the building every day.”
5 – The Patriots, like the rest of the NFL, were well represented at Michigan’s pro day this week. Obviously the national champions have a ton of talent across the roster after leading the pack in terms of prospect invites to the NFL Scouting Combine. Certainly the star attraction, though, was rising QB prospect J.J. McCarthy, now slated to go as high as the top half of the top 10 picks according to many analysts. As the presumed fourth QB in the class, McCarthy’s value and status has the chance to greatly affect trade considerations for all teams, including New England. Where he goes will also alter the dominos that fall at other positions, with elite prospects being pushed further down than maybe they deserve. Knowing McCarthy’s value and potential landing spots could factor into every decision for teams near the top of the draft or those looking for a QB outside of the top three. In some ways, McCarthy is becoming the key to the first round of the draft, as such Wolf and company having as much intel on him as possible is critical to the process at hand.
6 – Much of the month of March has been spent speculating on what the Patriots will do with the No. 3 overall pick and which QB they might end up with in that slot. Of late it certainly feels like it’s more likely than not that New England takes would-be franchise QB Drake Maye at No. 3. But that’s still speculation and to be determined. For the here and now, the top quarterback on the New England depth chart is free agent addition Jacoby Brissett, the former Patriots draft pick and fill-in starter who’s bounced around the league a bit, including last season in Washington. Gibson shared his scouting report on his former and once-again teammate, who played in just three games last season for the Commanders.
“Much respect to the guy,” Gibson said of Brissett. “I feel like a vet’s vet. He does what he needs to get done. He’s sharp. He stepped in later in the season. He was on 10 and he was ready to go. I think one situation my guy wasn’t even warm, he had to step into the game and he made some things shake. So much respect to him. Great player. Great dude. So I’m excited.”
7 – The NFL owners meetings begin today in Orlando, Fla. Plenty will be discussed at the annual gathering, including potential drastic changes to the rules for kickoffs. It also includes the annual coaches’ breakfast, another opportunity for Mayo to meet with the media and discuss the ongoing transition of power and roster-building going on in New England. Maybe most notable, is that Patriots owner Robert Kraft has used past meetings to infuse the offseason with his most telling, biting comments about his organization. With Kraft having met with the media when announcing Mayo as head coach in January, things are a bit different this March. Still, it will be worth tuning in to hear what Kraft has to say about what the Patriots have done (haven’t done?) in free agency and his thoughts on the upcoming NFL Draft.