1. The biggest news of the week for the Patriots was Julian Edelman facing a four-game suspension for PEDs, which he is appealing, but as of now it seems like he will be missing the first four games of the season. The Patriots have a number of receivers on the depth chart, but of course not everyone can make the 53-man roster and get on the field. (Note: Rob Gronkowski deserves to be mentioned, but we don't see his work load going up any as he's always going to be a huge part of the offense.) As of now, we see Chris Hogan being the player to take on most of the load in Edelman's absence. Just look at what he did at the beginning of last year (five touchdowns in the first five games) and he's shown great chemistry with Tom Brady. While he hasn't had the greatest of springs, we see him as the receiver being asked to do the most. The next is James White, as we see the Patriots lining him up wide a bunch and using him more as a receiver than a running back -- at least until Edelman returns. Also, expect Brady to look his way a lot on third down. Lastly, newcomer Jordan Matthews may be asked to do a little more than expected in the first four weeks. He's been one of the first players on the field and one of the last players off during the spring, so it's clear his work ethic is there. Of the new wide outs, we like Matthews to get the most time with Edelman out of the picture. Malcolm Mitchell is a wild card, but he's having issues just getting on the field. Phillip Dorsett, Kenny Britt and Cordarrelle Patterson aren't even close to the same type of receiver as Edelman, so they don't really count. Some might look to rookie Braxton Berrios because they are both slot receivers, but we just don't see him being ready to contribute this season. Bottom line, look for Hogan, White and Matthews see the most work in replacing Edelman over the first four weeks.
2. One of the biggest surprises of minicamp was how much the team seems to like undrafted cornerback J.C. Jackson. He saw a number of snaps opposite Stephon Gilmore on the first-team defense, as it seems like the team is giving him a hard look. Speaking during the week, Jackson seems to relish the chance to go against players like Brady, Edelman, Hogan, etc. "It turns on your competitive light and your competitive level goes way up," said Jackson. "Those guys are great and they have been in the league a long time. It is a good feeling and I love coming out here and practicing against those guys." The Maryland product figures to be battling with Eric Rowe, Cyrus Jones, Jonathan Jones and Jason McCourty for playing time/roster spot behind Gilmore.
3. Although it was just three days of minicamp without pads, Brady was pretty impressive for a 40-year-old quarterback who missed seven weeks of the offseason workout program and was throwing to some receivers for the first time. It was clear the 40-year-old stayed in tremendous shape on his own and wasn't behind at all. Given the Edelman news, perhaps Brady would be more inclined to attend the four OTA sessions next week to get on the same page as his new receivers, but it doesn't look like it will happen. This gives more ammo to the belief that there's still some tension brewing between Brady and Bill Belichick.
4. As a whole, the coaching staff was pretty hard on the players this week, but perhaps no player saw harder coaching than running back Sony Michel. Running backs coach Ivan Fears was very vocal towards the Georgia product, but not always because he was doing things completely wrong. It seems the coaching staff sees a lot in the rookie and wants to be able to get the most out of him for his first season. He has the potential to make a major impact. It's also worth pointing out Michel seems to be able to take the hard coaching and doesn't let it get to him.
5. Rookie quarterback Danny Etling continued to impress in his limited reps this week. With Brady back in the mix, he didn't see as many snaps as in the OTAs, but he did continue to show off his strong arm and his work ethic. He was one of the first players on the field and stayed after each day to throw more to some receivers. He also seems to always be in discussion with assistant quarterbacks coach Jerry Schuplinski. It will be interesting to see what happens if he continues to develop as the summer goes on and then looks good in the preseason. The Patriots have gone with just an inexperienced backup behind Brady before, but obviously he wasn't 41 years old.
6. One of the things that stood out over the course of the three-day minicamp was how the new kickoff rules are still a work in progress. It was worth noting the number of coaches the Patriots had devoted to the play and also how it seems no one knows how it will go once the preseason games begin. It seems like it will be a work in progress for every team, but once one team figures it out, every other team in the league will play copy-cat. If one thing is certain, the most space will open things up for speedy players like Patterson to have some big returns.
7. There were a lot of things wrong with the Rob Gronkowski rumors from Friday, including the timing. Why would the Patriots trade the tight end following the draft when the only players behind him on the depth chart are Dwayne Allen, Jacob Hollister, Troy Niklas and Will Tye? Why wouldn't this trade have been done around the draft so draft picks could be given in return? Why would the Patriots wait until the end of minicamp to make such a big move? It didn't make sense on a number of levels, including the timing of it.
