1 – May and early June are a time of immense hope in the NFL, a time when Sports Illustrated can project with at least some credibility that the Patriots will win the AFC East while Pro Football Focus can predict New England 2023 regular season wins against the Eagles, Chiefs and Bills (twice!).
Along those hope-filled, overly-optimistic lines and with Bill Belichick’s team up to their mesh shorts deep in OTA workouts, June is also a time when players working out in just helmets and jerseys represent nothing but potential. At this point in the offseason process, there’s no reason to believe that players won’t reach the heights of their talents and be the best, most productive version of themselves in 2023.
That in mind, here are five Patriots players with the most upside potential this fall, guys whose success could indeed lift New England to higher levels as a team just the way that SI and PFF are expecting!
Tyquan Thornton: The second-year wide receiver had a great summer and training camp a year ago but that never turned into much rookie success after an early-season injury. The 2022 second-round pick worked hard this offseason trying to fill out his lanky frame and build a rapport with Mac Jones, who said the young receiver is “going to be a great player for a long time.” Thornton was one of the more impressive players on the field in the media’s first OTA viewing session last week and should get a shot to be an impact part of the offense this fall.
Christian Gonzalez: The first-round cornerback was not on the field for New England’s OTA work in front of reporters last week, but that doesn’t do much to lessen the hype surrounding the top pick. Much like wide receivers on offense, high-end cornerbacks have shown the ability to immediately make the jump from college to impact NFL contributors in recent years. The No. 1 job in the New England secondary is up for grabs and Gonzalez has all the tools to slide right into that spot.
Christian Barmore: A year ago, Barmore faced massive expectations coming off an impressive rookie season. The 2021 second-round pick never really lived up to the hype last year, with an injury playing a role in his limited contributions. Barmore still has all the size and athleticism to be a disruptive force on the New England defensive front and at the very worst is the guy likely to be double-teamed by opposing lines giving teammates chances to win one-on-one battles. Barmore has Pro Bowl potential right now.
Josh Uche: New England’s second-best pass rusher in terms of sacks last fall, Uche is a guy who Matthew Judon has constantly said has more ability to get to the QB than any other New England defender. Uche had 11.5 sacks over the second half of his third season and heads into a contract year. If something clicked and he maintains that type of production over a full season playing opposite the Pro Bowler Judon, Uche is going to put up huge numbers and earn himself a huge contract.
James Robinson: We’re going to keep beating this drum until proven wrong. Robinson is a guy with multiple seasons with 989-plus yards from scrimmage in Jacksonville. He’s now a year-plus removed from a torn Achilles.
He’ll be able to pick his spots behind budding star Rhamondre Stevenson. Robinson could be in the perfect spot to put up elite backup production for the Patriots.
2 – There were a number of notable Patriots absent from OTA action this week, a group that included key veterans like Judon and Trent Brown as well as newcomers like the rookie Gonzalez and potential No. 1 wide receiver addition JuJu Smith-Schuster. While Smith-Schuster may not have been on the field for the voluntary OTA work, Jones said the veteran receiver has already impressed teammates with his work this spring and the quarterback seems to feel a bond with his playmaking addition.
“I think JuJu's done a great job, also from a leadership standpoint. Coming in, that's someone who adds veteran leadership from different places,” Jones said. “He just came off of a Super Bowl team, so what a great value to our offense. Obviously, when he gets on the field, that's going to be great because he has the experience and he loves talking about football. He's just a football nerd, I guess, kind of like me. We kind of hit it off in that regard. He's an awesome guy, and I'm looking forward to working with all those guys in that room. I think there's a lot of potential there.”
3 – While there is indeed upside potential in the New England wide receiver room with Smith-Schuster, Thornton, DeVante Parker and Kendrick Bourne, there is also room for significant competition at the spot. Not only will those four likely be vying for roles and reps in Bill O’Brien’s new-look passing game, but there would seem to be a wide open spot for a fifth option at the position. If that’s a true wide receiver, based on the first look of OTAs sixth-round rookie Demario Douglas could be a prime candidate. The Liberty product certainly has the quickness to be a slot option, with fellow late-round pick Kayshon Boutte and potential QB-covert Malik Cunningham next in line.
There is also the possibility that New England doesn’t keep a traditional five wide receivers at the position, maybe seeing tight end Mike Gesicki in the receiver role or even veteran running back/wide receiver Ty Montgomery. Either way the competition for the bottom of the depth chart at wide receiver/tight end/running back should be quite interesting this summer.
4 – Much was made late last season and early this offseason about how Belichick spoke of his young QB Jones. The coach’s words were analyzed and debated, many surmising that he wasn’t very happy with his former first-round pick and offensive captain. Then, on draft weekend, Belichick declared that he “absolutely” still felt the same way about Jones as he did when he spoke so glowingly of him last summer. During this week’s OTA press conference, Belichick once again had positive things to say about Jones, at least in terms of his work ethic.
“I think Mac works hard every day. He puts in a lot of time both in the weight room, in the classroom, works hard on the field. His work ethic is really good, and hasn't changed,” Belichick said.
5 – With Devin McCourty’s retirement now official and the release of undrafted rookie Justus Tavai, New England has two open spots on its 90-man roster. As it looks to fill those out, one option could apparently be coming from the latest incarnation of the XFL. According to the XFL’s official Twitter account St. Louis Battlehawks linebacker Carson Wells took part in a tryout/workout in New England this week. Wells is a 6-3, 241-pound linebacker out of Colorado where he notched 17.5 sacks. After going undrafted last spring, he spent some time as an undrafted rookie with the Bengals. He transitioned to more of a middle linebacker role this spring, where he tallied 45 tackles and 3.5 sacks while starting eight of 10 games for the Battlehawks. The Patriots certainly could use depth at linebacker, a position that already lost veteran Raekwon McMillan to injury this offseason.
6 – After a disastrous year as an offensive assistant and QB coach, Joe Judge will have a much different and seemingly more appropriate role in New England this season. Based on OTA action Judge is back focused on special teams, his area of expertise throughout the bulk of his career prior to becoming the Giants head coach. Though still listed on the Patriots.com as an offensive assistant/quarterbacks coach, Judge appeared to be the lead voice in special teams practice action at OTAs, with special teams coordinator Cam Achord still very much in the mix. Asked about Judge’s role, Belichick had a pretty simple response.
“He'll do whatever I ask him to do. It might change from time to time,” Belichick said, though he would not confirm a focus in the kicking game. “He'll be involved in a lot of things.”
Belichick also said the team had “a couple things to still work out” in terms of his assistants and their titles, but would “announce it soon.”
7 – Netflix is reportedly working on a documentary called “Swamp Things” that will detail the 2006-09 Florida Gators football team. The documentary will obviously appeal to many football fans, professional and college alike, but will certainly be of note in New England. Urban Meyer’s championship team from that time included future Patriots draft picks Aaron Hernandez and Brandon Spikes as well as New England training camp QB Tim Tebow and one-year starter starter Cam Newton. The story of one of the most interesting teams in college football history will reportedly stream later this summer on Netflix on Aug. 23rd.