1. The NFL trade deadline is set for Tuesday afternoon and the Patriots are one of a few teams who are never afraid to make a deal. While there aren’t expected to be many, if any at all, blockbuster deals across the league, there likely will be a few trades made ahead of the 4 p.m. deadline. For the Patriots, there are a few positions that could use another veteran to give it a boost for the remainder of the season. Those positions include cornerback, running back, wide receiver and even linebacker. When it comes to potential names, keep an eye on these five: running back Marlon Mack (Colts), wide receiver Brandin Cooks (Texans), cornerback Kyle Fuller (Broncos), cornerback Vernon Hargreaves (Texans) and linebacker Alex Singleton (Eagles). It is worth pointing out the Patriots do not have much cap space to work with — roughly $3 million — so that would need to be taken into account. The optics of a trade would also be interesting for Bill Belichick and Co. since they just traded away Stephon Gilmore to the Panthers a few weeks ago. But, never count out Belichick from making a deal, though. We’ll see how things go over the next few days and even what things look like following the game against the Chargers.
2. A lot was made of J.C. Jackson’s comments Thursday when he said defending the Chargers passing game “is not really a big challenge.” This was made into a bigger deal than it should have been. Jackson has made comments like this before. It’s who he is. Did he mean any disrespect by it? Probably not. Was it the best choice of words? Probably not. It wasn’t the greatest thing to say, but it also probably wasn’t something Chargers coach Brandon Staley had posted inside his locker room for every player to see.
3. It wouldn’t be a shock to see the Patriots have a surprise inactive or two this week against the Chargers. With 14 players listed as questionable, it just seems likely a few of them will not be able to go. Every player practiced during the week and it seems everyone traveled to Los Angeles, so this could be the Patriots playing some mind games with the Chargers.
4. Two Patriots players who have been impressive over the last few weeks have been Christian Barmore and Kendrick Bourne. Barmore may be the defense’s second-best player behind Matthew Judon. The rookie out of Alabama has made a number of player and could be the first real three-down lineman the Patriots have had in quite some time. Meanwhile, Bourne has 13 catches on 14 targets the last four games and has been a player Mac Jones can count on. Bourne also isn’t afraid to go over the middle of the field, which is a key trait to have as a Patriots wide receiver.
5. One thing to keep an eye on not only this week against the Chargers, but moving forward is how aggressive the Patriots are. It seemed they were much more aggressive with play calls and decisions last week against the Jets. Was that just because they were playing the Jets, or was this a new approach following a rather conservative first six games of the season?
6. It’s worth mentioning how wide open the AFC is this year. Every team in the conference has at least two losses and it’s not like there’s a team that seems primed to break out. This certainly could work into the Patriots’ favor down the stretch as it will certainly be in the mix for one of the three Wild Card spots. It is also worth pointing out the Patriots have a 3-1 record against AFC opponents.
7. This will be the week of Gilmore with the Patriots traveling to Carolina to take on the Panthers. It will be the cornerback’s second game with his new team and he likely will still be working his way up to 100% since he was out for so long. Belichick will likely get a few more follow-up questions on what happened with Gilmore, as he never really said much on what occurred. He just referred to a statement that did not really provide much detail.