1. It’s been an interesting week for the Patriots when it comes to COVID-19. They got three players off the Reserve/COVID-19 list in Cam Newton, Stephon Gilmore and practice squad defensive tackle Bill Murray. But, four players were put on the list, including James Ferentz on Friday and then Sony Michel, Shaq Mason and Derek Rivers on Saturday. These players join Byron Cowart, who was put on the list earlier in the week. (This doesn't mean all players tested positive, as players can be put on the list due to close contact with someone who did test positive.) Additionally, for Sunday’s game against the Broncos, offensive linemen Caleb Benenoch was elevated to the 53-man roster from the practice squad and then practice squad players Rashod Berry, Nick Thurman and Isaiah Zuber were added to the 53-man roster as COVID replacements. These were part of the new NFL rules for this season that were put in place for cases like this. Players put on the COVID list can be replaced by players on the practice squad, which was upped from 10 players to 16 for this season, and then up to two players each week can be elevated from the practice squad to the active roster. Having these things in place is allowing Sunday’s Patriots-Broncos game to happen. It’s possible if there were no rules changes for the practice squad this season then there might be no choice but to postpone the game. This is how the NFL seems to have planned things to go going into the year — COVID players would be replaced by practice squad players. Certainly, it isn’t ideal, but it’s definitely better than not playing games at all.
2. Like has been the case over the first four games of the year, the Patriots will have to reshuffle their offensive line for Sunday’s game against the Broncos, including replacing two of their best linemen in Mason and David Andrews (IR). So far, the unit hasn’t missed a beat even with multiple changes each game that have included players playing out of position and rookies playing key roles. A lot of credit should go to offensive line coaches Cole Popovich and Carmen Bricillo, who have done a solid job replacing Dante Scarnecchia.
3. Jerod Mayo passed along an interesting nugget when speaking to the media on Friday. Even though he wouldn’t reveal what they are, he’s set goals for himself this season as a coach. “Honestly, as a player you always say the biggest leap or the largest leap is from Year 1 to Year 2, and as a coach this year I had a few goals that I came in with that I wanted to get done looking back on last year, you kind of have to evaluate yourself,” he said. “I think at the same time, it’s crucial that you have this 360 kind of evaluation — you’re going to have your peers evaluate you, you’re going to have your boss evaluate you then have the guys that you’re teaching evaluate you. There were some things that like I said, I had goals coming into the year.” This was interesting to hear that it’s not just players who set goals for themselves.
4. Through four games, Julian Edelman has only played 68 percent of the offensive snaps and Josh McDaniels offered an explanation as to why, indicating the team is preserving him for the full 16-game season. “We’re just trying to — it’s a long season, obviously,” he said. “There’s obviously certain games where Julian plays a really large number of snaps, and then there’s some other situations where we can kind of give him a rest and get him out of some of those other scenarios that maybe he’s been in in the past but probably doesn’t have to do as much of that stuff at this point in his career. Certainly, when you’ve got players (like) that, you just want to make sure you manage them and be smart, handle them the right way. He does a great job of communicating that.”
5. The Patriots haven’t received much production at all from rookie tight ends Devin Asiasi and Dalton Keene this season. Tight ends coach Nick Caley seemed pleased with how they’ve performed in practice this season, and it’s worth noting what Bill Belichick talked about earlier in the week — how difficult it is being a rookie this season, not only adjusting to life in the NFL, but also dealing with everything COVID. They could start to contribute in the coming weeks, but it’s also probably a good idea to look into tight ends who may be available at the trade deadline.
6. Speaking of the trade deadline, with the new COVID rules that state players going to new teams (via trade or free agents) can’t immediately join them and need to stay away from the facility for up to a week to make sure they are clear of the virus, we wouldn’t be surprised to see not only some deals happen earlier than usual, but also just not a lot of them. The trade deadline is set for Nov. 3.
7. Next week should be interesting with Jimmy Garoppolo coming back to town facing the Patriots for the first time since he was traded to the 49ers. Of course, this will lead to plenty of chatter on sports talk radio and likely several Garoppolo stories to be written. The quarterback is dealing with a sprained ankle that clearly limited him last week against Miami. For everyone’s sake, hopefully Garoppolo feels better than he did a week ago and plays well on Sunday Night Football against the Rams.
