Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Camp Challenges: Patriots Prepare for Training Camp Amidst Pandemic Concerns - 7/21/2020

Episode Date: July 21, 2020

With one week remaining until the start of training camp in Foxboro, there are still a lot of questions surrounding the New England Patriots roster. In the aftermath of the NFL and NFLPA announcing COVID-19 testing regulations (and seemingly putting a lid on the 2020 preseason slate) host Mike D’Abate is joined by Steve Balestrieri of PatsFans.com. The duo discuss the impact of the pandemic on members of the Patriots roster, particularly the potential cancellation of preseason games. What impact does this have on roster-hopefuls and undrafted rookie free agents? Lastly, Mike and Steve preview positional battles at tight end, and on the Pats’ defensive line. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Patriots fans, you are now locked in to the Locked On Patriots Podcast. I'm going to show you how to make a beautiful and beautiful flower. I'm going to use a small flower pot. I'm going to use a small pot Hello to all of you Foxborough faithful. It is T-minus one week Tuesday here on the Lockdown Patriots podcast, your daily home for news notes and analysis infused with the occasional opinion on your six-time Super Bowl champions,

the New England Patriots. My name is Mike DeBate, your host of the Locked On Patriots podcast, which of course is a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. And folks, because it's your team every day, that means your questions, comments, and feedback are always welcomed and very much encouraged. Share that feedback anytime by reaching out to me and following me on Twitter at MDABATEFPC. And while you're out there saying, how you doing to the Twitterverse, please be sure to follow the Lockdown Patriots account as well at LO underscore Patriots. Patriots fans, you heard me correctly.

T-minus one week until the start of training camp for your 2020 New England Patriots. And there is certainly no shortage of storylines heading into this year's training camp, folks. For the first time in nearly 20 seasons, Tom Brady's not going to be jogging up those Gillette Stadium steps and onto the practice field. The quarterback position is now in the hands of Cam Newton or Jarrett Stidham. And those facts alone are enough to say that this would be one of the more intriguing training camps in recent memory. Maybe one of the most significant training camps in Patriots history.

I haven't even mentioned the numerous positional battles that are likely to take place during training camp. Again, folks, a lot to talk about. But beyond a shadow of a doubt, the most important question on everybody's mind, players, coaches, media, fans alike, is player safety. And yesterday, the NFL and the NFL Players Association reached an agreement which is a step in the right direction to help ensure player safety on the field for 2020 amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. And I'll get into exactly how

that affects your New England Patriots folks in just a moment. Seeing as there is only one week until training camp, this is the perfect time to start addressing a lot of questions that you may have regarding training camp, especially the action we're going to see on the field. And believe it or not, folks, that action is highly unlikely to include preseason games because in addition to announcing new COVID-19 testing regulations, ESPN's Adam Schefter also reported last night that the NFL has made an offer to the NFL Players Association to cancel the preseason. And as we know, the preseason slate had already to the NFL Players Association to cancel the preseason.

And as we know, the preseason slate had already been reduced from four games to two. The NFL was talking about maybe moving it down only to one. But if Adams' report does indeed come to fruition, it looks like there will be no preseason games. And that could be bad news for several roster bubble players, including undrafted free agents that are trying to make their way onto an NFL roster. That especially includes the Patriots. Don't forget, they have 15 undrafted rookie free agents on roster this year, and a lot of them had high hopes. I know, folks, it's a lot to take in. Your head is probably spinning. So in that case, we need a voice of reason to calm us all down. And whenever I need a voice of reason, I do the easy thing and I go to one of the most reasonable, level-headed voices in all of Patriots media.

Steve Balistrieri of Patsfans.com joins me today, and Steve and I will discuss the COVID-19 regulations. What it means for the Patriots on the field, what it means for them in the locker room. Does he believe that these restrictions and the possible cancellation of the preseason makes it more likely that the Patriots will refrain from putting an undrafted rookie free agent on the roster for the first time in 16 seasons. But let's not forget that there are still battles to be won on the field. What are the more intriguing positional battles? Steve and I will address these questions and more when he joins me on the hot seat here

in just one moment. But before I formally welcome my paisan to the guest chair, I wanted to share a bit about these COVID-19 regulations and how they specifically affect your New England Patriots. And a lot of this information was furnished by Jeff Howe of The Athletic, who does an amazing job covering the team, one of the more trusted voices out there. And I think Jeff did a masterful job of detailing exactly how these regulations will affect the Patriots in the coming days and weeks. Just to reiterate, on Monday evening, the NFL and the NFL Players Association came to an agreement about COVID-19 testing protocols. Essentially, folks, players, coaches, and other

essential personnel will be tested daily over a two-week span with the frequency of additional testing going to be determined by whether or not the rate of positive tests can be kept below 5%. Now, what this means is that before people are cleared to enter team facilities, they will have to pass a pre-entry test. That's two tests separated by 72 hours. The players are going to have to self-quarantine in between these tests. Now with regard to the Patriots, Jeff's report says that COVID-19 testing could begin as early as Thursday with the follow-up schedule adapted accordingly. If a Patriots player should test negatively, he's going to be allowed to enter the facility and conduct business as usual under the league's protocols for returning players. But if a test is positive, that's where we come to the fork in the road. There will be a distinction made between players that show COVID-19 symptoms

and those who don't. First, if a player tests positive but is asymptomatic, meaning that they don't have any symptoms of COVID-19, his return to the team will be prohibited until 10 days have passed since the first positive test, or 5 days have passed since that first test if the two consecutive tests separated by 24 hours turn out negative. In addition, club and NFL physicians will have to give the green light, while local guidelines and requirements in the state of Massachusetts will also need to be fulfilled. That's certainly not ideal, but it is better than the scenario where if a player tests positive and does have symptoms. And folks, I keep saying player here,

but this does pertain to coaches and essential personnel as well. So if this person yields a positive COVID-19 test and they have symptoms like a fever, fatigue, or a dry cough, he or she will not be allowed to return until at least 10 days have passed since those symptoms first appeared, and at least 72 hours since they last did. Their return to their job will have to be approved by club and NFL physicians, while local guidelines and requirements within the state of Massachusetts also would need to be fulfilled. Bottom line, after the players undergo the two separate coronavirus tests, all of the players who pass them will go through medical

checks, and then they'll either be allowed to start practicing, or they would be placed on the physically unable to perform list, not necessarily because of COVID, but it could be either injury or another reason preventing them from being able to start. Jeff concluded his report by saying that the medical checks would have to take place over the weekend under the Patriots' current plan to have their players return to Gillette Stadium on time and ready to begin training camp procedures next Tuesday. So folks, the biggest takeaway from all this is that the NFL will be conducting daily COVID-19 testing. This was something that the NFL Players Association fought for and apparently they've received. And while a lot of people are seeing this as a win for the NFL,

the Players Association is still very much of the ilk that a lot more measures need to be put in place to really help ensure their safety. How this all plays out throughout training camp and even into the start of the regular season, right now is anybody's guess. It's going to be a very interesting few days as players start to report to camp, begin the testing process, and then to see how it all shakes out. If I'm being honest, it seems like a very difficult scenario to envision any on-field practicing going on next Tuesday. It seems like the bulk of the beginning of camp is going to be tended toward player safety, player health, and sorting out the eligibility of these players based on either positive or negative COVID-19 tests. And folks, that's exactly how it should be.

But it will lead to a greater deal of uncertainty. And folks, right now, we're doing our best to answer the questions for you as best we can. As we continue to learn more on this situation, we will continue to keep you updated as best we can. And right here on Locked On Patriots, I will continue to keep you updated as to how this affects your New England Patriots both on the field and in the locker room. But I don't want to sound completely doom and gloom, folks. There is reason for optimism because one week for today, training camp is set to open. And regardless of exactly when that means practices hit the football field, that means that NFL football is taking steps toward coming back and hopefully

opening the season on time. So settle in, folks, as I am joined today by Steve Balistrieri of Patsfans.com, where we'll talk COVID, camp battles, and how the cancellation of the preseason might alter the way the Patriots have done business for the last two decades. What exactly do I mean by that? We'll discuss it when the Locked On Patriots podcast continues. Patriots fans, as I said to open the pod today, we are just one week away from the start of training camp in Foxborough, and there are still a lot of questions surrounding this Patriots roster. The NFL tried to quell some of those questions by announcing COVID-19 testing regulations and seemingly putting a lid on the 2020 preseason slate. What does this mean for the members of our Patriots roster on the field?

Well, to discuss this very point and more today, I welcome our resident voice of reason. He's one of the best and most knowledgeable columnists that you'll find in Patriots media. You know his great work from patsfans.com, as well as being the co-host of not one, but two amazing podcasts, Patriots 4th and 2, and of course, One Patriots Place with our great mutual friend Thomas Murphy. He is my Paizan. Steve Balistrieri joins me today. Buddy, welcome back to the Locked On Patriots podcast. Mike, thank you for having me, as always.

It's always a pleasure to talk some football with you. Always, absolutely. And, you know, Steve, we continue to live in interesting times. And normally we would be preparing to take our rightful place in the very back corner of the media tent in Foxborough to cover training camp. But this year, it's going to be a lot more virtual in our coverage. But the NFL took a major step last night to ensure that camp will start on time. They also took a major step that we will see football on the field in 2020. And that is the announcement of the COVID-19 regulations and testing procedures that will take place as early as this week.

We will discuss that in a moment, folks, and the cancellation of the preseason, which right now looks pretty likely. But Steve, first, I just wanted to get your reaction on the NFL's proposals to the Players Association. In your opinion, what does it mean for players' safety, especially when it comes to the New England Patriots this year? Well, you know, Mike, I think that the NFL's taking a proactive view on things, and there's some people that disagree with what they're doing,

and there's some people that think it's a great thing. You know, they're taking a proactive approach, excuse me, so that there can be football this year. And I think it's a good thing. You know, and I'm all for it. We're going to have to see how it all works out. But I think, you know, what they're doing and how they're going about it, I think it's a good thing.

I mean, I think the country needs sports. Yeah, and I desperately agree with you, or I think that the country would desperately agree with you as well, that we do need sports. We need some normalcy back. And again, folks, testing, announcing safety measures is always a step in the right direction. I caution everyone to know that players are aware

that testing alone is not going to be the end-all be-all of combating this virus and assuring that we do have uninterrupted training camp and later into the regular season. That's still up in the air. Just recently on their double coverage podcast, Jason McCourty and Devin McCourty laid out some concerns of their own stating that even if they're all tested daily which we now know will be the case all it takes is the time to go home somebody possibly going out to eat someone having a friend or a family member over in from out of town and all of a sudden the next day you show up at the building you may actually have been infected you may actually have been a carrier and not know it and you may not

know it for another 24 to 20 24 to 48 hours and at that time you're in the building you're amongst everyone so there are a lot of questions still to come especially the action on the field and going back and forth offensive line lining up against the defensive line coming in very close contact defensive backs coming in contact with tight ends and wide receivers there's a lot that still needs to be done but the testing measures that are being put in place especially the frequency with which they're going to be doing this i think is a step in the right direction so i agree with you i think that uh it's needed and anything that's going to help ensure player safety, even if it's the smallest gesture,

is a step in the right direction because I think we're going to be in need of that this year. And staying on that subject for just a moment, Steve, we saw Adam Schefter's report on Monday that the NFL offered the Players Association to cancel the preseason altogether, even after a previous proposal called for reducing it from four games down to two and then even down to one at one point. But the NFL Players Association has been supporting eliminating this exhibition schedule in favor of a longer adaptation period, really since COVID-19 became a major story. And we knew that the NFL wanted to continue training camp and wanted to have it open

on time. Right now, it looks like the NFLPA is going to get that wish. The NFL has offered that, and you have to assume that by the NFLPA voting unanimously to ratify that, you have to think that that's definitely a likely scenario. This, to me, is bad news for undrafted rookies trying to make a team's opening day roster. And, of course, that means the New England Patriots. They have 15 of them, and they were already in a tough spot to begin with because of a lot of the difficulties that undrafted free agents face in trying to make a roster anyway. This could make it near impossible for them to earn spots on the team. I had stated earlier in the pod today that I think this makes it very difficult for those players without

experience in the Patriots system. Maybe not just reduced to the undrafted free agents, but anyone that's new in this environment looking to come in and make an impact. In your estimation, who do you think might be in jeopardy of not making the final roster cut? And is there any new member of the team that actually might benefit from something like this? Well, looking at the team right now, I can't see a new member getting some kind of advantage off this. I really don't. I mean, I think, you know, if you're new to a football team, you need all the work you can get, especially, you know, that's what preseason, we see a lot of guys who step up, you know,

we saw what Jacoby Myers last year, he started to come on and practice a little bit. We saw him, you know, working out with, in fact, it was Jared Stidham. He was developing a little bit of a, you bit of a relationship with Stidham in practice. And then once they got to preseason games, he kind of opened some eyes a little bit. And, you know, when you're new to the team, you know, I think it's very, very important. When you're looking at these undrafted free agents, it's going to be really difficult for any of these guys to make enough of an impression to convince Bill Belichick,

okay, I'm going to keep one of these undrafted free agent rookies in lieu of an established veteran. Because as we know, if all things being equal, Bill will favor a veteran. Yeah, and he usually does. And look, in each of the last 16 seasons, folks, at least one rookie free agent, undrafted rookie free agent, was able to make the Patriots opening day team. It started with Randall Gay way back in the day. There's a list of 36 names on that roster.

Well, I shouldn't say on that roster, but 36 names on that list of players that were able to make the roster. And I want to credit our man, Byrne Bookmaster from Pat's Pulpit for detailing a lot of these players. Names that I haven't heard in a while, like David Heron, Steve Maneri, Jeff Tarpinian, to the well-established names of guys that have become a fixture for players that are undrafted to make an NFL roster. Guys like Malcolm Butler, David Andrews, Jonathan Jones. We've even seen JC Jackson become very prolific in that department. Patriots had some guys that I was definitely looking for this year and a few guys that I had actually cracking the 53-man roster. I haven't been shy about my thoughts on guys like Nick Coe or the

wide receivers, Will Hastings and Jeff Thomas, being able to possibly crack this roster. I know defensive tackle Bill Murray is someone that a lot of people have been watching closely as potential undrafted free agents that could make this roster. Look, I think it's still possible, but you mentioned Jacoby, and he was someone that we saw a lot during off-season workouts, a lot during training camp, and he really needed those preseason games in order to build on his skill set that he had shown in practice. Same thing with Gunnar Roshelski. You know, he really, I think you're into spot on the 2019 team by finishing the exhibition schedule as the Patriots leader in all-purpose yards. That's something he wouldn't have had on his resume if the preseason slate had not been played.

So, again, folks, there's a lot of questions. We saw our good friend Matt Chatham tweet out yesterday that all things considered, this is a tough year for an undrafted free agent. He called it, I think, birth certificate bingo. And I think that's really a great way to put it because it is just a bad year. You still have to grind if you're an undrafted free agent. I still think maybe there's one that could latch onto this roster, but again, I think the pathway is a lot more cloudy because players are going to be more reliant on NFL experience and being able to fit right into a system. Even guys that are newbies to the Patriots roster that are free agents but have NFL experience,

I think may have a leg up on the competition. So maybe a guy like Jeff Thomas, maybe a guy like Will Hastings now is going to be on the outside looking in in favor of maybe more established wide receivers like maybe a Demir Bird or even a Marquise Lee. They don't have experience in the Patriots system, but if healthy, these guys can produce on the field. Maybe Bill Belichick gives them a second look at that. So, Steve, again, you know, even with the COVID-19 restrictions being likely the major story to open training camp, you know, it's something where we're finding our way back, and that means the NFL is going

to be back, folks. Again, we're just one week away from the start of training camp, and in just a moment, Steve Balistrieri and I will discuss the Patriots roster and which camp battles might be the most intriguing. Who has our sharp eye? Find out when the Lock lockdown patriots podcast continues folks steve balistrieri of patsfans.com joins me today and steve again as i said to close the first segment covet 19 restrictions are likely to be the major story to open training camp and rightfully so but there are plenty of storylines to keep all us media types busy for quite some

time and folks i'm not talking about editorials on fans and media members clutching a TB12 book and sobbing while singing Michael Bolton's How Am I Supposed to Live Without You. I know some people are going to do that, but I mean on the field. I mean positional battles. And I figured that we'd take our audience home today with a spotlight on that. So Steve, let's start on the offensive side of the ball. The wide receiver group, I think, is going to garner a lot of attention. But I believe the tight end position is actually the most intriguing. In a preseason, the likes of which we haven't seen in my time in the business, we have two rookies leading the depth chart,

two incumbents that were, how should we say, less than impressive last year, and a couple of undrafted options. We talked last segment about how undrafteds are facing an uphill battle at best Devin Asiasi and Dalton Keene are the two rookies they're the locks in my opinion but do you think that a battle between Matt Lacoste versus Ryan Izzo could be a potential intriguing battle or is this one all but decided in your opinion? Oh, I think it's far from decided. I think it's wide open. I think just by the fact that the two rookies were drafted where they were,

those two guys are locked. And I think, you know, actually I'm pretty – I'm not saying they're going to light it up by any stretch of the imagination, but when I'm looking at those two guys, I think they're going to do well. I look for those guys to do well this season. And then when it comes to the—I don't think they'll keep more than three tight ends, so it comes down to the two veterans. Either or could make the roster.

And that's why preseason is always so important. Now, practice, of course, is going to be the end-all, be-all this year. So, you know, it'll have to come down to who performs better. Neither one, I thought, blocked incredibly well last year, and that was supposed to be Izzo's, you know, forte kind of. I think it's going to come down to who blocks better, because I think, you know, looking at those two rookies, I think they're going to utilize those guys more in the passing game.

But I'm looking at possibly Lacoste, you know, winning out that battle, because I think he can do a little bit more in the passing game, but it'll all come down to who can block better. Yeah, and I think so. I know you mentioned Ryan Izzo's ability to block, and look, I like Ryan personally. I think he's a good kid. I think he's a hard worker. I think he's giving it his best effort,

but if we're talking about his 2019 production it was lackluster especially after the first six games of the season where he took a good amount of snaps looked to be someone that was kind of coming into his own a little bit I think injuries helped him to regress a little and then all of a sudden you started seeing his name pop up as that healthy scratch week after week Ryan is going to have to have a tremendous training camp in order to crack this roster, in my opinion. And that pains me a little bit because, you know, I love my dad jokes. I love to tweet out, touch Dizzo from Izzo, but I don't think I'm going to get a chance

to do that much this year. So I'm going to have to find new jokes and new ways to embarrass myself. But no, all kidding aside, folks, I think especially for the reasons that we talked about previously in this podcast, I think it favors Lacoste to get that third spot. And I agree with you. I don't think they're going to carry more than three tight ends. I think there's too much depth on other areas of the roster where they may look to carry maybe an extra wide receiver

or even an extra running back. I think the tight end position, they're well positioned with the first two rookies, but they're going to need somebody that's going to be able to come in and be a veteran presence. And I do think that's what costs. At the end of the day, I think he's a little bit better of a receiver, and I think he's a little bit better of a blocker. And I think a lot of his problems last year stem from the fact that he essentially had to be tight end one on this team.

Benjamin Watson missed the first four games of the season with suspension. And when he came back, I think Ben gave you everything he had, but there just wasn't much left in the tank for him physically. And I think a lot of pressure got put on Matt Lacoste, and I just don't think he was capable of handling it. That's not to say that I think Lacoste is a poor player. I just think he was put into a role where he had to be Rob Gronkowski, and no one can live up to that. And I think it did defer, or I think it did deter, I should say, or stunt the growth of Matt Lacoste in this system. I think he's going to be able to be a little more relaxed this year, knowing that Asiasi and Keene are going to get the lion's

share of the attention. And I think that's going to allow him to settle in. So again, my my friend I think we're like-minded when it comes to that and we'll take it home today to see if we're still like-minded and we'll switch over to the defensive side of the ball and we know defense wins championships I look at the Patriots defensive line as being a pretty intriguing spot heading into camp and if we're honest, it's oftentimes the most overlooked part of this Patriots defense. To me, the roster locks here are Lawrence Guy, Adam Butler, and I think Bo Allen is a roster lock as well, even if Allen might be by default simply because of the nature of the position he plays at either nose tackle or solidifying the middle of that defensive line. Technically, Byron Cowart is considered a bubble player.

We saw Byron a little bit in training camp last year, but he wasn't really a largely reliable contributor last year. I think a lot of that was because of some of the competition around him and maybe a lack of experience. But I think he has an inside track on making this team. Someone we've talked about a lot personally, and even offline is Dietrich wise. He's a guy I'm rooting for,

but there seems to be this proverbial flavor of the month surrounding Dietrich for a roster cut, even though I keep seeing intangibles in his game and why he fits well in this defense, the stuff he does away from the ball, not so much going after it, but the prowess he brings to playing off the ball could land him a roster spot. In your opinion, Steve, what should

Pats fans be looking for in camp when it comes to this defensive line, and who do you think has a chance to make an impact before the start of the regular season? Yeah, I think the defensive line I think uh I totally in agreement with you as who the roster locks are um and I think after that it's wide open I believe that you know uh you mentioned a couple of undrafted rookies who I'm very intrigued to see Nick Coe uh Bill Murray not the Ghostbusters one but you know but know, but, you know, Coward's another guy. We watched Coward last summer, you know, and there was times when, you know, you and I would sit there and we would talk about him because we were watching him

and he would flash, but it wasn't consistent enough. And, you know, that's part of being a rookie too. And we'll see what he can do this year. But, you know, I'm looking at these guys, and I think after those guys that you mentioned that are locked, I think it's wide open, which to me is really intriguing because of the fact that, you know, it's all going to come down to who shows the most.

And unfortunately, and I'm totally also in agreement with you, I like Dietrich Weiss. I remember him as a rookie, how mature he was, how well he looked like he fit. But it seems like every year his snap counts are decreasing. And, you know, he's not really a fit for that 3-4 base defense that they've been running. So, you know, I'm looking at him as kind of the odd man out, and I hate to say that, but I really think he is this year. And, you know, I won't be surprised if he ends up with Joe Judge down in New York.

You know, it's intriguing, and that's something that a couple of Giants fans had recently asked me about, about guys that might be cut loose by the Patriots. If they have some experience in this system, could they find themselves down in New York? Dietrich is someone that I do believe could thrive in that system and come down and be able to fit right into the type of defense that Joe is going to run down there and be able to grow with a young team, not having to essentially have a lot of spotlight on him. Again, I have a personal stake. Well, not a personal stake. I shouldn't say that, folks. But I do have a personal affinity,

I guess is the best way to put it, for Dietrich. I cut my journalism teeth on the Patriots beat interviewing Dietrich. And he could have not have been more accommodating. He couldn't have been a better subject. And I find myself rooting for him because I do think he's a solid role player. But you're right. He's continuing to search for his fit within this Patriots scheme. Could that happen during training camp? Absolutely. Do I think his chances of making the team are a little bit better now that the Patriots might be looking a lot more closely at veterans, especially veterans with experience in the system. Absolutely.

But because Cowart showed some preseason flashes and I think they invested a good amount of draft capital to get him, that could be a battle to watch. So definitely keep an eye on that, folks. I think Byron Cowart and Dietrich Weiss right now are firmly on that bubble. It'll be interesting to see who's able to play their way in and be able to crack this roster. Another guy that we haven't really mentioned all that much is Nick Thurman. He spent a lot of time on the Patriots practice squad last year. I think that could give him an edge in competing against some of the rookie free agents that I think he's going to be battling with to gain a roster spot.

Guys like Bill Murray and Nick Cole, even Courtney Wallace. I think all of those players have a chance to secure a roster spot. But again, it's going to be difficult for undrafted rookie free agents this year to do so. Right now, bottom line is this defensive line to me, Steve, has solid passing down pieces, but they got run over by the Ravens and even the Titans last year. Two big matchups. And in my opinion, they're not really the deepest group after Guy and Butler. I think they're going to benefit from a rotational player emerging out of camp.

That's why I think this is an intriguing spot. If they can find a guy, especially in the run-stopping department, to take some of the heat off Lawrence Guy and Bo Allen and even Adam Butler, I think this is going to be an opportunity for maybe one of these guys to emerge. So Nick Coe, all the talent in the world, I think he could be an impact player. He's going to have to come in and really buy into the Patriots' way of doing things. Otherwise, I don't think they they give him a second look but he's disciplined and he's committed to being here and playing and having his head in the game he could be a dark horse candidate even with

the Patriots maybe shying away from guys without experience I think his talent could take him a lot of places Bill Murray you mentioned obviously I mean how great would it be to have Bill Murray on this team I mean you can imagine the amount you talk about me with my dad jokes. Can you imagine how many columns would be titled Cinderella story if he makes the team, you know, it's in the hole. I mean, come on. I mean, you know, you could get Ghostbusters comments, stripes, Caddyshack. I mean, endless Groundhog Day. I mean, this really could go beyond like anything that we've seen before, but all I'm kidding folks, all actuality. Murray brings a lot to the table. Don't forget he blocked 10 kicks in college. It's going to be a different training camp this year, my friend,

but you know what? We're still going to cover and we're still going to discuss maybe in a different medium and a different forum, but we're still going to discuss the prowess of a lot of these guys. I thank you for taking the time out today to discuss some training camp battles with me uh you know you have a almost embroidered seat there's only one embroidered seat and you know that belongs to our big green friend but uh you have you come as close to that as possible my friend and uh you're always there for the handoff when i need you thank you for joining me today folks follow Steve on Twitter. I can't recommend highly enough the work that he does, especially the work that he's doing with SoftRep right now.

A great and phenomenal series right now on some of the inner workings of American troops and Israeli troops. Steve, I'll give you the floor to kind of give our listeners a little bit of background because I know there's a lot

of our listeners at Lockdown Patriots that also love military history as much as I do. Steve is putting together a phenomenal piece right now, a multi-parter. So please enlighten our listeners as to where they can find this and all of your great work. Oh, I appreciate it, Mike. And as always, it's a pleasure to talk to you. And yeah, you can find me on Twitter at SteveB7SFG. I write for PatsFans.com. We do the podcast, as you mentioned earlier in the show. And I also write for SoftRep.com, which we cover military affairs, military history. I just had a long, as you mentioned, I had a long in-depth piece that I did a lot of research on about the Israeli raid on Entebbe where they freed 105 hostages who were hijacked from an airliner back in 76. And with that, I was able to garner an interview with Mr. Netanyahu, who was the brother of the prime minister of Israel, as well as the brother of the Israeli commander who led the raid on the airport. And it was a real eye-opener, and it was a fantastic interview, and we put together a real long piece on that. And, yeah, I appreciate the plug for that. Oh, without any question.

And, folks, I don't plug it because Steve is my guest today and because he's a friend. That's part of it, but the bigger part of it is it is just a phenomenal read. If you are interested in military history, especially this period in military history, I definitely recommend checking it out. You'll find it on my Twitter feed retweeted, but definitely check out Soft Rep. Check out Steve's Twitter feed for each of the pieces that come out. You will not be disappointed. It is a captivating read. When I started, I just could not wait to continue reading on this, folks. And again, his Pat's coverage is second to none. Murph and I joke about Sunday, his column being

the Sunday paper. I kid you not, folks. It really is. It's something I look forward to. And right alongside Mike Reese's Sunday column, it's absolute appointment reading for me. So my friend, thank you so much. Enjoy the week. Enjoy the start of training camp. Hopefully everything goes off as we expect it to. And we'll continue to have you back on here on Lockdown Patriots throughout to talk about positional battles, training camp battles as we march toward the 2020 season. Thanks again, my friend. Stay safe and stay well. Thank you, Mike. Anytime. And there you have it, Patriots fans. We are now less than one week away from the start of NFL training camps, including that of your New England Patriots. And while Steve Balistrieri and I delved

into the tight end position, the defensive line, and the potential fate of undrafted rookie free agents in camp this year, we're just barely scratching the surface of potential camp storylines leading into the 2020 NFL season. And while today was all about the reason, tomorrow is all about the wisdom and counsel. In fact, it might even be a little green wisdom and counsel. That's right, folks. You all know what's coming. I don't have to say it. You know it, and you're looking forward to it as much as I am. So, if you want to ensure that you do not miss a single episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast,

subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts. Follow us on Spotify. Download us wherever you get your podcasts. And don't forget, you can also listen to Locked On Patriots right on your very own smart device. How do you do that? Very simple. Just ask it to play the latest episode of Locked On Patriots.

Once again, folks, I'm Mike DeBate. I thank my guest, Steve Balistrieri, for his time, his insight, and his appearance today. But most of all, I thank each and every one of you for listening and for staying locked into Locked On Patriots. Stay safe. Stay well. Continue to be the change you wish to see in the world. Have a great day, everyone.