Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Eight is Enough? Probably Not, as New England Patriots Continue Free Agency Spree — 3/16/2021

Episode Date: March 16, 2021

For the past few weeks, many have speculated on the manner with which the New England Patriots would approach free agency in 2021. We have our answer, as the Pats have reportedly signed eight free agents for the upcoming season, and New England may not be done yet. Joining host Mike D’Abate is Steve Balestrieri of PatsFans.com. The duo discuss the Pats’ signings of TEs Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith, LB Matt Judon, WRs Nelson Agholor and Kendrick Bourne and more. They also provide their thoughts on a potential trade involving WR N’Keal Harry.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Built BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKED15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.BetOnline AGThere is only 1 place that has you covered and 1 place we trust. Betonline.ag! Sign up today for a free account at betonline.ag and use that promocode: LOCKEDON for your 50% welcome bonus.Rock AutoAmazing selection. Reliably low prices. All the parts your car will ever need. Visit RockAuto.com and tell them Locked On sent you.Join our Bracket Challengehttps://fantasy.espn.com/tournament-challenge-bracket/2021/en/group?groupID=3624947 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You are Locked On Patriots, your daily New England Patriots podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. All of you, Foxborough faithful. You are now locked in to the Lockdown Patriots podcast. Today is Tuesday, March 16th, 2021. And is eight enough? Probably not. And we'll discuss why here today on your daily home for news notes and analysis

infused with the occasional opinion on your six-time Super Bowl champions, the New England Patriots. Greetings and salutations, Patriots Nation. It's day two and the Patriots are at it again. After reportedly signing seven new free agents to contracts in New England, the Patriots felt that they wanted to add at least one more. And by all accounts, folks, they're not done yet. Joining the likes of Jonu Smith, Kendrick Bourne, Nelson Aguilar, Davon Godchow, Jalen Mills, Henry Anderson, and Matt Judon, the New England Patriots inked tight end Hunter Henry. ESPN's Adam Schefter first reporting that the Pats had agreed to a three-year, $37.5

million deal with $25 million guaranteed for the former Los Angeles Charger. And folks, if you've listened to Locked On Patriots before, Hunter Henry is not a name you should be unfamiliar with. I, for one, have been singing Hunter's praises here for the last few months on Locked On Patriots. He's a player that I've long coveted, and this is a signing that definitely makes me happy. But it's also a signing that makes a ton of sense for the New England Patriots. Henry is a traditional in-line tight end. That's something that they did not have on the roster. Even with the addition of Jonu Smith yesterday, Jonu was more of the move tight end. Henry is

more of a traditional in-line tight end. What that means for the Patriots is a lot of 12 personnel. That means both Henry and Jonu Smith on the field at the same time. Jonu playing the role of the move tight end. Henry has the size to play a traditional inline tight end. He's 6'5", 250 pounds. He's played the wide roll before, which he can do, but he's also shown great ability to block, catch, and run a variety of different routes. One thing that's certain is the two tight end sets and the play action that can be run with both he and John O'Smith is going to have Patriots fans buzzing this season. And for certain, include me among those that cannot wait to see Hunter Henry and John O'Smith on the field at the same time for your New England Patriots.

I said just a moment ago that I've been coveting this signing for a while, and for those of you who've listened to Locked On Patriots before, you know that before I joined the Patriots beat, I covered the Los Angeles Chargers for a couple of years. I've had the chance to watch Hunter Henry evolve since the time he was a rookie. And as I've said before, this kid can flat out play. I would be excited if this was their only tight end acquisition, but pairing him alongside John O'Smith, folks, this has the chance to be electric. But again, because I covered the Chargers previously and now cover the Patriots, my opinion on Hunter Henry might be a little biased. So that means we might need to

get some level-headed, reasonable opinions on exactly what this signing means for the Pats. Well, luckily for us, it's Tuesday. And that means our resident voice of reason, my Patriots Paisan, and my good buddy Steve Balistrieri of Patsfans.com is here for his weekly spot. And if you thought our agenda was full before, folks, well, it's busting at the seams right now. And of course, Steve and I will begin with the news of the day, talking about the signing of Hunter Henry. Not only what it means for both he and Jonu Smith, but what it means for the other tight ends on the Patriots roster right now. Well, Steve and I will be diving into that topic, as well as Steve's take on all the Patriots moves that they made on Monday. Which of the offensive moves and which of the defensive

moves caught Steve's sharp eye, and which will have the greatest impact on the field in 2021? And as much fun as it is to talk about all these arrivals, folks, we do have a potential departure to discuss, and that may be in the form of wide receiver Nikhil Harry. According to a very recent ESPN report, the Patriots may be engaged in trade talks regarding Harry with as many as three teams. And as much as I know a lot of you would love to jettison Harry from the team, are the Patriots giving up on him too quickly? Well, folks, at the time I'm recording this podcast, the Harry rumors are still just that,

rumors, and that's exactly how Steve and I will address them. So, as you may have guessed, folks, an action-packed agenda, tons to talk about, and I know that you're all eager to absorb some of Steve's reasonable wisdom and counsel. That and so much more on this 8 is likely not enough episode when the Locked On Patriots podcast continues. But first, Locked On listeners, football games on the field might be over, but the NBA, college basketball, and the NHL are in full swing.

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Get daily picks, blowout specials, wrong team favorite picks, and Lee Sterling's lock of the day. Follow the Locked On Bets podcast brought to you by betonline.ag wherever you get your podcasts. Patriots fans, my guest today and I always love to add some godfather quotes to our appearances together on the mic. And today, I think it's safe to say that Bill Belichick is settling all family business. The charge of the Light Brigade continues in Foxborough.

And yes, folks, the charge of the Light Brigade, that pun was intended. I apologize, but I couldn't resist. Here today to break down all of the free agent frenzy in Foxborough right now is our resident voice of reason here on Locked On Patriots. And his reason could not be more appropriate or could not be more needed today than it ever has been. One of the best, most knowledgeable columnists that you'll find in Patriots media anywhere, 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. He is my Patriots Paisan, and despite what he will tell you, I will consistently tell you this every week. He's worthy of all the praise I give him. Everybody gives him and then some. Steve Balistrieri joins me today. Welcome back to Locked On Patriots, my friend. Well, thanks for having me.

And I don't know if you heard me chuckling because you stole my godfather tweet I was going to use today. So I'll leave you with this one. I don't need to wipe out everyone, Tom. Just my enemies somewhere in a war room right now in foxborough and gillette stadium bill belichick is eating an orange with the skin on which is still disgusting to me but you know michael coleon pulled it off maybe bill can pull it off buddy it's cliche to say that i don't know where to

begin we already had a full agenda heading into our discussion today that agenda is overflowing now because let's start with the news of the day um hunter henry joining the pats on a three-year 37 and a half million dollar deal 25 million guaranteed patriots showing out big bucks for the tight end position this year and let's face it they needed to in 2020 there was zero production out of that position when it came to offense very little on blocking Claire I know you've got some strong feelings about Ryan Izzo I've been a Lizzo apologist along with you but the Patriots upgraded and they upgraded in a big way Steve you know I love this move my My opinion is probably a little biased. I covered Henry since he was a rookie in Los Angeles,

and I've kind of watched him grow into the tight end that he's become. But you're the voice of reason. What was your reaction to this morning's news, and what do you think it means for the Patriots' tight end depth chart as a whole? Well, my reaction was, wow, because it's like, this is so anti-Bill Belichick. Belichick is usually one that lets the first couple of days go, and then he lets the market settle a little bit, and they find those kind of guys that always fit in. But this year's a little different because and they find those kind of guys that always fit in.

But this year is a little different because of the salary cap going down. A lot of teams were in bad, bad salary cap shape. You know, this was a time for a team that has a lot of salary cap space to swoop in, and you don't have that bidding war going on with a bunch of different teams because of that. I'll be very surprised if, you know, when we see these deals that the money isn't front loaded like we usually see it. I think the money on a lot of these deals will be in the second and third years. I think, you know, the cash this year will probably be minimal, but we'll see once the stuff breaks. But, you know, with the signing of Hunter Henry after Johnnie Smith yesterday, I smell 12 personnel really heavy next year. What do you think?

Oh, absolutely. I mean, you know, the visions of that are dancing around in my head this morning. And look, I tweeted out just a little while ago on Twitter and also shared my thoughts on Locked On NFL Live. And look, 6'5", 250 pounds. Henry has that size. He's their traditional in-line tight end. Whereas Jonu Smith comes in as more of the move tight end, like you said. I've seen Henry play the wide roll before. He's shown good ability to block, to catch, to run a variety of routes. This kid can do it all. He can play. And Patriots fans are really going to be endeared by what he can do.

I cannot wait to see the two sets, the play action that can be run with both he and Jonu Smith. This is going to be a lot of fun for Pats fans to watch. Let me tell you, Cam Newton loved utilizing tight ends when he was in carolina if he can return to even some sort of the form that he had there and again folks i don't expect him to return to full carolina form i don't think anyone expects that but if cam comes in and he's able to play better than he did last year this could be a lot of fun to watch no matter who the quarterback is going to be because there's all kinds of rumors and you know what no one knows for sure what to expect in foxborough

bill belichick we've always called him predictably unpredictable but in this circumstance i don't know i'm saying unpredictably unpredictable because it really just is uh an amazing time in foxborough and i can't recall an offseason like this in quite some time. But don't worry, we are going to take a deep dive into Monday's moves. I called them the Magnificent Seven that the Patriots signed yesterday, signing seven free agents, or at least unofficially, folks. Those deals aren't official until free agency starts or after at 4 p.m. Eastern on Wednesday. But they reported, you know, a few big, you know, acquisitions, and they filled a lot of holes on the roster.

But one that might be vacating the roster for the New England Patriots, reports circulating this morning that the Patriots might be getting a little more serious in their talks to trade wide receiver Nikhil Harry. Mark Daniels of the Providence Journal had pointed this out, and ESPN had reported it, that there were at least three teams in the mix to acquire Harry in a trade with the Patriots. And again, folks, things are moving fast. So at the time that Steve and I are recording this,

this may either be a done deal, it may be a moot point, but right now we're still dealing with the rumor aspect of it. And Mark also pointed out in his article for the Providence Journal that he conjectures that we should keep an eye on Arizona. That makes a lot of sense to me. He's a former Sun Devil at Arizona State, recently tweeted out a picture of him wearing his Sun Devil outfit. So there's a lot of reasons to believe that could be. But again, we don't know. It could be another team or he may end up staying put.

Steve, you always take a level-headed reasonable approach to things so i'm going to post this question to you is it time for a fresh start for mikhail harry or should the patriots consider holding on to him especially knowing now that with these moves he no longer has to carry the load of being wide receiver one anymore well you know you know, I've been a Harry apologist since they drafted him. So I would like to see him hold on to him because I don't think that he's even scratched the potential that he has. And I think that they put him in a bad position with the way they've used him. Hopefully that would change now that they've, you know, picked up a couple of tight ends that are actually going to be productive and they get some other wide receivers that, you know, probably can catch the football and get open.

So, you know, I think holding on to Harry would be a good idea, but at the same time, I also believe that if he was to get a fresh start somewhere, we're going to see the type of player that he truly is, and I think he would surprise some of the people here that have been so down on him. Yeah, I've sort of been a Harry apologist. I've been accused of being a Harry apologist. I always try to take a middle-of-the-road approach to it because I can understand the fans' frustration with him and him not living up to some of the hype that the Patriots had on him or that a lot of the media had put on him

when he came into the wide receiver room here in New England. But I, again, always go back to being in the media room when Nikhil was drafted. And the buzz that came through the room that day is that this is a guy that can go up, make contested catches. He's not going to be that threat that's going to stretch the field. I think a lot of Patriots fans were confused by what Nikhil Harry's strengths and weaknesses were. And I don't think he ever had a chance to really grow into his potential here. Now, can he do that? Apparently, he's got a very good relationship with Cam Newton. So it'll be

interesting to see if cam lobbies to keep him around or if the patriots decide that they invested first round capital and after just two seasons one of which was really decimated by injury even last year was a problem for nikhil that they may want to see what he can do with a full season a full workout regimen and being able to develop a relationship with his quarterback, I agree with you. I think there's still something there with McKeel Harry. It's untapped potential.

Maybe it'll be realized here. Maybe it won't be. But bottom line, I think that he at least deserves a chance to be able to showcase it. I would like to see him be able to do it here. But if the time has come for the two sides to go their separate ways, I do wish him the best because i really think that in a lot of ways he's had a lot of difficulties to deal with and i think that there is a pro caliber wide receiver lurking somewhere in the keel harry and i think you're going to see it i don't think it's going to be wasted talent but we haven't even scratched the surface on our discussion today. Folks, Steve Balistrieri and I are going to take a deep dive into the Patriots' frenzy of Monday moves

and which of those magnificent seven that I talked about earlier was Steve's favorite. Does it match mine? Find out when the Locked On Patriots podcast continues. Locked On listeners, my colleagues and I at the Locked On Podcast Network have been telling you about Bilt Bar, the best tasting protein bar on the market for a while now. Because Bilt Bar is the amazing low-calorie, low-sugar, high-protein,

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And don't forget to check back each and every day to see who won the day's matchup, and also who will become the best tasting protein bar from Built Bar. Locked On listeners, are you ready for the NFL Draft? Join NFL Draft hosts Trevor Sikama and Benjamin Salik as they give you their latest positional rankings and analysis on 2021 draft prospects with team-centric guest mocks right around the corner. Subscribe to the Locked On NFL Draft podcast on the Radio.com app or wherever you get your podcasts. Folks, Steve Balistrieri of Patsfans.com joins me today. And Steve, you know, for the past few weeks,

a lot of us speculated on the manner with which the Patriots were going to approach free agency. A thousand years passed. Wait for day one, day two, day three. Those memes with the stick figure poking the Patriots logo saying, come on, do something. We all expected that that might have been the case. But Tommy Curran of NBC Sports Boston was one of the first to say, look for the case but tommy curran of nbc sports boston um was one of the first to say look for the patriots to be uncharacteristically aggressive and on monday the patriots provided their answer uh it may be too soon to evaluate how any of these

signings will impact the patriots on the field but one thing is certain bud the patriots are going all in uh in total new england reached preliminary agreements with seven free agents on Monday. On the offensive side of the ball, Bud, let's start there. John O'Smith at the tight end position. I thought the Patriots were done there. They had Hunter Henry on Tuesday morning. Again, 12 personnel for days. Folks, I can't say enough about how great that's going to look in Foxborough this year, but they did add a pair of wide receivers.

Kendrick Bourne, formerly of the San Francisco 49ers. Nelson Aguilar comes to the Patriots by way of the Raiders, by way of the Eagles. Steve, which of these was the most intriguing offensive move that the Patriots made on Monday? Well, I'll answer it like this. On Sunday, we did our regular podcast for Patsfans.com, and at the end of the show, our host Russ Goldman asked all of us, give us, if the Patriots were to knock it out of the park on the first day of tampering, who would your three free agents be?

And I said, well, I'm not saying that they're going to sign these guys, but I would love to see them sign these three. And I said, my three guys will be two sexy picks and one Bill Belichick pick. And that would be my number one would be John O'Smith. My number two would be Curtis Samuel. And number three was Henry Anderson. So I was a pretty happy camper yesterday afternoon because obviously number three is in a sexy pick. It's more of a guy of need that I think would fit very well. John O'Smith to me was the guy that I really would have loved to see. I wasn't sure they would be able to afford him,

but they threw some good money at him, and he's coming here. I think he's going to fit perfectly in this offense. Yeah, he really will. You know, as much as I love Hunter Henry, and I was as shocked as anyone to see that move this morning, and I'm so glad to see him in New England, John O. Smith is that typical move tight end that I think is going to be such an effective

target in the red zone. 41 receptions for 448 yards, eight touchdowns last season. All eight touchdowns came in the red zone. So you look at him more than a capable blocker, a very good blocker. Got size, no problem there. He's definitely going to be someone uh that is a formidable force in this offense and to me uh again we keep coming back to that 12 personnel i just can't wait to see the patriots being able to use that alignment the two tight end alignment but running 12 personnel

once again and being able to do it effectively with two of the best in the league i mean you look at guys like travis kelsey and george kittle obviously they're the cream of the best in the league. I mean, you look at guys like Travis Kelsey and George Kittle, obviously they're the cream of the crop, but John O. Smith and Hunter Henry are definitely formidable options, and it makes the Patriots that much more potent at the tight end position. When you look at the two wide receivers, I know people are concerned about the amount of money that they gave to Nelson Aguilar, and they look at the contract, years 26 million a lot of that is going to be spread through incentives so folks before you take a look at these deals even Bourne's

deal I saw a lot of people getting on them three year 22.5 that was a lot more than what people expected for him but both of these wide receivers to, give you the opportunity now to give flexibility and versatility. They can both play in the slot. They both have played in the slot. Aguilar played most of his snaps in the slot in Philadelphia. A lot of people forget that. He was used more as a vertical deep threat with Las Vegas and showed that he can do it.

He's not quite the wide receiver he used to be, but I still think he can be effective in that role. And Bourne, I think, is more of a slot slot fit but the Patriots could use him outside as well so a lot of interesting moves I really am a fan of all of the moves that they made yesterday and that brings us quite nicely bud into the defensive side of the ball and you mentioned Henry Anderson on the 4th of March here John Sapochnetti joined me and I had gushed pretty heavily about Henry Anderson. And I know you have supported that theory several times in the work that you have done as well. I looked at his ability to stop the run as something that the Patriots could really, really use.

And believe it or not, he actually posted the third highest run stuff rate among players with at least 500 defensive snaps in 2020. That, to me, endeared me to Henry Anderson right off the bat. And I was so glad to see the Patriots bring him in because I think that not only can he provide assistance with stopping the run, but he's also pretty good at rushing the passer. He had seven sacks and 16 quarterback hits in 2018. This was a great signing, but the Patriots were not done by far on the defensive side of the ball. Davon Godchow coming in to shore up the middle part of the interior of that defensive line. You look at the linebacker position, Matt Judon, maybe one of the more prolific signings that they made yesterday, and also bolstering the defensive

backfield with Jalen Mills. Once again, my friend, which of these signings intrigued you the most? Which is going to have the biggest impact on the Patriots in 2021? Well, we both know that their run defense at times was just absolutely horrible last year. So, you know, with so many of the interior guys being free agents this year, they needed an upgrade there. They needed to bring in some fresh blood. I still hope Lawrence Guy comes back, but I'm starting to believe now that he might not. So, you know, with the fresh blood, I thought the signing of Davin Godchuk was a really good one. I thought

he was, he's one of those kind of underrated kind of guys he can play right over the nose, which is what they like to do. But Henry Anderson is another guy. I mean, you talk about him run stuffer, he's been very, very good at that. And I was just thrilled to pieces when I heard those two moves. But to me, the big move, and again, you know, one of the other issues they had was getting after the quarterback. And, you know, somebody asked me last week about, you know,

the Patriots being able to get a guy like, you know, Matthew Judon. And I was like, I don't believe that they'll have the money to go do that. But they were able to go do that. I think he's another really valuable chess piece. You know, when you look at, you know, the way the Ravens used him, they move him around a lot. It actually kind of harkens me back to the days of, dare I say it, Adalys Thomas, you know.

They used him in a lot of same ways so uh you know i think he's going to be a really big impact guy because they're going to move him around they're going to move them around they're going to create some matchups i think it's going to be a really good signing for them i think he's going to fit in quite well i think he's going to fit in quite well. I think he's going to fit in very well, too. I described him last night, meaning Judon, as that hand-and-glove fit for the way the Patriots scheme their edge rush. He's very proficient in the passer. He really, I think, is effective both defending the run,

setting the edge. I've also seen him several times in Baltimore drop into coverage on the line as well. So this guy can play all over the place. And I think he's the prototypical edge rush that the Patriots long covet. You mentioned Adelius Thomas. I think that's an adept comparison, both coming over from Baltimore, strong defensive-minded coaching there and a strong defensive-minded team.

Hopefully it'll work out a little better than Thomas did. That was not one of the greater signings in Patriots history. But I love Judon coming into this team, and I think you're right on that. Of course, we mentioned Henry Anderson earlier. Mills is that Swiss Army knife on the defensive side of the ball. He transitioned from being a corner to coming in, playing more strong safety in Philadelphia. So he can be an effective addition to this secondary, especially since Terrence Brooks now is gone. He's departed in free agency, and Godchow, I think, can really be the middle part

of that interior of the defensive line that we've been talking about so often. 310 pounds, a little smaller than the prototypical Patriots nose tackle, and you mentioned that, but I think he brings the versatility to the interior that if they do lose Lawrence Guy or Adam Butler, or dare I say even both, hopefully not, I think that Godshaw can step in and be able to at least fortify the Patriots' ability to stuff the run in 2021. I'm not going to put you on the spot here, bud,

but I am going to put you on the spot. Before I let you go today, when you look at the moves as a whole so far, and you can include Henry in that as well, is there a move that has made you smile more than others? Is there a move out there that the Patriots have made where you look at it and say, wow, that is just, that is the ultimate move. I know you mentioned Jonu Smith. Is he the guy, or is there a move that you've looked at and said, yeah, this is my favorite of the Patriots' moves so far? I'm going to stick with Jonu Smith, and I'll leave you with this little tidbit. You know, for about three or four days, we've been hearing over at Pat's fans,

we have someone who's very close to the Patriots organization, and they kept talking about John O. Smith. And they kept saying, John O. Smith, as soon as free agency starts, is going to sign with New England. And we kept asking, well, what are you basing this on? And they said, he loves Cam Newton. He wants to play with Cam Newton. And, you know, I'll be honest.

I took it with a big grain of salt, and I was like, I'll believe this when I see it. Well, seeing is believing, they signed John Smith, and I guess he does want to play with Cam Newton because he didn't waste any time agreeing to, you know, what was, I mean, and I guess he does want to play with Cam Newton because he didn't waste any time agreeing to what was a really good contract for him. But at the same time, a lot of people pooh-poohed that idea that Cam can't draw free agents anymore.

Well, I think there's the proof right there. Yeah, and I think that in a lot of ways, it goes back to the point that Murph and I made a little bit yesterday, a point that I made on Friday before Patscap joined me for his Patscap 101 Foxborough finance session. That really was an amazing primer for what we're seeing this week, folks. And if you think I'm busy, Pat's cap is really, really busy. Miguel is nonstop against the wall, all respect and all love to that guy. He is a dear friend of mine, but one of the hardest, hardest working guys in the business. And I just can't say enough good things about Pat's cap.

But we had talked about this with cam that the Patriots might've looked at their quarterback room and said, look, if we're going to attract the type of free agents that we want to attract, that we have the cap space to attract, we got to do a little better than just Jared Stidham in that quarterback room. And I know Stidham has his fans. Look, folks, I'm not necessarily, you know, putting him out to pasture. I think Stidham still has the ability to be a solid pro in this league. Maybe he'll get a chance to compete either here or elsewhere. I think the Patriots will retain his services. I don't think they're going to jettison him. But at the same time,

they needed an upgrade. They needed to make sure that there was a tight end, excuse me, that there was a quarterback on the roster that tight ends and wide receivers wanted to come in and play for or play with. Cam Newton still fits that bill quite nicely. So that's an interesting tidbit. Tidbit you'll find here on Locked On Patriots, folks, but it's just scratching the surface when it comes to the great information that you can find from my guest here

when he writes on patsfans.com or he takes the microphone for any of his great podcasts. Of course, Patriots 4th and 2, and one Patriots place with our good green friend Thomas Murphy and the Countess of class herself Claire Cooper but what can I say thank you so much for joining me today taking time out of your busy schedule to talk Pats please before we let you go for the benefit

of our new listeners please let everyone know where they can find you your great work and what we can expect coming up on the horizon from not only the great Penn, but also the great voice of Steve Balistrieri. Well, thanks again for having me, Mike. It's always a pleasure. You know I love talking football with you, and obviously Godfather quotes. I mean, that's one of the highlights of our day. But yeah, we'll be looking at free agency. I don't think any of us saw the kind of aggressiveness that they've, you know, shown so far. So we're going to be looking at how all these pieces are going to fit because that ultimately is how we'll judge this. I mean, on paper, they've definitely improved their team all over the field.

So now, you know, we're going to be looking at, okay, how are these pieces all going to fit together? I think we're all in agreement that the tight ends are going to be the focus, but, you know, they're not done yet. They still have some money to spend, and the draft is right around the corner. I think it's going to be a really, really interesting spring, especially once these guys all start getting together and getting back on the field. Absolutely.

And for all of the excitement that exists in Patriots Nation right now, and there's a lot, folks, and there should be. Don't let anyone convince you otherwise. These are exciting moves. Get excited about it because it is a fun time in Foxborough right now. But the real fun is going to begin when these teams take the field, when you start to see all of these pieces come together and what it may mean for the Patriots on the field in 2021. I'm not going to say right now that, oh, this puts them

right back into Super Bowl contention. Folks, there is a lot that would have to go right to get that to come to fruition. But at the same time, it's exciting and a great step in the right direction for the Patriots to invest in the future. Just like that, Patriots fans, we are almost halfway through your work week. And I know it feels like a long couple of days, but it also feels like a quick action pack couple of days. Well, fear not, because we are only scratching the surface on our Patriots coverage this week.

Plenty more still to come. So to be sure that you do not miss a single second of the action, download and subscribe to the Locked On Patriots podcast on platforms such as Radio.com, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your podcasts.

Just make sure that you're staying locked in to Locked On Patriots. Once again, I'm Mike DeBate. I thank my good friend Steve Balistrieri for his time, his insight, and his appearance on today's pod. But most of all, I thank you so much for listening and for continuing to make Locked On Patriots a daily part of your New England Patriots coverage. Until tomorrow, Pats Nation, stay safe, stay well, continue to be the change you wish to

see in the world. Have a great day, everyone.