Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Midweek Mailbag - Patriots are on to Seattle - 9/16/2020

Episode Date: September 16, 2020

It is time to open the Mid-Week Locked On Patriots Mailbag. Host Mike D’Abate answers listeners’ questions on Week One and Week Two of the 2020 NFL season for the New England Patriots. Topics include the Patriots’ signing of kicker Nick Folk to the 53-man roster, the rumors surrounding New England’s potential interest in receivers Allen Robinson and Odell Beckham, Jr. and the strategy that the Patriots might employ as they prepare to battle the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Rock AutoAmazing selection. Reliably low prices. All the parts your car will ever need. Visit RockAuto.com and tell them Locked On sent you.Built BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON,” and you’ll get $10 off your first order.cbdMdRight now you can try the amazing duo of CBD Freeze and CBD Recover topicals and everything else cbdMd has to offer. They’re offering all our listeners 25% OFF your next order at cbdmd.comwhen you use the promo code LOCKEDONNFL at checkout.MyBookieINVEST IN YOUR INTUITION. USE PROMO CODE LOCKEDON AND DOUBLE YOUR FIRST DEPOSIT. NEW PLAYERS GET UP TO $1,000 IN FREE PLAY - DESIGNED TO ADD MORE EXCITEMENT TO THE SPORTS YOU LOVE AND THE GAMES YOU BET. YOUR WINNING SEASON BEGINS TODAY...ONLY AT MYBOOKIE!NFL Game PassThis season, get football on your time with NFL Game Pass. See all the action from every game with full game replays.Go to nfl.com/gamepass to start your free trial today. Door DashRight now, our listeners can get $5 off and zero delivery fees on their first order of $15 or more, when you download the DoorDash app and enter code LOCKEDON. 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. Hello to all of you, Foxborough faithful. You are now locked into the Locked On Patriots podcast, where today on this Wednesday, September 16th, 2020, we will open up the midweek mailbag right here 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. Locked on listeners, this season, get football on your time with NFL Game Pass. See all the action from every game with full game replays.

You can also replay an entire game and catch all of the plays in just 45 minutes with condensed games. Go to NFL.com slash Game Pass to start your free trial today. NFL Game Pass, where football never stops. Happy Hump Day, Patriots Nation, and thank you for joining me here on this midweek mailbag episode of the pod. 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

always welcomed, greatly appreciated. In fact, on today's pod, they're appreciated in more of a highly publicized way. But that being said, feel free to share your feedback anytime by reaching out to me and following me on Twitter at MDABATEFPC. And while you're out there doing some Wednesday wandering through the Twitterverse, please be sure to follow the Lockdown Patriots account as well at L-O underscore Patriots. Once again, everyone, today I open up the midweek mailbag here on Lockdown Patriots. And as I've said many times here on the pod, I love doing episodes like this because you,

all of you great listeners of Lockdown Patriots, become the star of the show. And each and every one of you that take the time out of your day or night to send me a question never cease to amaze me. Your questions are always thought-provoking, insightful, and captivating. And they really allow me to delve into topics that touch every part of Patriots Nation, whether it be roster concerns, thoughts on the team's performance against the Dolphins, or looking ahead this week to the Seahawks. All of you great listeners at Locked On Patriots only help to prove what I've been saying all along.

The New England Patriots fan base is among the most insightful, knowledgeable, and loyal in all of professional football. And once again, I'm happy to report that you all did not disappoint. Some great questions from listeners that we all know and love, and of course a couple of first-timers as well. So settle in folks, as today is all about you, the listeners of Lockdown Patriots, as I prepare to dive into the midweek mailbag in just a few moments. But first, the Patriots did make some transaction news yesterday, and as they prepare to take

on the Seattle Seahawks in Seattle on Sunday Night Football this weekend, they'll apparently be doing so with a kicker that is firmly entrenched on their 53-man roster. And it is not who we all expected it to be when training camp opened just a couple of months ago. Rookie fifth-round draft choice in the 2020 NFL Draft, Justin Rohrwasser, remains on the practice squad, and that can only mean one thing. Kicker Nick Folk is apparently about to be signed to the 53-man roster, this according to NFL Media's Ian Rappaport, who broke the

news late Tuesday evening. Now, we all know about the on-again, off-again kicking competition that went on in New England throughout training camp. Justin Rohrwasser was looking very inconsistent. As a result, Nick Folk comes back in. At the time, most thought that he was coming in to push Rohrwasser a little bit. But when Folk started looking like the far superior, or at least the far more accurate kicker, more than just a few fans or media alike started to overtly wonder whether or

not Folk could possibly replace the guy the Patriots had just invested fifth-round draft capital to bring in. Well, when it was time for the Pats to trim down to 53 men to get ready for the 2020 season, both Rohrwasser and Folk were on the cutting room floor. This led to a lot of speculation, and I'll be the first to admit, folks, I bought into it as well, that they were trying to buy Rohrwasser and Folk were on the cutting room floor. This led to a lot of speculation, and I'll be the first to admit, folks, I bought into it as well, that they were trying to buy Rohrwasser some time. My assessment was that they would be elevating Folk from the practice squad to the 53-man roster for a couple of weeks,

maybe even alternate back and forth between he and Rohrwasser, before ultimately settling on the rookie to be their kicker full-time. Well, the Patriots threw a wrench into those plans, or so it may seem right now, folks, by signing Folk for the rest of the season. And if we're being honest, the handwriting was there on the wall. Folk was the one that was elevated ahead of New England's Week 1 victory over Miami. He did miss a 45-yard field goal against the Dolphins,

threw Patriots Twitter into a frenzy, and had pretty much everyone on Patriots Twitter between Sunday and Monday clamoring for a new kicker. But as Steve Balistrieri and I discussed in Monday's recap right here on the pod, the emergence of a prolific Patriots running game, anchored by Cam Newton and supported by some great runners around him like Rex Burkhead, James White, Sonny Michel, even Damian Harris when he returns from IR, might make the Patriots a little more apt to go for it on short yardage fourth downs. If that should end up being the case, and again folks, that's a conjecture on my

part, the sample size that we've seen on the field is just too short for me to determine whether or not this is a Patriot strategy, but for the sake of argument, let's say it is, that would indicate, at least to me, that the Patriots are placing far more emphasis on accuracy rather than distance. For that reason, Folk is the logical choice. And at least for now, it looks like that Folk will be that choice. Now, will he be the kicker that finishes the season with New England? I think the jury's still out on that one. There is still a lot of time, and a lot can happen between now and the end of the regular

season in December. But at least in the short-term immediate future, Nick Folk will be handling the leg duties when it comes to your New England Patriots. But the Patriots still have a spot open on their 53-man roster. Who exactly might fill that? Well, as I'm sure most of you have paying attention to Patriots social media yesterday, there was a lot of speculation that the Pats might be looking to bring in a pretty big-name wide receiver. Which receiver or receivers, you may ask?

Well, that was just one of the questions put to me yesterday in the midweek mailbag. And in just a moment, I will take a deep dive into that midweek mailbag and answer the great questions from all of you great listeners of the Locked On Patriots podcast when we continue. But first, week one is in the books and tomorrow night, the Cincinnati Bengals and the Cleveland Browns kick off week two of the 2020 NFL season. Football is back, and this season. Get football on your time with NFL Game Pass.

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Go inside the game from a player's perspective as they break down the game's concepts and techniques. Learn from the best like Deshaun Watson, Stephon Gilmore, Devontae Adams, and many more. NFL Game Pass also provides access to the entire NFL Films archive. Go to NFL.com slash Game Pass to start your free trial today. NFL Game Pass, where football never stops. Patriots fans, I am always honored and humbled each and every time I can delve into the midweek mailbag here on Locked On Patriots.

It's the feedback that you provide that truly makes me feel blessed to do what I love to do, whether that be in the form of questions like for today's mailbag, for example, or feedback, whether it be positive or constructively critical. I assure you that I sincerely appreciate it, I take it to heart in a good way, and it truly serves as my motivation to help make Locked On Patriots the best show it can be each and every day. So when I take to the microphone to do a mailbag show like this,

your questions only hope to strengthen my inspiration, and I sincerely thank you for that from the bottom of my heart. So that being said, Pats fans, without further ado, let's open up the midweek mailbag here on Locked On Patriots. And seeing as we just talked about it in the previous segment, we'll start with a question on the kicking game. And it comes to our friends Patriots Football Chat with Jake and Matt at Pats Chat UK.

And their question reads, Given Steven Gostowski's recent woes on Monday with the Tennessee Titans, was he let go at the right time, or would you have kept him in New England? Gentlemen, this is a great question, and I know Steven Gostowski still has his share of fans here in New England. If I'm being honest, I'm one of them. In his prime here in New England, Gostowski was truly one of the best kickers of his generation. I really don't think he ever got enough credit for being as reliable and as accurate as he was all of those years. If I'm being honest, the last couple of years he spent here in New England were a little on the difficult side to watch.

Granted, much of that was due to injury, and we know how serious the injury was to Gostowski last year, missed the entire season after undergoing hip surgery. When the team did not re-sign Nick Folk after the end of the 2019 season, many had speculated that that was a sign that Steven Gostowski would return to his former role as the Patriots' kicker. However, as we all know, just a short time before the NFL draft, the Patriots announced that they were releasing the 36-year-old Gostowski. And when the Patriots used a fifth-round draft choice on Justin Rohrwasser, it appeared that there was little to absolutely no chance that SG3 would be walking back through the doors of Gillette Stadium.

But when the new era parent, Justin Rohrwasser, started to struggle in training camp, and the Patriots chose to bring back Nick Folk, it surprised a lot of people, because at the time, Steven Gostowski was still out there and available. There had to be a reason why the Patriots were skeptical of bringing him back in. In fact, at the time, right here on Locked On Patriots, that maybe Steven Gostowski wasn't exactly enamored with the thought of coming back into Foxborough simply to play second fact at the time right here on Locked On Patriots that maybe Steven Gostowski wasn't exactly enamored with the thought of coming back into Foxborough simply to play second fiddle to a rookie in a quote-unquote competition for a position that he held for a number of years here

in New England. Maybe that's why the Pats went with Folk instead of SG3. Maybe Nick Folk was a little more amenable to coming in, pushing the rookie a little harder, getting him to live up to his potential, and then take the spot. Well, with the Patriots now signing Folk to their 53-man roster, like I said earlier, it kind of puts a wrench into those plans. And it only cements the fact that the Patriots moved on from Steven Gostowski, and apparently they're not looking back. When I found out that Steven had signed in Tennessee, I was happy for him.

I thought it was a great landing spot. Tennessee is a team that plays very well on both sides of the ball. And let's face it, they've had their kicking woes throughout the years. Bringing in someone reliable like Steven Gostowski is a good move, right? Well, we all saw Monday night

that it might not be such a good move. Steven only went one for four. Albeit that one was a big one, the 25-yard game winner. But we also can't ignore the fact that he missed from 47 yards out and 42 yards out and had a 44-yarder blocked. So, Jake and Matt, based on only what we saw on Monday night, you would say the Patriots

absolutely made the right decision. But to be honest, it's really not that cut and dry. Prognosticating how a player's season will go after only a one-game sample size is a very dangerous thing to do. Steven might have just had a bad day, or it might be a harbinger of things to come. From my analysis of his mechanics, he looked pretty sound, but I didn't quite see the same explosiveness from the hip and the thigh area that you usually see in a kicker. And I say that with no disrespect to Steven at all.

A hip injury can be a very difficult one from a kicker to return from. And if we continue to see the same types of struggles, then it would be apparent that the Patriots have indeed moved on from Steven at just the right time. That being said, even if he goes on to have a successful season in Tennessee, I still think the Patriots made the right move here. They have Nick Falk, who's steady and consistent. He may not have the distance that a lot of fans out there crave, but in my opinion, he's still their best option at present right now. I still believe that Justin Rohrwasser will eventually be the full-time

kicker for this team. Whether it's later this season, or whether or not the Patriots wait to do it next year, he will end up kicking for the Pats, and in my assessment, he has both the power and the ability to kick through the elements to make him a very effective kicker in New England for many years to come. So, in short, gentlemen, that's my answer to your question. I hope that I was able to answer it to your satisfaction. On a personal note, keep up the great job you guys are doing on the podcast. I thoroughly enjoyed being a guest on it previously, and I thank you for all of the support that you provide here to Locked On Patriots.

So in light of the Patriots signing Nick Folk to the 53-man roster, that made their count on the active squad 52, meaning one slot would remain. And of course, one of the most important questions you can ask when seeing that 52 out of 53 roster slots are open is who will fill that last roster spot on the 53-man squad. Well, because it's one of the top questions, who else would ask it but the top gun? The salary cap top gun. The great and powerful Wizard of Benz on my main man, Miguel, who, as you all know, is found on Twitter at Patscap. And Miguel, that is an excellent question. At the time I'm recording this podcast, that question may have actually already been answered. But I can't say for certain right now, because at the time I'm recording this podcast,

confirmation regarding this player's status on the field on Wednesday was still unavailable to let me know whether he had been added to the practice squad or the 53-man roster. And that is former Patriot offensive lineman James Ferentz. Now we all know that prior to Wednesday, Ferentz was neither on the practice squad or the 53-man roster. So his presence on Wednesday indicates a newly signed deal. Ferentz has a pretty good amount of experience on the offensive line, so it is theoretically possible that he may have been signed to the 53-man roster. Or it could very well be that he's been brought in as practice squad depth. After all, the Patriots do have spots open both on the practice squad and on the 53-man.

But if it's not James Ferentz, then Miguel, that might end up being the million-dollar question. Or should I say, the $25 up being the million-dollar question. Or should I say the $25,978,199 question. Because according to your calculations, that's the amount of available cap space that the Patriots currently have. Plenty of space to bring in a superstar whiteout. Right, Miguel? Well, according to your calculations, it's feasible. And that ought to make first-time submitter Adam J. Roth, found at Adam underscore J underscore Roth, who said that his dream is picking up a receiver.

He dreams of a legitimate number two receiver, and has pretty much given up the fact that anyone homegrown could be a one. And by that, Adam, I'm assuming you're referring to either Nikhil Harry or Jacoby Myers or maybe even Gunnar Roshelski. After all, by consensus, Julian Edelman would be the number one wide receiver on this core, but I do get what you're saying. A true legitimate target to take some of the pressure off of Julian. Miguel, I did add in Adam's question to yours, because it helps me address not so much who will be the 53rd man added to this roster, but I think it allows me to go into detail about who it won't be.

And unless I'm wrong, and if I am, folks, I will be the first to admit it, I don't believe the Patriots will be swinging a deal anytime soon to bring in either Allen Robinson from the Bears or Odell Beckham Jr. from the Browns. And I know that's going to disappoint a lot of you fans out there hearing that, but as the great Don would say, let me give you my reasons. First, I don't see the Patriots making either one of these moves in a vacuum, meaning that they're only making these moves with this year in mind. If they're doing that, then it makes perfect sense to be able to bring in either Robinson or Beckham.

We'll start with Odell, and Miguel, based on your calculations, his 2020 salary would be $14 million. His weekly salary would be $823,529.41. That's right, folks. Miguel actually details it right down to the last cent. That's why he's the great and powerful Wizard of Benzón. I love you, man. You are the greatest. But I digress. Also, according to you, my friend, if the Patriots were to acquire Beckham, his cap number would be his weekly salary times the number of remaining weeks in the season. For example, if the Patriots acquired OBJ today, his cap number would be his weekly salary times the number of remaining weeks in the season. For example, if the Patriots acquired OBJ today, his cap number would be $13,176,471. Patriots can absolutely afford that for the year, no question about it.

In 2021, that cap number would jump to $15.75 million, and in 2022 and 2023, it would slightly drop again to 15 million. From a financial standpoint, not a lot of reasons why the Patriots would shy away from this deal. Theoretically, they could make it work, even though 15 and three quarter million as a cap hit next year is a little bit excessive. You're talking about someone with the on-field talent of Odell Beckham Jr. And listen, folks, on the field, there's no denying Odell's talent.

There's also no denying that he's very close friends with Cam Newton. We all saw the roundtable in the offseason. There's a mutual like there, a mutual respect there, and I think a mutual desire to play on the same team one of these days. And I know, folks, we went through all of this last year, when it was reported that Odell wanted desperately to play alongside Tom Brady, giving him the goat hair cleats, all of that. And I still believe that Tom could get the best out of Odell Beckham Jr.

But if there is another quarterback out there that could properly motivate Odell, get him to buy in and bring out his optimal level talent on the field, it's Cam Newton. So, financially this works, logistically it works, you're all screaming at the device on which you're listening to this podcast right now saying, Mike, why don't you believe that Odell Beckham Jr. will find his way here to New England? For two reasons. First, we haven't had a credible report that Odell is actually on the market. I do know that Cleveland got beat pretty bad on Sunday,

and they're facing a Bengals team on Thursday night that is eager to show what they can do under new quarterback Joe Burrow. If the wheels should come off the wagon quicker than expected in Cleveland, then you might hear some rumblings about people being made available via trade. But right now, Cleveland still has a lot invested in offense and in defense. There's a lot of talent on that team, and all it takes is one game to bring it all together. And a much lesser secondary reason that I don't believe this will happen is the $15 million cap hit that the Patriots would incur for the next three seasons. $15.75 million next year, and then $15 million in the following two.

It's not an unmanageable amount, but it does severely limit you in being able to retain not only your own talent, but also bring in free agent help in other areas on the team. Don't forget, the Patriots have rarely, if ever, prioritized wide receiver when it comes to free agent acquisitions. Even though someone with the talent of Odell might be theoretically available, the Patriots are going to weigh all costs, and I just think the reward might not be worth all they would have to invest to bring him in. But again, folks, I caution you. That's just my opinion. But Adam, Odell wasn't the only wide receiver that we heard rumors about connected to the

Patriots yesterday. Allen Robinson of the Chicago Bears set off a frenzy when he deleted all Bears-related material from his social media accounts. Shortly thereafter, rumors started to fly that Robinson had requested a trade from Chicago. That since has been debunked as both his agent and the Bears have indicated that Robinson has made no such demand, but they did acknowledge that he was quote-unquote unhappy. More so than Odell, this one caught my sharp eye, Adam. And Miguel, again, I'm pulling on your wisdom and counsel here to say that this could be feasible

for the Patriots to do at least for this year from a financial standpoint. Allen Robinson's 2020 salary is $10.9 million. His weekly salary is $641,176.47. So, according to the salary cap top gun, my man Miguel, if the Patriots were to acquire Robinson by trade, his cap number would be his weekly salary times the number of remaining weeks in the season. For example, if acquired today, meaning Tuesday, Robinson's cap number would be $10,258,824. And I know today's Wednesday, folks, but I say Tuesday because that's when Miguel posted the information. So based on that information, Robinson's cap number would be $3 million, approximately, folks, lower than that of Odell Beckham Jr. That's interesting. And dare I say, folks, I think Allen Robinson might be a better fit logistically here in New England than

would Odell Beckham. The minute I heard this rumor, it caught my sharp eye. Robinson would be a great fit in a Patriots system. I've just always admired everything about the way this guy plays the wide receiver position. He's smart. He's got very strong hands. He's capable of winning down the field both on the inside and on the outside. He also has great size, which he can leverage at the line of scrimmage and really hit the block to get into the open field both in the short and the long game, and he can go up and make contested catches.

In short, he would look great in a Patriots uniform. But here's where it comes off the rails for me a little bit. First of all, much like Beckham, we don't have confirmation that Robinson in fact wants out of Chicago. Right now, those are just rumors, and we've seen things change from day to day, week to week in the NFL. Until that type of trade request or demand is confirmed by Robinson's camp, you can't put a gigantic amount of stock in it, folks. So I'm not saying it won't happen or it can happen. I'm just saying right now it's not likely to happen. Another reason why I believe

that Robinson is unlikely to come to New England, even if he is made available by trade, is because of the financial commitment the Pats would have to make to him long term. One of the reasons why Robinson supposedly wants out is because he's looking for a big-time contract, and the team that acquires him would have to give up some pretty heavy capital, whether it be players or draft capital, in order to make the deal happen. They're not going to make that kind of an investment for a one-year rental, especially after we've seen the Patriots make moves for wide receivers like Brandon Cooks and Mohamed Sanu that didn't quite work out the way they had hoped. If he becomes available for a price that would meet the Patriots' liking, yeah, I think they would take more than a quick look at it. But right now,

it doesn't seem likely that the 31 other NFL teams out there, most of which would clamor for a receiver that has Robinson's talent, would let Robinson simply fall into New England's lap. They would likely up the ante by sweetening their offer and probably price the Patriots out of the Allen Robinson sweepstakes. So Miguel, to answer your question, that 53rd spot on the Patriots roster may in fact be James Ferentz, but if it's not, I would look for someone from the practice squad to be elevated this week to the 53-man roster. But if that disappoints you folks, including you, Adam, who I know you have your design

set on a number one receiver, anything and everything can happen in Foxborough. So just because I think it's unlikely that Beckham or Robinson finds his way to New England doesn't necessarily mean it won't happen. So to both Miguel and Adam, I thank you for your great questions. I hope that I was able to answer them up to your specifications. And I sincerely thank you both for all of your support of Locked On Patriots. But folks, we are just scratching the surface when it comes to the Locked On Patriots midweek mailbag.

There is still a lot of great questions left to address, such as the Patriots running game and what is the best strategy for the Patriots to employ when they take on the Seattle Seahawks this Sunday night in Week 2 action. We'll address this and more when the Locked On Patriots to employ when they take on the Seattle Seahawks this Sunday night in Week 2 action. We'll address this and more when the Locked On Patriots podcast continues. But first, folks, having a reliable method of transportation is important, and keeping yours looking and running at its absolute best is vital for its success. So the best way for you to take pride in your ride is to visit my good friends at rockauto.com. Rockauto.com is a family business serving auto parts customers online for nearly 20 years.

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Make sure you put Locked On in their How Did You Hear About Us box so they know we sent you. Amazing selection, reliably low prices, all the parts your car will ever need. rockauto.com We continue to wade through the midweek mailbag here on this Wednesday episode of Locked On Patriots. And in the previous segment, I addressed some questions regarding the Patriots roster, including how they might fill out their roster. Well, we continue on in that subject with a great question from Belfast Patriots fan at BelfastPatsFan, all one word.

And the Belfast Patriots fan asks, Do you think J.J. Taylor could keep Damian Harris off of the 53-man roster? Got to think if he keeps any consistent level up, the team will not want him going through waivers. This is a great question, and I would be happy to answer this. I truly believe the Patriots would love to keep J.J. Taylor under contract throughout the entire season. And to me, the greatest evidence of this is that he was out there to begin with on Sunday. Patriots typically don't use rookie running backs all that much. In fact, the second name that you mentioned in your question, Damian Harris,

is living proof of that. The Patriots selected him in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft and he rarely saw the field last year. But Taylor was out there on Sunday and although it was in limited fashion and his snaps were limited, he really made the most of his opportunities. True, at final tally it was only 5 touches and 32 yards, but it came at key points in the game. The Patriots typically don't show this type of faith in a young player unless they plan on keeping him around for a while. That being said, I don't think it's going to be at the expense of Damian Harris, unless this injury is a lot more serious and he's forced to stay on injured reserve a lot longer

than three weeks. But Harris showed tremendous toughness and versatility in training camp. He's very good at running through the seams. He has a great amount of toughness in his style. He's very good at catching the ball out of the backfield and really is that type of complete back that I think the Patriots have been wanting for quite some time. And I say that with no disrespect intended towards Sonny Michel, who I think is unfairly criticized a lot in this town.

I might have been less than pleased with Sonny's performance in my first viewing of the game on Sunday. Now that I've had the opportunity to go back and take a look at a little more of what he did on Sunday, I believe he played a little better than he's getting credit for, and a little better than I gave him credit for, quite honestly. I look for Sony to continue to be a big part of this running game. Rex Burkhead will continue to be a very good situational back. James White, to me, is the X-factor in this running core.

I stand by my assessment that he's the best third down back in the league, and I fully expect that both Taylor and Harris will complement this group, especially based on the offensive strategy that we saw on Sunday. Therefore, to answer your question, I believe that J.J. Taylor will stick around on the 53-man roster for the Patriots. I don't believe it will be at the expense of Damian Harris unless the injury is serious. And because of that, I think this unit has the potential to be among the most exciting running back cores we have ever seen here in New England. So Belfast Patriots fan, thank you for your great question. Once again, I hope I was able to give you at least a little greater insight both on

Taylor and on Harris, and I thank you for your support of the pod today. Thank you for submitting your question. Folks, we're almost ready to close up the Locked On Patriots mailbag today, but how could we do so without addressing a couple of questions from two of Locked On Patriots' most valued friends, also from the other side of the pond? The first is from a contributor that I know you all know and love, and she happens to be racking up quite the list of designations.

Not only is she the UK correspondent for the Patriots 4th and 2 podcast, but she is also a special contributor and columnist for Full Press Coverage Patriots. She is Claire L. Cooper, at Klazzy Claire. And Claire would like to know if number 85 at the Patriots tight end position earned his stripes on Sunday. Folks, we're talking about Ryan Izzo. And to answer your question, Claire, yes, I do believe he earned the number 85

and all the praise that he's been receiving this week. He had the one lone reception for 25 yards, but it was a nice reception, ran a good route, and showed that he can be an effective receiver in the field. That's important for a guy like Izzo, who most, myself included, said that he was really only on the team capable of being a blocker, that he wasn't going to be any type of a threat in the receiving game. He proved on Sunday that he can get open and make receptions. And don't forget, Claire, that we know Cam Newton loves to go to the tight end position. We saw him do it in Carolina with Greg Olson.

And while I'm not comparing Ryan Izzo to Greg Olson, I think Cam will show more confidence in Ryan as the weeks go on, especially as guys like Devin Asiasi get up to speed and Dalton Keene comes back from injury. But Izzo is far from being just a receiving threat. He's a very adept blocker, and we saw him make key blocks throughout the game to allow the facilitation of that ground attack that we saw on Sunday, both when it came to Cam Newton and the running backs as well. Having a fullback like Jakob Johnson in the lineup, also an offensive lineman like Michael Onwenu who played almost that fourth tight end role at times, it gave Ryan the help he needed

to open up holes in the running game and be an asset to that offensive line. So Claire, as always, thank you for your great question. Folks, I encourage you to check out some of the great work that Claire's been doing with her analysis at the tight end position. You can find that at fullpresscoverage.com. And thank you, as always, for your great support of Locked On Patriots. And our final question of the day comes to us from our friend Joel from Hall-Patz11 found on Twitter at JoelShapiro20. And Joel is asking us to look ahead into that Belichickian crystal ball and Sunday's matchup with the Seattle Seahawks. He'd like to know which is a bigger threat for the Patriots, to slow down Russell Wilson running the ball or passing the ball. And Joel adds in that he would like to try to make Russell beat the Patriots secondary with his arm. Joel, this is an excellent question, and believe it or not, the answer might

not be as simple as you think. Conventional wisdom would say that you're right. Try to make Russell Wilson, one of the best mobile quarterbacks in the league, beat you through the air. Make him challenge what is arguably the best secondary in the NFL. But when you look at the game plan that the Seahawks apparently are trying to enforce this year, it may give you some second thoughts. Anyone who's been following Patriots social media lately, keeping a sharp eye on those Seattle Seahawks in this matchup on Sunday, has probably seen the hashtag Let Russ Cook.

This refers to the efforts by Seahawks fans for Pete Carroll and the Seattle Seahawks offensive brain trust to make Russell Wilson a more effective passer. And against the Falcons on Sunday, they did just that. Wilson completed 31 of 35 pass attempts for 322 yards and four touchdowns. Now granted, he did this against Atlanta's secondary, and with all due respect to the Falcons' secondary, they're really not in the same league as what Russell's going to be facing this weekend when he goes up against Stephon Gilmore, JC Jackson, and that potent Patriots defensive backfield. But if Russell Wilson decided he wanted to do that, well, he does have the weapons to at least make things

interesting. First of all, Seattle's offensive line is vastly improved, and they will give Wilson a lot more time in the pocket to complete throws. In terms of pass-catching options to receive those throws, well, he has plenty of them. DK Metcalf is really developing into a legitimate deep threat. I still believe that Tyler Lockett is his most reliable receiver, has a great deal of speed in the slot. He can get down the field and move the chains as well as anyone. And let's not forget, they also have old friend Philip Dorsett, who can be a deep threat in situational packages. At the tight end position, they've got some pretty good receivers there as well. Greg Olson, Will Disley, and another old

friend in Jacob Hollister. What this is really going to come down to is whether or not Russell Wilson will get as many chances to throw the football going up against the New England secondary. Another factor to consider here, Joel, is that Seattle wasn't exactly prolific in running the football against the Falcons last Sunday. They managed only 84 yards on 20 carries. Most of that came from Russell Wilson himself. Neither Chris Carlson or Carlos Hyde really leaped off the page. So the Patriots may look at that and say, we got a pretty good showing from the interior of our defensive line when it came to stuffing the run. Byron Cowart, Lawrence Guy, Adam Butler all had solid games on Sunday, and they limited

the Miami running game to 3.2 yards on average per carry. I understand that Seattle's runners are generally considered to be better than what Miami threw at you on Sunday, but they didn't have a whole lot of success against that Atlanta defense. Couple that with the fact that Juwan Bentley and Brandon Copeland both had great games at being able to shut off the middle run game for Miami, and all of a sudden, the decision to try to make Russell Wilson beat you through the air has legitimate competition in trying to shut off what, at least through one game, was not exactly a potent ground attack by the Seattle Seahawks. So Joel, thank you for your great question.

And I hope that I was able to add at least a little insight as to what the Patriots might be looking to do this weekend. But this question deserves a much deeper dive. And we will be taking that dive starting here tomorrow on Locked the Patriots might be looking to do this weekend. But this question deserves a much deeper dive. And we will be taking that dive starting here tomorrow on Locked On Patriots when Corbin Smith, host of the Locked On Seahawks podcast, joins me here for Crossover Thursday. So to hear a much deeper analysis on your great question, Joel, I encourage you to check out not only tomorrow's Crossover Thursday episode,

but also Friday's game preview with a very special guest as we get you ready for Sunday night's matchup with the Seahawks on Sunday Night Football. And for all of you out there in Patriots Nation, be sure that you do not miss a single episode of Locked On Patriots. Download us wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us on Spotify.

Subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts. Just make sure that you are staying locked in to Locked On Patriots. Once again, my name is Mike DeBate. I thank all of you, the great listeners here on Locked On Patriots, for taking the time to send in a question for today's midweek mailbag episode. Most of all, I thank you for continuing to make Locked On Patriots a part of your daily New England Patriots coverage.

As always, stay safe, stay well, and continue to be the change you wish to see in the world, everyone. And before I sign off today, I just wanted to take a moment on behalf of Locked On Patriots to extend our sincere condolences to the family of Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, who, as first reported by Jim McBride of the Boston Globe yesterday evening, is mourning the loss of Bill's mother, Jeanette Belichick, who passed away at the age of 98. The Patriots organization, and most of all the Belichick family, will remain in our thoughts during this difficult time.