Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - New England Patriots: Christian Gonzalez First Look; Kayshon Boutte, Marte Mapu Injury History

Episode Date: May 18, 2023

New England Patrots rookie cornerback Christian Gonzalez is making quite the impression on his new coaches and teammates. However, will the injury histories of fellow rookies Kayshon Boutte and Marte Mapu derail their respective pro debuts? Host Mike D’Abate welcomes AFC East injury expert Dr. Kyle Trimble to discuss the health of the Pats rookies and what we should expect from both Boutte and Mapu in 2023.Find and follow Locked On Patriots on your favorite podcast platforms:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/locked-on-patriots-daily-podcast-on-the-new-england/id1140512627Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1c5ZxFmwg3WbfxAU3tR5Ve?si=k196wH-yRqifUcQQz8SjIQStitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/locked-on-patriotsAnd follow host Mike D’Abate on Twitter, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the New England Patriots and talking with fans.Twitter: @mdabateNFLSupport 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 “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.FanDuelMake Every Moment More. Don’t miss the chance to get your No Sweat First Bet up to ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS in Bonus Bets when you go FanDuel.com/LOCKEDON. FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG(CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat(CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The New England Patriots top draft pick is making quite the first impression in Foxborough. But what about the health of two highly touted rookie prospects? Stick around. You're about to be locked in to the Locked On Patriots podcast. 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. Welcome to the Lockdown Patriots podcast. We are a proud part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day.

Subscribe or follow for free wherever you listen to podcasts to make sure that you get the latest episode as soon as it's available. I'm your host, Mike DeBate, and I cover your New England Patriots for Patriots Country of Sports Illustrated. So please reach out to me. Let me know what's on your mind on Twitter at MDABATENFL. And while you're out there showing some love to the Twitterverse,

please be sure to follow the Locked On Patriots account as well at LO underscore Patriots. Pats fans, thanks as always for joining me here today on Locked On Patriots. And a special shout out to all of you Locked On

everydayers out there. Those of you who make Locked On Patriots possible and a special shout out to all of you Locked On everydayers out there. Those of you who make Locked On Patriots possible and what it is today, my unending appreciation to you. Always honored, always humbled by your support. And as the late, great Will Rogers once said, you never get a second chance to make a first impression. Well, sometimes one chance is all you need. And such appears to be the case for New England Patriots rookie cornerback Christian Gonzalez.

Christian is impressing his new bosses out on the field at Gillette Stadium, and we're going to talk about Christian in just a moment. And in addition to the buzz surrounding Christian Gonzalez right now, to whether Patriots prospects are also causing a stir in this fan base. A lot of us wondering what kind of contributions are going to be made by rookie wide receiver Keishon Butte and hybrid linebacker Marte Mapu. Both of these prospects have electric talent without any question, but there are injury histories there. And to help us guide through each of their respective health histories is a good friend of the program who just happens to have an expert professional opinion. My good friend Kyle Trimble of the website bangedupbills.com will be here today and he's going to help guide through the health

situation with regard to both Mapu and Bute. So stick around folks, you are not going to want to miss this. But we'll start today with some of the good news surrounding the rookies and the top prospect looks to be everything as advertised originally projected as a possible five talent before the draft christian gonzalez surprisingly fell to your new england patriots at pick number 17 but his selection is being labeled as one of the biggest potential steals in the drafts class and folks folks, I cannot argue that. And once you see him on the field, you're not going to be able to argue that either. Christian, I think, and I've said this before, all you everydayers out there in lockdown land can attest to this.

Since the departure of former All-Pro Stephon Gilmore, I don't think the Patriots have had a player come through here with the lockdown ability and the athleticism of Christian Gonzalez. And that's with all respect to all the great players that have played the cornerback position since Stefan has taken his talents elsewhere. The New England Patriots definitely got a keeper. They've got a good one. Well-sized at six foot one, 197 pounds, got the height, the length. He can match up against any of the opponent's wide receivers, any of these top flight receivers that we see all throughout the AFC and, of course, throughout the NFL as a whole. That's a point that's not lost on you, the fans, but you can rest assured that it's not lost on the coaches as well,

particularly the defensive play caller Gerard Mayo had some great things to say about Christian Gonzalez in the aftermath of the New England Patriots holding their rookie mini camp he said usually you'll see long guys like that and they have a hard time changing direction this guy is pretty fluid if you look at the rest of our corners they're pretty short so it's good to add some size there this guy guy is tall, very fluid as an athlete. He can do a bunch of different things on field, and boy can he. There is no question about it. Gerrard clearly pleased with his initial read on Gonzalez during rookie minicamp. Again, that just concluded on May 14th, and despite the three day training period being closed to the media,

Patriots fans were treated on Wednesday to their first look at what we believe will be their new star cornerback on the Patriots practice field. If you haven't seen this video, please visit the Locked On Patriots Twitter account at LO underscore Patriots. We've retweeted the Patriots posting. Five seconds, really quick, but five seconds well spent. And you guys are going to love what you see from Christian Gonzalez. I guarantee it. And in addition to what you're going to see, keep in mind this athleticism is not something that he's just showcasing for the cameras now.

Full display during the pre-draft testing period. As we've said here before, again again you locked on every day or remember that we discussed this registering a 9.95 relative athletic score 41.5 vertical jump a 4.38 40 yard dash those are key components in comprising what is one of the highest relative athletic scores coming from a quarterback or really from any nfl prospect in quite time. That is endearing him to the Patriots coaching staff. And in addition to Mayo, the guy that's going to get to know him very well, Mike Pellegrino, the defensive backs coach, particularly the cornerbacks, was really impressed by what he's seen.

He says Christian is a big guy, moves really well, good speed, size is good. You don't really see the movement skills with the size so that is pretty rare and folks it is pretty rare there's no question about it and it makes Christian not just a blue chip prospect when it comes to physicality it also makes his skill set that much better no denying that this kid is going to be at his best in man coverage Spencer McLaughlin joined us here a couple of weeks ago of Locked On Ducks, and he talked about Christian's ability to really shine in man coverage. But we also talked about his ability to maintain eye contact with the quarterback. And I think that in the long run is also going to make him an asset in zone as well.

But once again, his value as much about statistical competence as it is about raw athleticism. This kid can put up the numbers. He had 35 tackles, four interceptions, four passes defensed in 2022 with Oregon. He was also one of college football's most durable players, really throughout his entire collegiate career. Started all 12 games in which he played for Oregon in 2022. Only opted out of the bowl game when he found out that he was going to declare for the NFL draft. He also played in all 18 of the games that he played with

Colorado, started each of those games from 2020 to 2021. Six games in the 2020 pandemic shortened season, and then of course 12 games in 2021. So a result New England secondary is clearly looking at this and saying you know what we've got the athleticism and we've got the durability now and this is good for a unit that had to endure its share of injuries last year when Jalen Mills missing seven games due to a groin injury Jonathan Jones stepping right, inheriting the duties as the team's top perimeter corner. Jonathan is one of Christian's biggest fans so far. Media contingent had an opportunity to speak with Jonathan on Tuesday at Gillette Stadium, and folks, he did not disappoint. He said basically, this is an opportunity for the young guys to come in and prove what they can do,

and he's a fan of Christian joining this team. I'm quoting Jonathan directly now, quote, we need it. We need help. We need all the help that we can get. We had a lot of transition in that position over the course of the last few years. And just when we need it, we need a little bit of help. And that's exactly the sentiment I think that's going on throughout this cornerback room right now, folks. I mean, there has been a lot of flux in that room. Christian Gonzalez comes in and adds the stability,

and he has all the tools to really provide, I think, more than adequate help to New England's defense, but he's also being added to a young secondary. Jonathan Jones, really the elder statesman in that group right now. Jack Jones, Marcus Jones showed enough prowess as rookies to indicate a bright future at the position. Each of them had a pair of interceptions last year. Miles Bryant, I think is going to come in, be a solidifying force in the slot, but even he is not as experienced as Jonathan. It's going to really take a team effort this year to come together, but there's a lot of young, solid talent. And you add Christian Gonzalez lockdown abilities to the perimeter of a defensive backfield that already had a lot of young, good talent on it,

has the chance to instantly transform it into a promising young unit, and maybe even a top flight secondary as early as 2023. And in the process, Christian's presence just happens to be fulfilling both the wants and the needs of the organization, as well as 2023. And in the process, Christian's presence just happens to be fulfilling both the wants and the needs of the organization as well as the fan base. Yeah, that's not bad for a first impression. Not bad at all. Pats fans, Dr. Kyle Trimble of Banged Up Bills will join me

in just a moment right here on the podcast. So stick around and stay locked into Locked On, Patriots. But first, folks, today's episode brought to you by our good friends over at FanDuel Sportsbook. Make a fast break to FanDuel during the NBA playoffs because right now, new customers can get a no-sweat first bet up to $1,000. That's $1,000 back in bonus bets if your first bet doesn't win. Folks, if you're showing your green team pride, you have got to do so with FanDuel because there's no better place to bet on all the playoff action

than America's number one sportsbook. So visit FanDuel.com slash LockedOn and get a no-sweat first bet up to $1,000. That's FanDuel.com slash LockedOn. FanDuel, official sportsbook betting partner of the NBA. Patriots fans, thank you once again for making Locked On Patriots a part of your daily Patriots coverage. And today, as you can see, it is my honor to welcome a good friend of the program

back to the pod, physical therapist and the man behind BangedUpBills.com. You might recognize him from his guest shots on Lockdown Bills, among many numerous shows out there. Dr. Kyle Trimble is back on Lockdown Patriots today. Thank you once again for joining me today, my friend. Mike, always glad to be coming on back on the show. Absolutely. And we are always happy and always grateful that you join us here on Locked On Patriots.

And definitely appropriate for us to be speaking to you today, Kyle, because there are a number of issues that can crop up during minicamp, OTAs, training camp. A lot of them have to do with injury and some of them have to do with rookies. And right now we'll start off with, I think, probably the biggest injury concern right now among the Patriots 2023 rookie class. And that's sixth rounder, pick number 187, wide receiver Kayshaun Boudet out of LSU. Now, there were times, Kyle, where Kayshaun looked like the next great LSU wide receiver. Really on the heels, Joe Jamar Chase, Justin Jefferson.

He was being mentioned in that vein and really kind of blossomed into one of the more intriguing prospects out there. There's a nine-game stretch between his freshman and sophomore years where he caught 65 passes, 1,036 yards, 13 touchdowns. So off to a pretty good start, but suffered the season-ending ankle injury. And then everything that came after kind of just spiraled out of control for Kayshaun. Two surgeries, obviously that comes with frustration. Public critique from Coach Brian Kelly didn't exactly help matters either. There were drops, there were glimpses of his former self, but a disappointing junior season overall on a strange end to his LSU career. So here we are with his selection. The Patriots,

a lot of people claiming they may have gotten a steal out of Keishon Budde this time around, but some people are still concerned about that ankle. You've written extensively on this, scouted him for the bills. When you look at this type of injury, how much of a factor do you think this was in his plummeting down the draft board this year for 2023? The ankle injury in itself I don't think was a huge issue. To recap, he suffered a right ankle fracture in 2021 while trying to complete an acrobatic catch out of bounds against Kentucky in the fourth quarter. He kind of just landed on a funny kind of twisted and rolled out of bounds. And as soon as

he started trying to get up, he knew immediately something was wrong. They did imaging afterward, found it was broken, did surgery. It sounded more like a fibula fracture, which is the lateral malleolus that you injure when you have a fractured ankle. There are other parts of the ankle you can fracture, but that's usually a pretty common one. So we don't have the exact details of what that is, but this typically what is there. And you mentioned earlier that he had a second surgery. It was about three months after the fact, they said that something that healed right in there,

whether that was a ligament, because there are a lot of ligamentous attachments with the foot and the ankle, just how the whole complex works together. So whether the bone wasn't healing correctly or whether the ligaments weren't healing correctly, and then go back and fix that up. He had that procedure in, I believe it was January, you know, the following year,

and he missed all his spring ball as he was working through walking in a walking boot and whatnot. So it really slowed up his development and progression as a prospect at LSU. The issue was that he never really got that burst back that he had as a freshman. And Brian Kelly called him out, and he even said that during his rehab, it really took him to a dark place. So mental health is a big thing nowadays, and it still needs to have more discussion than what Ari has. And he had mentioned that this was the first injury of his career. And looking back at his injury history, he had a minor left ankle injury

that same game against Kentucky and then a minor hamstring strain during track in high school. So he really had a pretty clean injury history. And even after the fact, he was still pretty clean, but he just never really got that burst back. So whether he felt vulnerable or didn't feel that as though he could perform off the ankle as well as he could you said he saw it had some flashes in 2022 i mean he was still draftable but it just he never seemed like he

quite got that back and of course that pressure being at a top you know to your program have your coach call you up publicly there's a lot of factors to go into why an athlete might not bounce back so that might have been the case with that and i believe maybe his mental makeup or maybe how he approached everything maybe the coaches had said some stuff you know say hey he's not strong mentally or you know he's just not who he thought he was there's a lot of different rings things why they you know scout these guys try to figure out all the um potential issues and pitfalls they could experience once they hit the nfl so i was surprised to see he went down to the sixth round i thought you know he was kind of as a day one pick you know early on i thought maybe you go like you know day three or excuse me day two you know round three and he dropped to the sixth round so either there are other issues we didn't know about or maybe they're just you know more upside with other guys but um the ankle itself

shouldn't be a problem and just whether you know that mental aspect of how he responded to it and then move up to a higher level of competition and how he's gonna deal with the pressures of being on an NFL roster may be the reason why he dropped so much yeah I'm glad that you mentioned that and especially the mental health aspect of it, because we know that certain teams have reputations for being difficult, maybe physically or mentally demanding on players. New England is one of them. We've heard the rumblings of former Patriots before that have said it's a very difficult place to play. Then again, some Patriots will swear by it and say that it's a lot more fun to play in New England than most people would have you believe. But at the same time, you also understand the intrigue that the Patriots have in his physical capabilities and what he can

do on the field. And I think that's going to lead me nicely into my next question for you, which is, are there any long-term effects for this injury to either come back up or something that the Patriots should be worried about either in rookie mini camp or in OTA or in training camp are there any is there any evidence that this injury could still bother him or become a potential bother down the line here for the Patriots in the future it doesn't seem like that one of the articles I had read as I was researching this for the article I'd over at coverone.net, where you can find more details about this, if you want to look at that. They said it was a pretty clean break, which is usually a good sign that they

will repair it. There wasn't a lot of broken pieces in there or multiple pieces where they kind of put it back together, which could lead to arthritic changes. They do play football. It's going to happen, but sometimes certain injuries can lead to other problems out in line. So I don't think the injury in itself will be any risk to re injure. I mean, you can certainly suffer a sprained ankle, you know,

high ankle sprain and stuff like that, but it's not as though because of this previous injury, he's going to be at risk for any further injuries, you know, such as re breaking. If he does, that's highly unfortunate. So he's fine with that.

I don't see if there's any other issues with that. It's pretty straightforward. I think it's just going to be just how he responds to the next level. And, you know, like you said, coming back to New England, you know, that's not necessarily a great place to play at least some perception of that, you know, because it'd be a hard place. But that could be great for him because it'd be structured and say, hey, I'm here for business. He's not going to go screwing that, you know, cause it'd be hard place, but that could be great for him. Cause it'd be a structured say, Hey, I'm here for business. He's not going to go screwing

around. You know, like you see some other rookies and younger players do it might be the best thing for him. It could be the worst thing for him, but obviously the Patriots likes enough of him to say, Hey, let's take a risk on him. And he can, you know, turn out to be something great, especially the talent that is on tape there. Yeah, without question. And look, the Patriots vet these guys very closely. They usually do a very good job of trying to keep players in-house that they know can handle the coaching that they're going to get and also be able to handle the physical demands that are going to be put on them on the field.

I think New England has done their homework very well in this area. Matt Grove, director of player personnel, Bill Belichick have answered questions about this in the past. They've been forthcoming, or at least as forthcoming as Bill Belichick gets, folks, when it comes to these matters. But I think that's definitely a good point because having him in here in New England and getting the structure maybe that he wouldn't get in other places could be a great thing for him. He was the first rookie to sign his rookie deal here in New England, was immediately here in Foxborough from all indications, working very hard throughout rookie training camp

and against some of the informal workouts that have happened until OTAs start on May 22nd. So all good things in terms of being a good soldier right off the bat. And that's something that you want to see with Keishon Butte. I guess my last question on him, Kyle, as you mentioned, the physical capabilities probably shouldn't be hindering. We talked about the mental health aspect. Are there any lingering concerns from someone who suffers a break like this, especially when it's difficult to get that back? Do you think there might be any roadblocks or impediments there that might prevent him from being able to move forward?

Or is it really purely about the environment he's going to be in? I think it's more about the environment. I mean, by this point, he's going to be almost two years removed from the ankle injury. You know, people can say later on, hey, you know, I still feel a little stiffness in the ankle. Or it depends on what you're trying to do. Being a professional, you know, I still feel a little stiffness in the ankle, or it depends on what you're trying to do it being professional, you know, high level athlete, he's going to get hopefully more care and more attention to make sure he can returns back to normal. But sometimes you just have to get back out there and do it and get your feet back underneath you to feel normal

again. So sometimes you have to find the new normal. Sometimes you have to just find, you know, that, that gear you once had and get back to it and just repetition repetition repetition so the hope is that he just gets back to it but i mean he played all last year and i think only missed two games for you know uh non-injury issues um i think the birth of his uh child illness etc so he's able to play just getting his you know move to the next level so um i hope he does well. I mean, he has talent. Let's see if he can maximize it.

Yeah, without question. Definitely one of the more talented wideouts in this class. We'll see if he can put it together. And if he can, folks, New England might have gotten that steal everybody's talking about. This could be a beautiful friendship budding here between he and Mac Jones if he's able to do on the field what we all hope he can do here in New England Kyle excellent insight excellent information uh folks we are not done with Dr. Kyle Trimble just yet because there is yet another high profile Patriots pick that does have an injury history he's been a little vocal about the fact that it

shouldn't be an issue anymore but we're going to get an expert professional opinion on the injury of one Marte Mapu in just a moment when this episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast continues. That's fans. Thank you once again for making Locked On Patriots a daily part of your New England Patriots coverage. Don't forget Locked On Patriots, a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network,

your team every day. And don't forget folks, tomorrow on theots, a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. And don't forget, folks, tomorrow on the pod, Bob Heilberg, Patriots historian and author of Total Patriots, is going to lend his wisdom and counsel to the pod. What does he see in this year's group of New England Patriots? You won't want to miss this, folks, so be sure to stay locked in to Locked On Patriots. And Dr. Kyle Trimble joins this, folks, so be sure to stay locked in to Locked On Patriots. And Dr. Kyle Trimble joins me, obviously, today. And Kyle, in the last segment, we talked a lot about Keishon Boudet and the ankle injury that kind of aided to some of the problems that he had in the latter

stages of his career at LSU, gave us some great insight and I think some great optimism when it comes to what we can expect from Keishon Butte if he buys in. And this ends up being the right environment for him. But I know Patriots fans are also concerned about their third round pick, number 76. And that is Marte Mapu coming in. And there is a lot of light on this kid. Dynamic athlete, much like Keishon Butte, one of the better athletes that the Patriots drafted in this 12-person class that they have in 2023. A lot of buzz going around that he's going to play some

hybrid linebacker. He can drop back into coverage as a safety. We've even seen him play a little D-line. He can do it all, but he did miss most of the pre-draft cycle because of a torn pectoral muscle suffered in February while he was bench pressing. The injury required surgery, but he's gone on record now with Patriots media and said that he expects to be ready for training camp, that he doesn't see this as a difficulty or anything that will impede him from being a dynamic player that we all hope he can be on the field. Torn pecs are very difficult to diagnose diagnose or at least from the layman's so in your expert professional opinion my friend when you look at a torn pack you look at the type of way that Marte plays um what should Patriots fans expect early on from him is it a full go the

minute he steps on the field or are there going to be feeling out periods where we have to see exactly what he can do this year uh that's definitely gonna be a layered answer but i'll try to keep it to minimal layers because that can be long-winded at times um just to recap real quick though he suffered torn bacterial while training um you know bench pressing was the reason why he tore it i tore the right side had surgery right after which is usually recommended you don't want to let that muscle tighten back up in there where it becomes difficult to reattach so once it tears you want to get in there pretty quickly retouch it and get through the rehab process there so the rehab process takes anywhere from literature shows about four or six months um we're seeing guys get back a little bit quicker um as they get better research on that. And some of the NFL research shows about five months for that.

So he had told the media that he'd be back ready for training camp, which he's still on track with. It's just a matter of letting the tendon reheal to the humerus, which is your upper arm bone and slowly building strength back up. It's not something you can really rush through. Um, we have seen guys rush back from this type of injury. I believe, I know J.J. Watt did that for the playoffs a few years ago when he terrorized the Bills. I know that John Feliciano for the Bills had also pushed to get back pretty quickly.

I want to say Quan Alexander, but I know he had Achilles. There might have been something different with him when he was with Seattle, the Saints, whatnot. But there's been a lot of guys over the years that have uh pectoral injuries and have either had non-surgical approaches or surgical approaches depends on how significant the tear was um you know even if you remember when matt lano tore his pectoral he partially tore it and he really struggled through the mid portion of the season in 2020 um and he was basically played with one arm which was really unfortunate so uh marty mapu definitely did the right thing by getting it fixed.

He should be ready to go with that. And then to answer the other part of the question, should he be ready to go? I think conditioning is going to be a big thing, but you can still run. You can still do a lot of things while in later stages of rehab. And so conditioning really shouldn't be an issue. I think the biggest thing he's going to have to worry about is just make sure that he is able to wrap up his tackles, block, do all the stuff he needs to do from a defensive standpoint there.

So he might be a little gun shy because, hey, he's still coming off that pectoral injury where he might not necessarily trust it all the way. But the nice thing is once these guys do come back, there's no discernible drop off in play. Like, you know, however you're playing before you come back and there's no drop off and play just as well there i would be worried from um marapu's uh place play style is i mean he's definitely more physical so you want to make sure he's squaring up with his tackle he's not trying to get a shoestring tackle or trying to let the guy get by him and try to wrap him up with his arm because that can be a mechanism to tear the pectoral uh in the first place so if he's going to tackle guys if he's going to jump up and get guys he wants to make sure he's square up with them so he might be a little more slow to diagnose plays but we're going to see that with rookies anyway because

things are going a lot faster at that level than at college so uh i'm sure the patriots can work with them to try to get him in the best position possible to make plays rather than trying to um out athletic guys because you can't do that at that level um i mean if you guys can but most can't so you know the other issue would be could there be a risk to re-injure the other side or re-injure it in the first place the other one yeah you can but the research shows it's really low the one arc while i was looking at today showed that out of i think 65 guys that they looked at only two had suffered another injury you know pectoral injury that area so that's that's pretty good odds when you look at that so um to recap you know he's going to be fine when he comes back to it just as long as you have any setbacks with rehab and they really work on the fundamentals make sure he's out there

and make sure he's confident in his abilities once he's able to start doing live hitting drills yeah without any question i think that's great news for the new england patriots especially when you hear uh the fact that the risk is low in terms of re-injury uh patriots fans i think maybe have a little bit of a heightened worry when they hear torn pectoral they automatically think of gerard mayo back in 2014 2016 and the difficulties he had and maybe how that accelerated the end of his career uh we definitely want to make sure that the guys that are going out there especially at the linebacker position and that physical type of hybrid style that marty plays is going to be something that he'll be able to handle um so i think you've articulated that well, and I appreciate that. As an offshoot to that, I know it's very difficult to project two, three years down the line,

but obviously this is a draft pick that the Patriots spent third-round capital on. They're thinking for the future here with Marte, especially with Kyle Duggar, and his contract being up, you know, the Patriots may be looking to play that physical style safety hybrid linebacker. Is this an issue that could lead to other type of injuries or something where it could be re-aggravated, maybe not this year, but years down the line? Once he's healed, he should be pretty good to go. I mean, the playing style could lead to other problems down the line. Like I said, if he doesn't score up with his tackle and tries to catch guys, that sudden eccentric contraction,

which is length of the muscle, could lead to another injury. But it's not saying that the previous injury would lead to the further one. It just might be bad positioning leading to that. I know back in 2018 he did miss five games for an injury. I could not find additional information on as I was researching. So I don't know what went into that. He doesn't have a lengthy injury history, but sometimes when you see guys play a real physical position,

sometimes your body start breaking down, but there's nothing that suggests right now that he's going to be a liability, you know, from an injury standpoint, like we've seen with other guys. But I think as guys get in the league and find out what they can and can't do, they sometimes adapt their style or they, you know, figure out what works for them so they can prolong their career. Of course, getting the care outside of the facility or even in the facility, just try

to make sure they can recover at rest because it's a long season. And if they think they're Superman every week, they're going to have a very short career. Yeah, without any question. And we've seen players in every NFL aspect and every NFL team maybe push it a little bit too far. Some are able to do it. Some are not able to do it. And right now, I think the Patriots find themselves hoping for the best with this draft class, especially when it comes to the health of Marte Mapu and previously when we talked about Keishon Butte.

Kyle, what can we say? We thank you for dropping by here to lend your wisdom and counsel like no one else can this man definitely comes in and brings you the knowledge that you all need and does it with class style and accuracy most importantly so thank you kyle for dropping by today before i let you go please let everyone know where our listeners here on lecton patriots can keep their friends close and their enemies closer, where they can gain insight about the Bills injuries, but also throughout the entire AFC East, because you cover the gauntlet, man. You cover all of these teams in the division. The floor is yours, my friend. Please let us know where we can find you. That is true. I do cover the AFC East, and I try to do a thorough job with all that there. So you can find most of my work at banged up bills.com. You can find weekly game breakdowns,

it posts in pre and post injury game recaps for the bills and then their opponent. And then also you're going to find it AFCs roundup, if you will. So I try to cover all the different injuries and I'm going to change things up a little bit to make it more focused on the new injuries and whatnot this year. But if you're looking for injuries around the vision or even injury analysis

that you maybe can't find elsewhere, make sure to check out my site. If you want to read more about the draft coverage I've done, I do that every year for coverone.net. You can also find some of my work over at dynastyleaguefootball.com. That's a new site I'm writing for this year for a fantasy-based injury analysis. You can find me on Bang the Bills on Twitter and also KyleTrumble88 for that Dynasty League content. And feel free to reach out.

I'm willing to talk about the injuries, fan base. It doesn't matter. I want to be able to talk with people and help them understand what's going on and make people better informed. Absolutely. Kyle's a made man here on Lockdown Patriots. He's a friend of ours, which means he's in protected status. Don't let the Western New York connection fool you, folks.

I kid, my friend. We really appreciate all of your insight. You are second to none when it comes to this type of material. And we love having you on. We know we're going to have you back very shortly, maybe during the lull between mini camp and training camp, just to see how these guys are coming together. And Kyle, once again, we definitely appreciate your insight.

Folks, be sure to follow him on Twitter at bangedupbills. And of course, you can follow me as well at MDABATENFL. Thank you so much for making Locked On Patriots a daily part of your New England Patriots coverage. And on behalf of Dr. Kyle Trimble, I'm Mike DeBate. Continue, folks, to stay safe and stay well. Be the change you wish to see in the world. Have a great day, everyone, and we'll see you here again tomorrow on Locked On Patriots.