Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - New England Patriots: Jalen Mills Returns, Mike Gesicki and the Red Zone, 2023 Draft Targets Cornerback, Tight End

Episode Date: March 23, 2023

Just when you thought Jalen Mills was out, the New England Patriots pulled him back in. The Pats agreed to a restructured contract with the veteran defensive back, just days after he was informed of his impending release. Host Mike D'Abate welcomes Clare 'ClazzyClare' Cooper of Pats Propaganda and FPC Patriots to discuss Mills' expected position switch to safety, as well as tight end Mike Gesicki's role in the Pats' offense. Lastly, Clare and Mike ponder what each move means for the Patriots plans in the upcoming NFL Draft.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.On 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.Ultimate Football GMTo download the game just visit Ultimate-GM.com or look it up on the app stores. Our listeners get a 100% free boost to their franchise when using the promo LOCKEDON (ALL CAPS) in the game store.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

Jalen Mills is back with the New England Patriots, and it looks like he's moving to safety. This is a good thing for both sides. 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.

Thank you once again for joining me here on this episode of Locked On Patriots, a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Subscribe to Locked On Patriots or follow for free on YouTube wherever you listen to podcasts to get the latest episode as soon as it's available. I am your host, Mike DeBate, and I cover your New England Patriots for Patriots Country of Sports Illustrated. So reach out to me and let me know what is 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 Lockdown Patriots account as well at LO underscore Patriots.

Folks, today's episode is brought to you by Ultimate Football GM. Follow the Locked On Patriots account as well at LO underscore Patriots. Folks, today's episode is brought to you by Ultimate Football GM. If you've ever dreamed of becoming an NFL GM and managing your football franchise, this game is definitely for you. To download the game, just visit ultimate-gm.com or look it up on the app stores. Our listeners get a 100% free boost to their franchise when using the promo code LOCKEDON in all caps in the game. Ultimate Football GM. Patriots fans, thank you very much for spending some time with me here today

on Locked On Patriots and making us a daily part of your New England Patriots coverage. Once again, an action-packed pod on the docket for you today. Claire, Klazzy Claire Cooper, Pat's Propaganda, and a Claire Perspective podcast drops by the pod. And we're going to talk some Patriots cornerbacks, as you may have deduced from the opening. Jalen Mills is going to be a big-time topic of what we will discuss today. Also, we're going to break down what the Patriots might do to better themselves on this position. Here's a little hint, folks. Probably going to go the draft route.

But, of course, Claire's opinion on tight endage is second to none, and we're going to discuss the signing of Mike Gusecki and how it impacts the Patriots' offense and why, once again, the Patriots would be smart to still look to the draft to solidify their future at tight end. So stick around. You are not going to want to miss what Claire has to say on the subject.

But first, just when you thought Jalen Mills was out, the New England Patriots pulled him back in. Just four days removed from being notified of his impending release from the team, the Green Goblin signing a restructured one-year contract to remain in Foxborough. And folks, this is a great thing for both sides. Mills' release, which we talked about here on Locked on Patriots last week, was originally intended to create a net salary cap savings of approximately $4.1 million. Yes, it's going to be a 5.1 million dollar total, but the Patriots also have dead money to eat, so there is a situation where the Patriots were going to clear

4.1 in terms of salary cap savings, but the new contract that Jalen's signing is going to be valued at 6.1 million. A lot of unconfirmed expectations here that a large portion of that is going to be made up of incentives and according to the pats cap himself this seems to indicate that the 2023 signing bonus proportion of jail signing bonus should now be considered as 2023 dead money 2024 proration will be if his deal is indeed shortened so a lot of contract details still to come on this but it appears the Jalen Mills and the Patriots believe that they were better together than they were apart kind of like if I'm being honest this seems like a let's see what else is out there thing for both sides Jalen gets his release the Patriots can weigh the

potential salary cap savings. Both sides come back together, agree that the grass wasn't greener outside Foxborough, and they strike a deal. What's interesting here is that Jalen's release hasn't appeared on the NFL's transaction wire as of yet. Don't forget, it was announced on Friday. At least as of Thursday morning when I'm recording this, we haven't seen it posted on the waiver wire yet. So if the Patriots didn't actually release him and they intended to and just reworked the deal, that could feed this theory a little bit more.

But regardless of the fact, Jalen is back in the fold, and that's a very good thing for the New England Patriots. Mills originally joined the Pats on a four-year, $24 million deal that he signed in 2021. That was a big free agent splash for the Patriots all around, not just with Jalen Mills. A lot of guys coming in that season, but Mills was someone that intrigued them because he could align in multiple positions within the secondary. Jalen came in here with the expectation of playing a little bit of slot, a little bit

of box safety, maybe a little bit of slot a little bit of box safety maybe a little bit of perimeter corner but after the trade of stefan gilmore definitely last year after the jettison of jc jackson leaving by free agency signing with the chargers mills became a full-time perimeter corner and he's done a very serviceable job at that uh michelin has done everything that the patriots have needed him to do. 78 total tackles, 12 passes defense, two interceptions, one fumble recovery. And really, I think on the right side, he was a very, very good compliment to whoever the Patriots were putting on the left, whether it be JC Jackson or whether it be Jonathan Jones. The only problem that he had was keeping himself on the

field. A hamstring injury sidelined him for only one game last season, but he missed the final six games, including the season finale with a groin injury. That was really, I think, the problem that Jalen had all throughout the season was simply staying healthy because when he was out there, he was pretty good good still able to log 31 tackles five pass breakups intercepted two passes and in the process he held opposing quarterbacks to completing only 27 of 45 for 333 yards when they were targeting him so this is a guy that knows how to play in the Patriots secondary and could be a very formidable weapon for them but at this point you look at Jalen and you say okay well he's going to come back and he's going to be a perimeter

corner he's going to play right alongside Jonathan Jones like he did last year Marcus Jones Jack Jones they'll spell him on occasion but ultimately it's going to be these two guys at the top of the cornerback position well not so fast here's where the plot thickens folks Jordan Schultz was the one that broke this yesterday from the Schultz report of score and he reported that Mills's return was accommodated under the understanding that he's actually going to play safety this year in the upcoming season Jalen actually alluded to this himself when everybody was talking about the retirement of Devin McCourty and the need for safety. Jalen actually tweeted out, y'all know I play safety, right? And I think a lot of people are forgetting that, but I'll tell you where they are not

forgetting that. They're not forgetting it in Philadelphia because Jalen had, I think, arguably his best season as a pro in 2020 as a member of the Philadelphia Eagles. 74 combined tackles, one and a half sacks, an interception while aligning mostly either at the box or a little bit at free safety as well. If this is where Patriots are intent on using Jalen Mills, I really like this move even more, because what it does is it gives them positional versatility,

someone that can play the versatility someone that can play the free someone that can play the box if you want to spell or give a little bit of rest to Kyle Duggar at times or someone that can come in and play the hybrid role when you've got two strong safeties really behind him in Adrian Phillips and in Jabril Peppers this opens things up so much for the New England Patriots and Jalen Mills is a natural safety, folks. He plays the position extremely well. You might even see him blossom this year in this system and really have his best year as a Patriot aligning at the safety position.

So if this is the move that the Patriots are making, and they are moving him indeed to the free safety position, you got to love it. And I think Jalen's going to do a great job. And now he's to join duggar he's going to join phillips jabril peppers don't forget joshua bledsoe still on this uh roster as well patriots i know see a lot of promise on him don't necessarily discount joshua as being someone who's going to be just an also ran camp body i think the patriots want to find a way to feel this entire group of safeties and bring them in for 2023. But training camp's still a little ways away.

I'll keep my eye out for that. In the final analysis, Mills' return proves that in New England, things are always being negotiated, which are going to solve your problems and answer your questions. But in true Bill Belichick fashion, that's all they're going to tell you about their business.

But that business is going to include addressing the future of the defensive backfield. And to help us look in to the Pats' potential with the position is the Countess of Klaas herself. Claire Klaas and Claire Cooper joins me here in just a moment when this episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast continues. But first, folks, today's episode brought to you by our good friends over at FanDuel. The tournament is heating up, and now is the perfect time to download FanDuel, America's

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make every moment more with FanDuel, official sportsbook partner of the NBA. Patriots fans, thank you once again for continuing to make Locked On Patriots a daily part of your New England Patriots coverage. Remember, Locked On Patriots is free thank you once again for continuing to make Locked On Patriots a daily part of your New England Patriots coverage. Remember, Locked On Patriots is free and available on all platforms, and it is a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. And, folks, we continue to break down the re-signing, the release, the re-signing again of Jalen Mills. But, folks, we are going to take a look at it from a different perspective, maybe from

a Claire perspective. That's right. It's midweek. It's still the midweek, folks. We're a little bit past the midweek, but we're not going to worry about the details. The Countess of Clazz, the illustrious Claire Clazzy, Claire Cooper of Passpropaganda and FBC Patriots joins me here today. And Claire, in the previous segment, talking a little bit about Jalen Mills,

talking about his subsequent release and then re-signing and re-shuffling, re-positioning, a lot of re's going on with Jalen. But he is definitely back in the fold, and we're glad to see it. But the one thing that I was a little concerned with, and I'm hoping you can lend your wisdom and counsel on, is the fact that if Jalen is indeed moving to safety, the Patriots have still a little bit of a need at outside corner. And I think you can lend some of your expertise in this area on the subject. When you look at the Jalen Mills signing and his subsequent move to safety, what are the Patriots specifically looking

at now at the cornerback position because still feels like they need a veteran presence there yeah well the thing is what you mentioned obviously with regards to sort of Mills coming in or returning resigning as you said and as you mentioned he's kind of got that versatility he he's not unfamiliar with playing the various spots as he did for the Eagles as you mentioned, he's kind of got that versatility. He's not unfamiliar with playing the various spots as he did for the Eagles, as you said. So him being re-signed initially was just great. The thing is, even when they re-signed him before, it was said about him being a safety.

It still didn't really necessarily give the Patriots that CB1. He's good, don't get me wrong, but I'm not quite sure if if that's sort of what his spot would be and I guess it looks like it's not going to be because there's a good chance that he is going to be moved out to safety and I think that's a key because losing the likes of Devin McCourty you're losing a very veteran voice there and you're you're losing a guy who is you know he's really important in regards to the secondary I mean I don't know if anybody else is listening but um patriots.com have pats for the pats from

the past out and they recently talked to Devin and Jason McCourty and it was mentioned and Devin was mentioning how as a leader he would talk to Jonathan Jones and even outside of the coaching they would you know together that they would look at different guys and see what they needed to do you know you you do if he does this you do this that kind of thing so there was a really good in internal kind of conversation going on and retaining Jada Mills although it sort of doesn't replace that that Devin McCordy thing as I said it's it's maintaining a familiar veteran voice that is in those discussions that does that kind of thing and and as you may have alluded to they they're you know they've re-signed or retained Jonathan Jones which probably been mentioned in in a further episode anyway because it's not it's

not news but I think those are key now when you say in regards to a veteran cornerback I'm not quite sure now I looked at sort of who they've got and what they've got and they have brought back as we said the likes of Jalen Mills and Jonathan Jones and you've still got the likes of um Carl Duggar Joshua Uche sort of in that department and I think that having those voices that have been there before is really key and and I don't know i mean i'm not sort of trying to go against the grain but i just feel like that maybe they're set up to bring in someone new as in a cornerback from the draft i don't know if it feels like they've got good scaffolding to bring in now a guy who knows what he's doing they don't really want a diva a diva development A guy to develop.

At cornerback. I've been stumped by a word today. Oh, it's moving me from Wednesday to Thursday. Look what he did to me. I apologise, folks. Yes, a guy that can develop at cornerback. So my personal opinion is if they bring in somebody from the draft it's sort of they want a really well-rounded guy already so it feels like it's a top need it feels like it's an early in the draft

situation for them to bring in a cornerback i don't disagree with you that they need to bring in a veteran i think veteran presence is always good um you know they've had um if they had it oh no trey flower sorry that's a linebacker sorry i was thinking of him they've had, who have they had? Oh, no, Trey Flowers. Sorry, that's a linebacker. Sorry. I was thinking of him. They've had him around recently. So bringing in other familiar folks with the Patriots way is always good. But at cornerback, I'm just wondering if they're structuring, as I said,

the scaffolding around with regards to keeping Jonathan Jones, with regards to retaining Jadon Mills but moving him around. Is this scaffolding ready for a high draft cornerback rather than a veteran presence? Now, that's just my opinion. And a lot of people obviously will say, well, it's still too weak. You know, your veteran presence is still weak, but they need to be looking at the future as well. So it's this balance of veteran presence experienced guys talented guys and new

young youth um that will kind of go on to build the dynasty to build the franchise you know whatever you you know want to say but you you can't always only have a situation where you've got veterans because you'll end up in the situation which the patriots have found themselves and when you look at different spots all teams do if you maintain too much veteran presence you start to run out of steam and get to the stage where you're bringing back the and I mean this with all the respect in the world the really old guys who are kind of not as quick and to keep up with the younger guys and as I said I genuinely mean that with no disrespect or ageism anything like that but if you continue to do that you aren't ever going to get younger you aren't ever going to build for the future so just personally

at this stage looking at what they've done uh looking at how they will shift jaylen mills around as as we've already discussed i think it's um as i said a scaffolding around ready for a top cb1 in the draft that's interesting and i'm glad that you mentioned that because initially i go to a veteran presence i take a look at the cornerback death chart from start to finish obviously jonathan jones is a solid veteran presence no one is arguing that miles brian is slowly becoming a veteran that can play on the outside can play in the slot but he's also still learning the ropes here in New England as well. He's not someone that's going to come in and give you a whole lot of pedigree or wisdom and counsel

that Jonathan can give you. Marcus Jones, Jack Jones, obviously still very young, still learning their position. One year under their belt, not a whole lot. So you look at that cornerback room and you say, okay, they definitely need a veteran in there. But this is a very deep cornerback class in the draft. And when you look at the players that might be available, you start to think, well, the Patriots may see the opportunity to get their future cornerback of the future. Someone who can come in here, play press man, and be that presence on the perimeter that the Patriots have always loved to employ. I keep coming back to Joey Porter Jr., someone who a couple of weeks ago I never thought was on their radar. But this kid, prototypical length, does have the ability to play press man, tremendous ball skills, especially at the catch point.

There's a lot of growth that we've seen in press technique and his footwork from 2022 at Penn State. So I like the way this kid blends height, weight, speed, great athlete. The only takeaway that I see from him is that he is more scheme specific. He's not necessarily scheme versatile. The Patriots like that a little bit more in their corners. But I think when you look at the skill set that he brings to the table, this is a possibility. So if the Patriots are looking to go that route, he's a guy you may look at Cam Smith from South Carolina is someone uh Deontay Banks is another guy that's really kind of moving up the draft board with a very athletic showing especially at the combine so you've got options there folks and

maybe youth is best served here at the cornerback position especially early on for the New England Patriots you've kind of turned me on this Thomas I like oh well thank you but I mean you mentioned some great names I I wanted to interject actually the the one thing that I noticed when I looked at this this sort of the corner mat list from the combine and that sort of thing is the the the the quality of like the round two projected guys some of the names that you already know out so it's not yeah okay you've got your gonzalez and you've got your um your porter juniors you know projected first round i mean i think gonzalez is projected as literally top 10 so you are talking very early in the draft the thing that sort of struck me was the guys that are projected now obviously i'm only going on sort of what he's

been projected around you can only go on so much information um and a lot of this was gleaned from pff so thanks for that again trudas but the thing that i was really interested in as i said was the guys that are projected for round two the quality that is still there in those individuals and you threw out some names i know evan nazar is really big on dionte banks but he's a he's more of a first-round guy actually sorry my bad but um bad. But, yeah, Emmanuel Forbes, Cam Smith. I mean, I looked at him and the pluses, the one thing that is in regards to these cornerbacks that are sort of the second round is they have some really high points,

but they have some kind of lows as well. And, I mean, you know, no player's completely perfect anyway, but it's obviously the low points that are having them projected that little bit later um but a lot of that you can work with there are things that individuals have that once they've shifted to the nfl can be worked can be molded can be coped that kind of thing so i think what is quite interesting about this cornerback situation if they're looking at a earlier in the earlier in the draft so first second round there is still some quality there that you don't necessarily have to be picking up

kind of mr gonzalez at number 14 if he if he were to ever drop i think you can still get some some serious quality to be having your cornerback of the future to still go with um the youth that you can build upon but obviously that's just my opinion. Yeah, no, I agree with you. I really do. And I think it's a smart move for the Patriots to keep their options open, even in the middle part of the rounds. Murph and I talked about Tomlinson out of TCU the other day during draft Monday.

And I think in a lot of ways, people are looking at maybe mid-rounders as being an option as well. But Patriots would love to get that veteran folks excuse me, I keep saying veteran, folks. They would love to get that solid presence on the perimeter. But they would like to get an alpha presence on that perimeter. And I think in this draft, they do have the opportunity to get that. And it may be in subsequent rounds, but they also want to view some size into that position.

Everybody is listed on this depth chart right now, either at or under six feet patriots would love to get someone that can definitely match up with some of the more sizable receivers that you're going to see but ultimately folks it's all about trying to play the hand that you're given and the new england patriots right now have added a tremendous amount of size on the opposite side of the ball both both at wide receiver and, yes, Claire, there's the smile we're all waiting to see. Tight endage, folks. The New England Patriots added a very good one last week,

and we're going to talk a little bit in this next segment about what Mike Gusecki is going to bring to the table and how it might revolutionize what the Patriots do offensively. Talking tight-ended, tight-ended yourself, the illustrious Classy Claire Cooper, when this episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast continues. But first, folks, today's episode is brought to you by Ultimate Football GM. Now, you've heard me talk about this mobile game, and if you ever thought that you'd make a good GM, you've got to give this game a try. Not as easy as you might think it is to create a dynasty. The England Patriots did so for two decades, and no one has done it better. No one

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Ultimate Football GM is completely free, and it's even playable offline. So you can play on the go as you want, when you want to. Locked On Patriots listeners, listen up, because you get a 100% free boost to your franchise when using the promo code LOCKEDON. You can find it in the game store in all caps. That's LOCKEDON, L-O-C-K-E-D-O-N, in all caps. So make sure to check it out today.

To download the game, just visit ultimate-gm.com or look it up on the app stores. That's ultimate-gm.com, Ultimate Football GM. Start your dynasty today. Patriots fans, the illustrious Claire, Clazzy Claire Cooper of patspropaganda.com and the host of A Claire Perspective, a Patriots podcast powered by FPC Patriots. Claire, in the previous segment,

we talked a lot about the Patriots defensive side of the ball, infusing maybe a little size, maybe a little youth into the cornerback position at the very least, making some changes in the defensive back field. But you know, as well as I, it would not be a midweek appearance from the midweek monarch here on Lockdown Patriots if we didn't talk a little tight endage.

It's in Claire's contract. We are definitely going to do that. Not kidding, folks. I'm kidding. But she is the foremost expert in the area, and I always defer to the experts in matters of this type. Claire, we could hear the cheers coming from West Midlands in the UK when the Patriots announced that they had signed or I should say when it was announced that the Patriots were signing tight end Mike Gacic of the Miami Dolphins

aside from the fact that I know you love stealing players from the Dolphins especially Gacic comes in Gacic comes in that knows exactly what the Patriots need and apparently is willing to provide that. Patriots lacked a sizable presence in the red zone, someone that could go up, make contested catches, be an offensive weapon, and really be a receiving threat at tight end. All due respect to John and Smith, that just never was his game

here in New England. Maybe he'll find his mojo in Atlanta, and I think that's the right spot for him, but I also think that New England is the right spot for Mike Kosicki. So you being the tight endage expert that you are, Countess, I was wondering if you could regale us with your thoughts on the signing, and how does this change or enhance i should say what the patriots can do offensively this season well thank you mike and i need to thank you for the opportunity to to do this because when i released my kind of free agency frenzy eclair perspective recap it was just before they made the announcement so i i did my show with my lovely assistant chitters and it was just before they made the announcement so I did my show with my lovely assistant Chidders and it was great fun and it was great and then I sent it off and I put it went to

put it out um and before it actually got kind of uploaded and put out there they signed Guseck and it was like oh that would have been a really exciting thing for me to cover wouldn't it thank you very much Bill for doing that once I'd done my show but no seriously so no I appreciate the opportunity because as you all know yes I'm very enthusiastic when it comes to tight end now when it was announced in regards to the signing yes I was very excited because he is a quality player now I had reservations still I think my excitement overtook me anyway but there's still the reservations of what they'll do in the draft because obviously that's still very forefront in our minds of what's going to happen in the draft and you know it is the best tight end draft class in probably about a decade

as people keep saying so there's always that element of please don't let this one year signing of this you know of this experienced quality tight end stop you doing that so firstly I just need to put that out there into the universe as in please don't let it stop them signing some decent tight endage. On that note, wrapping that up, put that out there in the universe. Thank you very much. Now the market is lower this season actually for tight ends because of the quality of the draft. And I think that's really affected sort of the contracts and what sort of

happened because Gusecki, you know, one of the top tight ends that was out there in free agency, and he only kind of got an up to nine million one year contract. And the likes of Dalton Schultz has also been, you know, affected to that. And obviously you want to talk about him. But in regards to tight ends, it's really not really a market out there that they're going to get, you know, a lot of money. So it feels like we've got quite a good bank for our book as Patriots fans. Now, he's a Penn State guy as you probably know

and I mean they make good tight ends baby Pat Primmon um but yeah talking about him specifically I know a lot of people have been sort of down on him because he's more of yeah they push him more of a he's got more of a wide receiver tendency he can't block he's been in the league for five years now you know he's been with the Dolphins for five seasons now and we know that he can't block. He's been in the league for five years now. You know, he's been with the Dolphins for five seasons now and we know that he can't block. He knows he can't block. All the coaches know he can't block. That's not his thing. So the Patriots aren't taking a guy on thinking that he's going to need to block. Sort of the way that they ended up having to use Smith. Now, what's going to happen at the offensive line is obviously going to affect that

because what we had last season with the kind of carousel of o-line no real o-line coats that sort of thing that's kind of mostly been solved this year or hopefully by the season it will be solved possibly with the draft as well but they've got a coach so you automatically change the sort of the dynamic the dynamic that's necessary by having a better o-line of you don't really need to worry that your titan needs to be concerning himself with blocking because they know that this guy isn't really a blocker so you know he's probably going to be one of the first people to say that he's not much of a blocker because it is all out there so we all know it but the one thing that he that he is good he's he's tall he's six foot six depending on where you look. But pretty much, you know, in that sort of area.

I think he came in initially at 250 on his combine, but he's got a lengthy frame and he uses it well. This is this is something that is key. No, he's not like a really thick, stocky sort of tight end the way that Gronk was. But he's he's he uses his length and he's sort of adapted his his abilities or, you know, he's gained his skill set, if you like, whatever you sort of however you want to brand it to use that length. He's got long strides to get downfield and he gets open. He's got this great kind of snatch the ball out of the air quality to him because of his size and because of his ability and sort of looking at his 2023 2022 2023 highlights yes granted it's highlights you yeah you're going on something that's already got a bias because you're watching the guy's best bits and i fully appreciate that folks completely but that's what's out there and that's what you look at and this and looking at that this guy has the ability to get

open and i hate to say this but this feels like something that the Patriots have been lacking recently. These guys being able to get open and that's key to kind of get the ball to them. So, you know, he's got good ball security. He's if you look at him from a stats perspective. Yes, he's 2022 stats. He's lower than his 2021 stats. He had 32 receptions and he only had two drops now you'd argue oh well he only had 32 receptions and in 2021 he had 73 and with only three drops um but don't forget the fact that for 20 the 2022 season the fins came up against new head coaching and more offensive weapons as people like to say so there was a lot of the ball had to be spread out

more so you're not really you're not going to utilize one there was a lot of the ball had to be spread out more so you're not really you're not going to utilize one guy when you've got the likes of jaylen waddle and stuff like that and tyric hill and stuff like that so he isn't going to have big numbers because he isn't going to warrant getting the ball that much but he's still a dynamic player that was there on the field and he was still utilized and i think that is going to be a big key for the Patriots. They know he's not a blocker. As I said, he can get open. He can get downfield. He's athletic.

It's just, I can't help being excited. So I apologise. I know that I'm always enthusiastic when it comes to Titans. But as an avid Patriots fan against the Finns, I'm so, so passionately that I am. Obviously, I haven't really watched him as much as maybe I should have done because I haven't been watching Finns games because I don't want to see them that that sort of situation so I haven't really indulged in watching him play

um which is why I sought out a lot of his highlights because he is a really good player and I think that I know that there's the negativity I know that there's the downside of of things like that and I know you know you know the arguments in regards to him being a blocker and he's for me it's just looking at this guy looking at what his plus points are knowing what his negative points are in regards to blocking and knowing that they maybe don't need to use him like that this year anyway so the relief of that we haven't got to worry about that because we haven't got a johnny smith situation and like you said nothing against johnny smith it was a combination of everything around him it was sort of the ingredients that came that contained the whole recipe that was sort of the downfall of johnny smith's time in new england because it was so many other things that that were necessary

now that gaseki's coming in though some of those things that were necessary. Now that Gusecki's coming in, some of those things have been sort of all sorted out. So just really need to look at him, what he can do as a weapon, as people like to say, and I'm not too keen on. But yeah, for me, it just feels like a plus. As long as they don't compromise their draft, that is the only thing that concerns me about this signing.

I think it's brilliant. I think it's wonderful. It's a good deal. It's only only a year so if he doesn't fit they haven't tied themselves in the way that they have to unload the Johnny Smith you know deal to Atlanta they were it feels like they were very fortunate to be able to do that so it feels like the numbers are good the timing is good and his skill set is good so knowing what he can do and what he can't do and coming into the system as it is now with the coaching in regards to, you know, good offensive coaching, that sort of thing. For me, I can't I don't know how you can not be excited about having this guy potentially in the building at Foxborough.

As long as it doesn't affect the drafting, that's it. That's a very, very good point. Very good point and very well said and let's not forget folks that hunter henry and mike kisecki are both under contract only through the 2023 season 2024 all bets are off here the new england patriots may be looking at filling both of those positions if kisecki has a good year he gets uh you know greener pastures elsewhere it has happened before in foxborough where someone comes here rejuvenates their career and then goes on to get the bag elsewhere uh that's something that definitely

could happen and hunter you know i mean if he is a candidate to have his contract extended that could keep him here a little bit longer i know claire would definitely love that i would love that because hunter to me is still someone who's yet to reach his potential here in this patriots offense and i think the routes that he's going to be able to run under Bill O'Brien's direction is really going to bring him to the forefront and I think it's going to showcase what I loved about this kid in Los Angeles and what Claire continues to see in Hunter Henry each and every day that he you know takes the field but I agree with you, Claire. I think there's also an element of the Patriots right now that is very, very smart to utilize this draft

because there are great tight ends, potentially great tight ends, not just receiving, but also in blocking. Murph and I discussed a couple Monday. Darnell Washington, obviously probably the best blocker out of anyone in this draft. Luke Shoemaker of the Michigan the michigan wolverines is someone i think that is maybe 1a in terms of blocking ability in this draft so if the patriots

want to go for a pure blocker they've got a couple that they can target washington they're going to need some pretty high draft capital shoemaker they might be able to get uh day two and do well with him but uh you're absolutely right Claire I think they need to dip into this uh tight end class in the draft because it's simply too good to pass up some of these talents yeah two things that have just kind of popped into my mind coming that in regards to what they've got now with Hunter and Gusecki they've got a good sort of tandem of tight ends now I know a lot of people talk about the kind of like hernandez and gronk and we know that they're not that it's just that there's elements of a two tight end set that

works and i think that gaseki and henry have got more of a feel that this could work as a two tight end tandem not saying that they're gronk and i'm not saying that that's a completely separate thing just looking at them as two tight ends that have got skill sets that can complement so that they're Gronkh and Anand. I'm not saying that. That's a completely separate thing. Just looking at them as two tight ends that have got skill sets that can complement so that they can utilise kind of plays better with regards to what their skill sets are. And I think that's something to transition on in regards to sort of the draft. As the names that you've thrown out, yes, they can look at an individual that's kind of got more blocking prowess but there's also sort of round sort of two three guys that are there that have got more of a skill set

more like the gaseki skill set which is they're a bit more of a wide receiver-esque kind of tight end rather than a kind of inline blocking tight end now it feels like maybe that that's how it's evolving in in the nfl you aren't really you there aren't many tight ends kind of out there that have got sort of the rob gronkowski because they need the size they need the athletic ability they need the skill set and they need the blocking prowess now you're ticking a lot of boxes with one individual and i'm not saying that gronk is the only one who's ever been able to do it I'm not but he had a very special set of skills shall we say nice throwback to movies there that Michael like and that's not going to come across you know that's not going to come out very often um you're not going to sorry you're not going to come across that very often

is what I'm trying to say and so I think that this is being recognized and that is why the sort of the two tight end tandem is you aren't going to get it all in one guy very often anymore so how do we split this up more so so when you look at what's in the draft this year and you look at this the depth that you've got maybe you don't have to concern yourself that that guy is an amazing receiver but he's an absolute shocking blocker or he's an amazing blocker but but he, you know, he fumbles a ball. We don't really want a guy that fumbles a ball, but you're getting my comparisons when I say this, I'm being very extreme in this,

but you sort of see what I'm alluding to is maybe you get the most out of your tight ends when you've got two rather than just one. Good point. Very, very good point. And to that level. And to that point there are a lot of uh available talent that the new england patriots will see they've got plenty of picks to be able to do it how many of them are they going to hold on to how many of them are going to be used we may not know until the draft night exactly but new england definitely has its options open and with the addition of both hunter Henry and Mike Kosicki, though, we are going to see a much more active tight endage group in 2023

than we've seen probably in the last few years in New England. Countess, what can I say? You always lend your wisdom and counsel. We know you are the expert at tight endage. And you once again broke the meter of wisdom and counsel way off, but also just excellent insight on the patriots cornerback position so thank you for joining me here today as you always do each and every midweek part of the week before i let you go please let us know where we can reach out to you where we can interact with you and what we can look forward to especially on a clear perspective coming up

in the next week or so from the great voice the great man of claire clazy claire cooper oh well thank you it's always loads of fun coming on here even if it's on a thursday and not a wednesday which is fine by me because you know still midweek almost we're putting time on hold for the count but yeah it's always great fun coming on here and as i said i did really genuinely appreciate being able to to kind of discuss giseki with you guys because i missed my opportunity on last week's eclair perspective but it's the off season and i said that i would come to you every couple of weeks with eclair perspective because i was kind of having you know like a semi-break with it being the off season that's not really happening we did a free agency recap as i mentioned last friday with my lovely assistant chudders that went out last week and

it was kind of like yeah just a general recap and what you're thinking about what happened at free agency last week and now this week um i've gone and recorded with the with the amazing mike deuce do so from packs.com from patriots.com um so yeah that should be out soon folks so as you're listening to this it'll probably come out after you've heard this maybe go over and listen to a clear perspective because hopefully episode number 60 cannot believe it episode number 60 will should be coming to you quite soon because it's been recorded please check out patspropaganda.com it is a bit of a lull with the off season um and myself and tom have been super busy kind of like with other things and other podcasting things and stuff like that so that and and the breaking news obviously comes to you on twitter anyway but please keep your eyes on

patspropaganda.com because as we build up to the season there will be more coming there will be some draft coverage there will be some maybe some breaking news coming out about what's going to happen on patsbroganza because we're looking at getting some new stuff going on so please keep your eyes peeled on there and we do appreciate your patience that the content has been a little bit kind of lulled down into the off season but yeah and as you know you can find me each and every week on one page that's placed brought to you by the etg sports network and of course the bird app so check me out on twitter at classy claire for all the the tight-ended excitement because that's normally what you get so thank you very much for putting up with me

folks i really appreciate it you do not have to appreciate it you don't have to thank us for it it is something we do gladly here on Locked On Patriots and really all throughout Patriots media. Claire is an amazing follow for amazing Patriots coverage so please do not hesitate to follow. You will not be disappointed. Folks, we thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to spend here

on Locked On Patriots. Now that you've made Locked On Patriots your first listen of the day, please make your second listen. The Locked On NFLots your first listen of the day. Please make your second listen, the Locked On NFL Scouting Podcast with the Draft Dudes. My good friends and colleagues Kyle Krabs and Joe Marino take you through what it's like to build a

successful NFL franchise. They do it every Monday through Friday. Find Locked On NFL Scouting with the Draft Dudes wherever you get your podcasts and on YouTube. A proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Folks, thanks once again for joining us here today.

We look forward to bringing you the very latest and greatest from Foxborough right here on Locked On Patriots. In the meantime, please continue to stay safe and stay well and be the change you wish to see in the world. On behalf of my illustrious co-host in the midweek, Claire Classey, Claire Cooper, I'm Mike DeBate. Have a great day, everyone, and we'll see you tomorrow here on Locked on Patriots.