Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - New England Patriots - New York Giants Preseason Game 1 Recap; James White Retires

Episode Date: August 13, 2022

The New England Patriots fell to the New York Giants in their 2022 preseason opener by a final score of 23-21. However, several Patriots made a positive impression with their performance. Joining host Mike D’Abate is Steve Balestrieri of PatsFans.com. The duo discuss which rookie performed at the highest level, the game’s biggest surprises and the retirement of legendary running back James White.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/id1140512627 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1c5ZxFmwg3WbfxAU3tR5Ve?si=k196wH-yRqifUcQQz8SjIQStitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/locked-on-patriots And 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!DaveDownload the Dave app from the App store right now for an Extra Cash account and get up to 500 dollars instantly. For terms and conditions go to dave.com/legal. Instant transfer fees apply. Banking provided by Evolve. Member FDIC.Built BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKED15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.BetOnlineBetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Patriots fans preseason game one is in the books a big night for the rookies but who impressed more Bailey Zappi or Taequann Thornton this and more today with the resident voice of reason 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, and thank you once again for making Locked On Patriots a daily part of your New England Patriots coverage and also your first listen every day.

Remember, Locked On Patriots is free and available on all platforms, including YouTube. So download, subscribe to follow Locked on Patriots wherever you get your audio podcasts, and smash that subscribe button on our YouTube page. I am your host, Mike DeBate. I cover your New England Patriots or Patriots country of Sports Illustrated. Also your host of the Locked on Patriots podcast,

a proud part of the Locked On Patriots podcast, a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Folks, because it's your team every day, that means your questions, comments, and feedback are always welcomed and very much appreciated. And joining me here today on this post-preseason game one wrap-up podcast is our resident voice of reason columnist extraordinaire for patsfans.com you know his great work for being the host of not one but two amazing patriots podcasts patriots fourth and two alongside russ goldman and derrick havens and of course one patriots place starring our good friend thomas murphy our other good friend Thomas Murphy, our other good friend Claire Classey, Claire Cooper,

and of course, our resident voice of reason on One Patriot's Place. Welcome back, my good friend Steve Balistrieri, my Patriot's Bison. As always, it's an honor to be with you, and I love talking football with you. And wasn't last night wonderful? I mean, it was a beautiful night and we got football back. We were sitting there watching football and it's just great to be back. It really is great to be back. There's no question about it.

Getting a chance to not only get back into the swing of things when it comes to football, but also fans back in the stands feeling that we've finally moved on from COVID and the pandemic and how that essentially affects the New England Patriots and how that affects the National Football League. It's definitely great to see fans back. It's definitely great to be back in the stadium. And it's just great to have NFL football back. And I know it's in a preseason setting, folks, but Steve and I will break down all of the action that we saw from Gillette last night the Patriots dropping the game 23 to 21 to the New York Giants but Steve you and I both know that it's not about

the wins and losses in the preseason it's about the process and that's exactly what we're going to discuss today but we'd be remiss if we didn't begin today's episode by paying tribute to one of the greatest Patriots that you and I have both had the opportunity to cover. James White announcing his retirement after eight seasons in New England, a phenomenal career for James White without any question, three-time Super Bowl champion, a member of the All Decades team, a member of the All 2010s team, a member of the All 2010s team, obviously, and the Dynasty team. James was so much more than a football player to so many people, despite the great prowess that he showed on the field, Steve. James was also one of the greatest

Patriots to cover. He was always available. He was always affable. He was always honest, and he was always upbeat, and that's something that his teammates echoed whether we talked to Devin McCourty or Matthew Slater or Bill Belichick himself nobody has had anything bad to say about James because no one could say anything bad about James truly one of the greats and his red jacket is already reserved in Foxborough no question about it he will walk into the Patriots Hall of Fame. When you look back on James's great career, Steve, what are you going to most remember about James White in the Patriots uniform? You mentioned we had the opportunity to cover him while we were down there. He was always so humble. It was never about him it was always about the team and he was like the quintessential Bill Belichick type of player you know he didn't care about his stats or whatever as long as the

team won James was happy and he'd do anything he could uh to to help the team and you know when I think about it it's just like the overall player. He could pass block. He could catch the ball out of the backfield. He was a tremendous receiver. And, you know, he was a good runner between the tackles. And sometimes he'd be asked to do all three. Sometimes it might just be one of those things. But, you know, I can't think of how many times we've watched games

and the offensive would be struggling, and the only guy that could get things going back when Tom Brady was still on the team was James White. You know, he always had that available to him, and I think that's the thing I'm going to take away. I mean, obviously there's the Super Bowl where he just had a phenomenal game. But I just think it's an overall picture and such a really humble, gracious man, you know, when we got to talk to him. And he's going to be missed. He's definitely going to be missed.

Absolutely. Without any question. You mentioned Super Bowl 51. And obviously everybody thinks about the indelible memories of that moment. You think about Julian Edelman's catch, maybe the most indelible moment. You think of Dante Hightower's sack. Without that sack, you know, you really don't get the comeback. And for me, that takeaway moment, I'll always remember the image of Tom Brady embracing his mother,

who had been fighting cancer all year, the opportunity for him to be able to show his humanity, to be able to show, but also the love that he had for his family, some of the more indelible moments from that game. But Brady has often said, and he's gone on record, that James White should have been the MVP of that game. And I firmly believe he should have. 14 passes on 16 targets, 110 yards, scored all of 14 of New England's points in that game.

Set Super Bowl records there. And when it was time for the Patriots to need that score in overtime, who gets the ball? A then 25-year-old James White. And he did not disappoint. And folks, he never disappointed throughout his career. James was truly a remarkable player on the field. But to me, I think what really embodies James White was his leadership. And he led by example. James wasn't a very vocal leader. But like you said, he was very humble. He always had a smile on his face. He always believed

that the best was going to happen. And even in the face of unspeakable tragedy a couple of years ago, when he lost his father in a tragic car accident, his mother was severely injured. There were times where they were worried about her future and, you know, and her health and whether or not she would come through it. She did come through it. And, you know, I remember the week after that happened. This happened during the, just before we just before the seahawks game in 2020 we learned of this tragic accident that was going to keep james out of action and i remember the following week against the raiders and i'll always remember that covering that game remotely because it was during the pandemic and there were no fans in the stands and you know you look at what had happened in the matchup with the raiders and the

patriots won that game 36 to 20 but every time the running backs were able to make a score or every time his teammates were able to make a score they remarked on how it was for james this was for james white because that's exactly what he does he persevered no matter what the obstacle that was in his way. He always found a way to make it possible and to make it happen and to be able to overcome it. And I remember guys like Rex Burkhead saying every time we got into the end zone on, you know, today, it was for James White. I remember after the game when we spoke, you know, with Sonny Michelle, who now is, you know, no longer a New England Patriot. He's down in Miami. now is you know no longer and new england patriot he's down in miami and and

you know sony saying that you know we knew what we had to do we knew we had to continue and come together and play hard because that's what james white does and i think you're hearing that in so many of the patriots that paid tribute to him yesterday even the patriots that didn't get a chance to play with him all that long guys like tyquann Thornton guys like Bailey zappy they really had to come together and show that James was someone that was going to continue to inspire him and I think he will continue to inspire everyone that he comes in contact with congratulations to James on a great career and Steve I look forward to covering that Hall of Fame ceremony with you someday. I know it's going to be a fun one

because James was so well-loved and so well-liked by his teammates, by his organization, and really beloved by the fans. And you can't ask for a better legacy than that. So that's all. Five years from today, we'll be probably watching him put that red jacket on.

Absolutely. Absolutely. And Tom Brady will probably still be playing football. But, well, who knows? You know, we don't know what's going on with Tom down in Tampa right now. No, all kidding aside, folks. This is a Patriots podcast, and we're going to continue to keep it Patriots-centric. Honoring James White is obviously part of it.

But the New England Patriots did play a game last night in Foxborough, and Steve and I are going to discuss whether the rookies showed up, the veterans last night, and which rookie stood out most to the resident voice of reason. We will talk about that and all that, including more with the New England Patriots from their 23-21 loss to the Giants in preseason game one when this episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast continues. But first, folks, level with me.

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the legacy of James White and what he will mean to the New England Patriots moving forward but we got a little glimpse last night of what those New England Patriots moving forward may look like preseason game one a lot of jitters hardly any starters played Mac Jones Hunter Henry John and Smith all of you know a lot of the Matt Judon a lot of the prominent Patriots did not see any action in the game last night but gave the rookies a chance to really I think showcase what they could do and Bailey Zappi took the majority of the quarterback snaps last night. Brian Hoyer, first two series, 14 snaps. Bailey Zappi comes in, takes 48. And he looked very good in the second half.

Tyquan Thornton at the wide receiver position. For everyone who says Bill Belichick can't draft wide outs, go back and take a look at that game last night, folks. Tyquan Thornton played i thought very well in the first half showcasing great right running ability a little bit of toughness on the touchdown catch loved what i saw from both of those guys before we break down the action steve obviously rookies are going to take the center stage when it comes to preseason games were you more impressed by what you saw from zappy at the quarterback position

from taekwon thornton at the wide receiver or was there a wild card rookie in there were you more impressed with guys like jack jones or cole strange which rookie caught your sharp eye last night my friend you know um i i think zappy thornton you know all the guys you just mentioned i thought they accorded themselves very very well last night during the game. But, you know, I was really impressed. And he didn't do anything spectacular. But a young guy who undrafted LeBron Ray. Good point.

You know, he was a guy that was really highly recruited, you know, and he played at Alabama, but he was always hurt and it was never a question of ability with him it was just availability because he couldn't stay healthy I was watching him closely last night they were moving him all over the place and the fact that an undrafted rookie in the very first preseason game is getting moved around the formation tells me that the coaches really think this kid can play. And I thought he made some solid plays. Again, there was nothing spectacular about it, but just the fact that, you know, a rookie to step in like that and for the coaches to trust him, to move him around tells me that there may be something with this guy.

And if he can continue to play like that, I think he's probably going to make the football team. So glad that you mentioned LeBron Ray, because early on in the process of the Patriots getting undrafted free agents, LeBron just stood out for me in terms of someone that really could make an impact. Obviously, the Saban connection at Alabama is something that most people were utilizing or at least lending credence to in terms of his ability to make the team because they figured, well, you got a Saban system, a Belichick system, there's similarities. He's going to be able to come in and play the role. But when you look at what the Patriots need, especially on the defensive line, what they needed were size, athleticism, and an ability to help stuff the run.

This kid can do all of that. 6'5", 284, definitely checks the boxes when it comes to size. But when you look at the athleticism and the way, like you said, they were moving him all around the formation, really impressed me last night. And it impressed me in a game setting. We've been seeing him do this in practices but it's a different animal when you see the game setting trey nixon said that last night when he spoke to us in the media he said look you know you can practice against these guys all day long

and we're doing things but when you get actually in a game setting and you get a chance to really showcase what you can do against an opponent that you don't see every day it really does speak volumes and i thought this kid really stepped up, really played well, very adept at being able to stuff the run. But he also has the ability to get after the quarterback. He had 13 and a half tackles for loss during his time in Alabama. This is a guy that can really get into the backfield before the quarterback has a chance to get into his motion or before the running back gets going.

So really love the way that LeBron Ray, you know Ray played on defense, and I'm glad that you mentioned him. In terms of offensive output, I know a lot of people are going to put stock into what Bailey Zappi did last night. You're going to have some that are going to say, oh, here comes the quarterback controversy. Folks, there's no quarterback controversy. But I thought Bailey showed a great deal of poise, and I thought Bailey showed a great deal of poise and I thought he showed a great deal of being able to play through difficulty because he had some struggles in the first half there's no question about it but his touchdown pass under pressure

by the way to Lil Jordan Humphrey I think really was one of the plays of the night you take Hoyer's touchdown pass to Tyquan Thornton out of this. That may have been the play of the game. I was impressed by what I saw with the rookie last night. Yeah, especially he had a really rough first half. You know, he seemed a little bit, you know, a little rattled. He had happy feet a few times. But then, you know, I don't know what happened at halftime, but he looked completely in charge after halftime.

I think at one point he hit like 11 passes in a row, you know, after going three and nine for just 17 yards in the first half. You know, I thought he played very, very well in the second half. And what I really liked from him is he was spreading the ball around. So, you know, to me, you know, just watching from afar, you know, I'm not privy to the play calls, but it seemed like he was seeing the field. He was going through his progressions and, you know, he had a couple of, you know, inconsistencies with his accuracy,

but, you know, that's something that can be worked on. But overall, I thought for a first game as a rookie quarterback I thought he handled the offense very very well last night yeah that to me I think is really what the thrust of what we can take away from Bailey Zappi's performance last night is that the ball came out of his hands very easily very fluidly it really reminded me of what we saw from Mac last year now again I'm not comparing the two folks please I'm not trying to stir the pot here with a quarterback controversy because again there isn't one Bailey's got a long way to go and you saw that in certain pockets of the game last night but

for a young quarterback it's very important to get your feet under you to get your feet wet for lack of a better term and i think bailey zappy did that last night i was a little surprised by the amount of pressure we saw from the giants defense last night i don't know if that's maybe brian dayball kind of flexing his muscle a little bit maybe it's you know an opportunity for him to show what he can do on both sides of the ball. I get it, but during a preseason game, that blitz is not supposed to be as happy as it was last night, but conversation for another day, Steve, I thought Bailey handled it well. And I think that he was able, I thought he was able to adapt to it pretty well. And ultimately I think that is an important part of any young

quarterback is if you can show the ability to play through the blitz and be able to find receivers and develop synergy or good relationships with receivers and he's doing this with some of the guys on a backup level that are fighting for a spot on this team christian wilkerson continues to make his case he continues to be a very good pre-season player for the pats a very good practice player he does it in a game setting did he do enough last night Trey Nixon I think really reinserted himself into the discussion of getting maybe that sixth spot on a wide receiver depth chart for the New England Patriots this year and Wilts Roden Humphrey is really quietly just doing things in practice and in a game setting that may make him a tough cut as well so Bill Belichick's got his uh

um his his work cut out for him at the wide out position and again bailey zappy i think doing a great job but taekwon thornton as well uh really showing uh that this kid has the tools to be a special player in this league yeah you know just jumping on humphrey for a second, I was talking on an earlier podcast with Derek Havens, and he was mentioning that, you know, Paul Perillo from Patriots.com was saying prior to the game that he could see a scenario where Humphreys, you know, could possibly be moved to tight end as a move tight end. You know, the way he's been showing up and they don't seem to be really enthralled with their two draft picks from a few years ago.

And, you know, it's it's it's one of those intriguing what could happen there. So, you know, he could find his way onto the roster as well. That radar sound that you hear in the background folks is coming from west midlands in the uk we mentioned tight endage we mentioned a possible move tight end claire just perked up on that claire take notes we'll be talking about that this week when you join us here on locked on patriots each and every wednesday but i think that is an intriguing option he's got the size and the ability to do it. Who knows? Maybe the Patriots do that because we did not see Devin Asiasi last night. We did not see Dalton Keene. These guys have to find their way to the field

if they're going to make this club, and the guys that are out there are making the most of the opportunities that they have, and Steve, we will definitely talk about the guys who made the most of their opportunities, not so much the rookies, but the veterans, when we conclude this episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast, folks, in just a moment. But first, sports is in full swing. Before you know it, football will be back on your screen, and it'll be done in a setting that is not exhibition.

But still, there's plenty of sports to be able to satisfy your cravings. And if you want to make a little extra on it, best to visit our good friends at betonline.net because they are your number one source for all of your sports betting needs and information. BetOnline is your continuing source for all your sports wagering information, including live betting, esports, and more. And BetOnline remains the best spot for all of your scores, your podcasts,

league reviews, and news this season. BetOnline is the fastest and easiest way to check in on all your favorite sports and events, including MMA, boxing, and golf. So head to the website today or use your mobile device to learn more about the trends and the action. BetOnline, where the game starts. Patriots fans, my Pats Paisan, Steve Balistrieri is here today with me of Patsfans.com bringing us home and helping us recap the action we saw last night on the field when the Patriots

dropped their preseason opener to the New York football giants by a score of 23 to 21. Normally, Steve, we'd be lamenting a loss. We'd call it a fumbling Friday or something to that effect. You know, I love my alliteration, but in the preseason, it is not about wins and losses. It's about what you see on the field and big day for the rookies. We talked about the rookies in the previous segment, but rookies are not the only players that need to make an impression to try to earn a roster spot. When you look at the veterans that got significant playing time last night or didn't get significant playing time last night, what stood out to you the most about players that are trying to crack this roster? And in your opinion, who has the best chance to do it?

You know, Anthony Jennings, who I've been unabashed fan of since they brought him on the team he's healthy this year you know you've been watching him down at training camp he's been showing up down there every day big time he's been making plays i thought he looked really strong last night setting the edge, getting after the quarterback. Just, I mean, he looked like he started material out there. And I was really impressed with him. The other guy I was impressed with, Mack Wilson. You know, the Patriots brought him in at a trade.

And, you know, it was hoped that, hey, you know, with a fresh start, it would benefit him. I think he looked really good last night. He's very athletic. And, you know, watching the linebackers as a whole last night to see the speed and athleticism. I mean, this is stuff we've been clamoring about for a very long time. So Mack Wilson, you know, he's been in the league a couple of years. But Jennings really is. This is a big year for him. I really love seeing that. And how can you not like what you saw?

And, again, there was times when it looked like he was running around a little bit out there, but Cam McGrone, he hasn't played in almost two years. And he got out there, and you could see what the Patriots like in him with the speed factor that he brings to the table. He should have had about two interceptions last night, but you can see what they like in him. And again, he was running around a little bit. I mean, that's understandable.

He hasn't played in two years, but I think there's something there that they can work with with him. And he can go sideline to sideline. Oh, he can. Absolutely. He can definitely go sideline to sideline. McGrone showing tremendous athleticism, speed. Talk about sideline to sideline.

I thought Mack Wilson did a tremendous job. I thought it was so telling that he had the green dot last night. Because as you all know, folks, or some of you may not, if you have the green dot on the back of your helmet, you're the one relaying the plays that the sideline is calling or the coordinator is calling and relaying that to the defense. That is something that the quarterback will do on offense, but when you're the defensive guy with that green dot,

it says a lot about your football IQ, and this is something that Mack Wilson was praised for by Bill Belichick. We heard it a lot when he came here. He's not just an athletic, fast linebacker, but he's also a very intelligent football player, and I think you saw that last night. So that, to me, says a lot. I was impressed by Mack Wilson.

I was very impressed by what I saw from Anthony Jennings as well. I think the fact that he was out there and was able to showcase what he could do with significant playing time, I think spelled some good things for him. A lot of toughness, a lot of tenacity, and he can provide that sideline-to-sideline coverage as well. Flipping over to the offensive side of the ball, we made Claire perk up earlier, and she's still excited about what she heard, I guarantee it. But we're going to make our buddy murph perk up a little bit too because we know

he's listening we know he's watching um we're gonna talk about some round men on the offensive line murph and uh arlington hambright steve is a name that not a lot of people had on their pre-season roster projections i didn't but he continues to prove me wrong on a daily basis in camp and we saw that the patriots are i don't want to say overconfident in his ability but they're pretty confident in his ability to keep him out there now i know there was a dearth of offensive lineman last night you know especially with you know a lot of the starters not playing um or these starters not playing um or the starters not playing cole strange got a few snaps and he looked pretty good as well the rookie did but

yannicka just going down in the second half um justin her own bill murray arlington played a couple of different spots and again you mentioned in the previous segment about moving guys around the formation and lebryan ray doing that in defense on offense it's also significant and Arlington was moved around a couple of times last night as well started at the right guard position in place of Michael Wayneu but when these guys went down you saw him shift over to left tackle and he actually did a pretty good job and he's been playing in a lot of different certain circumstances in training camp in this fashion and he's getting more reps than people are you know even probably aware of i know some beat writers are very good about giving him his props but i thought he helped to spring the run

of the night last night by pierre strong when he got in throwing the key block on inside zone that opened up the cutback lane for pierre to be able to go through and get significant yardage so I want to give a lot of credit to him as well I thought he did a great job of proving that he may be worthy of roster consideration as well yeah you know it's funny because when they signed him back in the winter a lot of fans because of his name I think ridiculed the signing and I think there's a really good chance he's going to make the roster. You know, and it's funny. I think if they had stuck with the traditional Patriots offense that we've seen for 20-something years, he might have been on the outside looking in.

But, you know, even though they didn't run it much last night, this Shanahan-McVay slash type of offense, I think he fits that really well because he's a little bit more athletic than some of their other guys out there. Again, the fact that they're taking a guy and they're moving him around the formation, he started at right guard, he's moving the left tackle, tells you that the coaches believe that he's capable. Doesn't mean he's going to win a job or he's going to be a, you know, a starter or anything like that, but they believe right now that he's capable. And I think that goes a long

way. If you have the coaches, you know, confidence that you can do the job, they're going to give you that opportunity. And, you know, so far he's running with it. He is, he truly is running with it. And so many players are getting that confidence by finding their way onto the field. And look, sometimes circumstances allow that. And I think that's what you're seeing with Arlington right now especially with the offensive line and some of the issues that we've seen whether it be I'd say a win missing some time whether it be Jason Hines and Andrew Stuber being on NFI for a good amount of time obviously Jason is now off but Andrew Stuber remains on NFI

this is going to be interesting for the New England Patriots. There's a lot to look for, and this is going to be a great week to look for it, Steve, because not only do we have another preseason game on Friday night, we also have it preceded by two joint practices, and we will be there, boots on the ground, folks, bringing you all the latest from Foxborough when the Patriots take on the Carolina Panthers joint practices this week, Tuesday and Wednesday, and then, of course, preseason game culminating on Friday. And we'll be discussing that and more each and every day here on the lockdown Patriots podcast.

But in the meantime, I think my good friend, my Patriots buys on for all of his contributions to lockdown Patriots throughout the years, as we continue to have him each and every week to lend his wisdom and counsel the way only he can do it please follow the man on twitter at steve b7 sfg all of the amazing columns that he provides for patsfans.com including this sunday folks i always call it the sunday paper and

i take that cue from our good friend murph but it truly is there is no better way to begin your sunday than with mike re Reese's news and notes and with Steve's column. You don't need anything more in Patriots Nation as far as I'm concerned than two of the greats doing what they do best, bringing you the Sunday news. And speaking of Sunday, folks, keep a sharp eye on the Lockdown

Patriots feed because a special weekend edition with my good friend and colleague at Patriots Country of Sports Illustrated, Arnar Sharma. The two of us will be breaking down everything we've seen in the past couple of weeks on training camp, at the preseason games, and also what to expect in the coming weeks.

So please be sure to follow Locked On Patriots. Download, subscribe, wherever you get your podcasts. And thank you, folks, from the bottom of our heart for making Locked On Patriots a daily part of your Patriots coverage and your first listen every day. Now that you've made us your first listen, go and make our friends over at Locked On NFL your second listen. All of the great storylines throughout the NFL covered each and every day by our great hosts. So follow Locked On NFL wherever you get your podcasts. Steve, I'm always honored, always humbled by your presence, my friend.

Thanks so much for dropping by and for breaking down all the action that we saw last night at Gillette with me. My pleasure, my friend. I look forward to talking football with you at any time of the day or night. Absolutely. And it's my favorite pastime as well. And Steve will join us again here next week, folks, for another episode of Locked On Patriots.

But in the meantime, please continue to stay safe, stay well, be the change that you wish to see in the world. On behalf of Steve Balistrieri of Patsfans.com, I'm Mike DeBate. Have a great day, everyone.