Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - No Guarantees: Will Campbell’s Left Tackle Spot in Question? | Patriots Mailbag

Starting point is 00:00:00 I am not shocked at all by the latest reporting on Will Campbell's future. We also get to your mailbag questions. This is Lockdown Patriots. You are Locked on Patriots, your daily New England Patriots podcast. Part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day. What's happening? I am your host, Nick Cattels. On today's episode, Breaking Down the Chances, Efton Chisholm makes a leap.

Starting point is 00:00:33 And Eli Raarden ends up as tight end. in 2026. In the second segment, our honest assessment of Elliott Wolf's tenure as EVP of player personnel. But first, the Will Campbell conversation continues. Andrew Callahan of the Boston Herald was on 985, the Sports Hub Memorial Day, and he shared the latest on Will Campbell. Andrew Callahan said that there is no guarantee that Will Campbell stays at left tackle for the next few years. in the eyes of some of the Patriots in the facility. So some of the people in that building, front office, coaching staff, whoever, there are people in the Patriots organization

Starting point is 00:01:15 who will not guarantee that Will Campbell is going to stay at left tackle for, quote, the next few years, unquote. Andrew Callahan on 985, the Sportsub. This is not an overly shocking statement from Andrew. It should not shock anyone. Let's begin with this. It can't be guaranteed. You cannot guarantee anything.

Starting point is 00:01:40 You especially can't guarantee that Will Campbell is going to be your starting left tackle in 2028 after how you saw his rookie season end. He was not good in the postseason. He was brutal in the Super Bowl. So saying that it's not a guarantee, Campbell stays at left tackle for the next few years, that's not shocking, that's not surprising. I want to pay attention to the next few years' term. To me, Andrew Callahan is not telling us that people in the building are concerned that Will Campbell's going to fail. Andrew Callahan is not telling us that the Patriots don't have a long leash with Will Campbell at left tackle.

Starting point is 00:02:24 Andrew Callahan is simply telling us that Will Campbell is not guaranteed the star starting left tackle spot over the next few years. The next few years, look, if you're not confident that Will Campbell can play left tackle by year three of his NFL career, it would be malpracticed to ignore that. And I don't think anybody out there is saying, just play Will Campbell at left tackle no matter what. Play Will Campbell for the next seven years at left tackle, even if he is a turnstile. don't think anybody is saying that, but especially me. I am not saying that.

Starting point is 00:03:05 I am going to give Will Campbell year two. If you get to the offseason in 2027 and you're not totally sold on Will Campbell being your starting left tackle, then you have to pay attention to that. You have to plan for that. You have to understand that you might have to move from your original plan. And again, if you don't, it's malpractice to just simply ignore that. If Will Campbell is average to above average at left tackle, the Patriots are not going to rush to move him. They're just not going to do it. If he gives you average left tackle player, slightly above average left tackle play, he's staying at left tackle. At least for the foreseeable future.

Starting point is 00:03:51 So this is not shocking in any kind of way. The Patriots should not be guaranteeing Will Campbell's job at left tackle for the next five years. I would not expect that. I don't think Will Campbell would expect that. And the Patriots have not said that. The Patriots have simply said that he's the starting left tackle for 2026. That is the plan. Speaking of that plan, our first question from Play Hard 1333,

Starting point is 00:04:20 thoughts of Campbell moving to guard if he struggles in camp. I have stated my Will Campbell thoughts for months, including just a moment ago. you know, before the injury, before the MCL, the fact is Will Campbell, if you look at the analytics, pro football focus, other places would tell you Will Campbell was about in the middle of the pack as a tackle, as a left tackle. And if Will Campbell can hang around in the middle of the pack, I think the Patriots would be fine with that. Now, you might look at Caleb Lomu, and if you think Lomu is going to be a. superstar at left tackle, then you might make that move. But before the injury, Campbell was middle of

Starting point is 00:05:06 the pack. And I think that's actually pretty good given the circumstances. He was a rookie. He was 21 years old. There was a rookie next to him and Jared Wilson who was playing a position that was mostly foreign to him before he was asked to start at left guard last year. So there were a lot of different things at work last season, and then he got injured. Before that injury, again, average to slightly above average. And I would think, I would think Will Campbell would have to be a human turnstile for the vast majority of camp to move from left tackle to left guard or right guard, whatever the plan would be.

Starting point is 00:05:53 I would think that you would consistently have to walk away from camp from the beginning of camp to the end of camp, you would have to consistently walk away from camp on a day-to-day basis and say to yourself, man, Will Campbell wasn't good today, or man, Will Campbell was awful today. He would have to be a turnstile for the vast majority of camp. And here's the thing that I'm not really sure,

Starting point is 00:06:19 and I'm not saying that Playhard 1333 is rooting for Campbell, to move to guard. But I'm not sure why there are people out there that say that, that want Will Campbell to move to guard, that want to move him from left tackle right now based off the sample size of the postseason against some of the best pass rushers in football, some of the best defenses in football,

Starting point is 00:06:40 in an ugly, ugly Super Bowl when he's dealing with an MCL. I don't know why people are in a rush. You should actually be rooting for this not to happen. Patriots fans should be rooting for the Will Campbell pick to work out. And I'm talking about not just work out because he plays good football. You move him to guard. He ends up playing great. I'm talking about working out at the position where they picked him to play.

Starting point is 00:07:08 If Will Campbell is your left tackle for the next 10 years, that is fantastic news. I don't know why anybody would be trying to rush him off that spot to push him inside to then try to play Caleb Lomu at left tackle. I don't know why there's a contingent of people out there that want this to happen. Your best potential offensive line for 2026 is Will Campbell, Elijah Vera Tucker, Jared Wilson, Michael Wenu, and Morgan Moses. I've said it from right after the Super Bowl, the day after the Super Bowl. Now, of course, AVT wasn't signed, but I said, veteran left guard. You can go back and check out the archives.

Starting point is 00:07:48 I have been consistent on this. I'm not giving up on Will Campbell at left tackle. And if he can work at left tackle, that is your best offensive line for this year. Campbell, Veritucker, Wilson, Owenu, Moses. If you can get 15 games from all five of those guys, you should feel really good. And it would also be the best possible scenario for Caleb Lomu.

Starting point is 00:08:13 I do wonder how many people have actually watched Caleb Lomu play before they run out there and say, just replace Will Campbell with Caleb Lomu. And again, I'm not saying Playhard 1333 is saying that. But the best possible situation for Lomu, this upcoming year is that he is your sixth offensive lineman. Give him time to cook. Give him time in the oven.

Starting point is 00:08:40 Why are we rushing this? Take a deep breath. Give Caleb Lomu a year. to develop, give him a year to build play strength, ease him in as the sixth offensive linemen so he can get used to the strength and the speed at the NFL level, and then you look towards 2027 to start the young man. By the way, if you're moving Campbell to left guard or right guard,

Starting point is 00:09:11 either this year or next year, guess what you're going to do? You're very likely going to spend another time. top pick at tackle. Do we want the Patriots to draft another tackle in next year's first round? They drafted Campbell fourth. They moved up, used a fourth round pick, sacrificing depth, probably at linebacker or the interior offensive line. They gave up a fourth round pick to move up and they drafted Caleb Lomu. Now, some of you might say, well, why would they have to draft a tackle in next year's draft in the first round or second round, Demetrius Crownover could work. Yeah, he could work, but he's a sixth round pick. Am I banking on it? No.

Starting point is 00:09:52 So if Will Campbell moves to guard, you play Caleb Lomo, which I think is too early in 2006, which will impact Lomu's future. But let's say, let's play the game. You move Campbell to guard. You put Lomu at left tackle. You got Morgan Moses 35 years old playing right tackle. You go into 2027 with Lomu as your left tackle, Campbell as your left guard, Verit Tucker as your right guard, Wilson in the center. So who's your right tackle? 36 years old. Morgan Moses? Is it Demetrius crown over a six-round pick? Are we already going to slot him in to start in 2027 when we have no idea if he's even going to make the team in 2026?

Starting point is 00:10:30 Marcus Bryant, seventh round pick. If the Patriots were high on Marcus Bryant, do you think they would have drafted Demetrius crown over? So play the long game. Play this out. Don't just think about the Super Bowl, freak out, and say you've got to move Campbell. Because if you move Campbell, the trickle-down effect is real. and could you imagine using the fourth overall pick in the 2025 draft on Will Campbell to then move up in the first round of draft Caleb Lomu in that first round of this past

Starting point is 00:10:59 season's draft? And then you go into 2027 and use another first round pick on a tackle instead of addressing another need. So I'm willing to wait. I'm willing to be patient. But to answer the question, thoughts of Campbell moving to guard if he struggles in camp, he's going to have an absolutely atrocious camp, absolutely freaking atrocious camp for that to happen.

Starting point is 00:11:30 And if he does have that kind of camp, we'll talk about it then. Elliot Wolf's tenure as EVP has settled after a rocky start and more coming up next. This is Lockdown Patriots, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network. Now the number one sports podcast network, your team. The NHL playoffs are happening right now where every shift. matters. Every moment is intense and the pressure is at its highest. And just like performance matters on the ice, it matters off the ice too. And that's where Rougiet comes in. Rougiette offers treatments designed to help you get ready and stay ready when it matters. Their top option,

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Starting point is 00:12:59 My bad. Elliot Wolf's job looked in danger after the 2024 debacle of a season. But over the last two off seasons, it is simply not debatable that Elliot Wolf has been a significant help to this franchise. Thank you for making us your first listen. And for being an everydayer get your daily Patriots fix completely ad free by joining the Everydayer Club today. start your seven day free trial right now and get closer to your team without the interruptions. Click the link in the show notes or go to lockdown patriots.com to claim your free trial. Don't forget if you're watching this on YouTube to click that thumbs up, help us with that algorithm by liking this episode.

Starting point is 00:13:39 Don't forget to comment. I want your thoughts on Will Campbell. Throw a comment in that helps us with the YouTube algorithm as well. And don't forget to subscribe. the next goal is 10,000 subscribers. Can we get there by mandatory mini camp? I don't know. I keep moving to goalposts.

Starting point is 00:13:56 Hopefully, hopefully we get to 10K soon. I also remind you that in June, this upcoming month, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, three episodes a week, locked on Patriots. It's the only month that we drop from five to three episodes per week for you. I'm going to take a little bit of a breath before getting you ready for camp,

Starting point is 00:14:16 joint practices, the preseason, then actual football in September, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday during the month of June. And yes, I'm well aware that A.J. Brown could be a patriot in less than a week. The first week of June, do not be surprised, actually be excited because we are very likely going to do many podcasts that week, most, if not all, about A.J. Brown, if he does end up becoming a patriot or when he becomes a patriot. All right. Back to the questions. Let's go to Quig 052095. Your thoughts on Elliot Wolf's tenure as EVP of player personnel. In parentheses, Quig puts not counting 2024 as he was forced to build that coaching staff. It's true that 2024 was unfair to Elliot Wolf, given the circumstances. We've covered that before. But Elliot Wolf still called the shots. And so I still look at 2024. That is still on Elliot Wolf's resume. That offseason is still graded. It is graded harshly by many, and it should be graded harshly by many. I think that Elliott Wolf clearly failed that offseason. Again, it was a tough

Starting point is 00:15:29 job with a lot on his plate. He was doing many things at a GM, VP of player personnel, EVP of player personnel, whatever. Somebody in that position should not be doing. He was tasked with a lot of those jobs. And it did impact his performance in the 2020. off season, but hey, man, he still could have done a better job. So unequivocally, he did not get off to a great start. But I would also say to disregard, to disregard Elliott Wolf as someone to take seriously in the NFL because of that one off season, given the circumstances, especially that he was dealing with, I think that's a reach.

Starting point is 00:16:10 To say Elliot Wolf could never succeed in the NFL as a GM, head of football ops, To say that based on 2024, I don't think is a fair assessment of the man's experience and his ability to do said job. Both things can be true, that he failed unequivocally in 2024, but also that should not take him out of the conversation to ever run a football team ever again. And I know a lot of people felt that way, but you got to take a little bit of a deep breath. Now let's look at what Elliott Wolf has done the past two off seasons. 2025, 2026.

Starting point is 00:16:49 Frable will get most of the credit, and Mike Vrable deserves most of the credit because he is the guy that tops the pyramid. Now, I know Elliot Wolf's title. I know what he does, all that stuff, but Mike Vrable is really the one with the hammer in this organization. But with that said,

Starting point is 00:17:07 Elliot Wolf's more simplistic grading system, his more simplistic approach about the draft, the last two years, has brought talent to this team. I think the Patriots have done a really good job overall in the draft the last two seasons. I love the aggressive approach this year to land Caleb Lomu and Gabe Accus in rounds one and two. And a lot of that falls onto Elliot Wolf because he is the one that's looking at the chart. He's working with Ryan Cowden.

Starting point is 00:17:39 He's working with others in the room to try to iron out these trades and get these details done. and he will tell Mike Vrable what he thinks is fair and not fair. And it's not like Mike Vrable has a handle on trades and what the particular value of picks is going to be or should be. He's going to lean on Elliot Wolf and Couton and stretch to do a lot of that stuff. So I love the aggressive approach. I think Wolf has done a really good job of finding Vrable guys, which is the number one priority. Understand what your coach is looking for, which was a problem in 2024. Understand what your coach is looking for and get guys that.

Starting point is 00:18:15 that mold. And I think during the scouting process, the last two off seasons, what Elliot Wolf and his scouting people have done has had some some terrific work put out there for Mike Vrable to say, oh yeah, I like that dude. That's my type of guy. I also think you look back at the 2024 contracts. Some of them don't look as bad as they looked during 2024. It's amazing when you have a coaching staff that knows what it's doing. Is anybody complaining about Ramandre Stevenson's extension? Is anybody complaining about Hunter Henry's or Mike Owenews? Now you can look at Kyle Dugger in that deal and I said it in real time.

Starting point is 00:18:55 That was an overpay. That's on the record from me. But you also have to be fair and say Kyle Dugger dealt with injury in 2024, which made him not close to the player he was before he signed that extension. And also, you know, this past year, it was a scheme change, different style football. And so that's just the way sports works at times. And I think the Patriots, they've added more to their analytics department over the past two off seasons, which has been significant. And they've been more collaborative, which I think has been a really good idea.

Starting point is 00:19:28 So overall, I think Wolf is a positive asset to have in this front office. And I think the collective has been really good for the most part. It's got to Russ Goodman. Could it be possible that the Vrable scandal could have? have the opposite effect and actually bring the team together. Anything is possible. Anything is possible. Yes, it could absolutely, the Diana Rusini, Mike Vrabel thing could absolutely galvanize the locker room.

Starting point is 00:19:54 But a few things. It won't galvanize the locker room if there is something unearthed that betrays the trust between Vrable and the team, Vrable in the front office, Vrable in ownership, if there is another bomb to be dropped, so to speak, and it gets dropped, then we need to go back and reassess this thing. Because if it does betray that trust, that connection, that could be a big problem.

Starting point is 00:20:24 And I don't think that would galvanize the locker room. I think it would have a lot of guys in the room scratching their head saying, okay, so now this is what? The third time coach has to talk to us? That's a little weird. I think it's unlikely to galvanize the team because if nothing new is leaked,

Starting point is 00:20:43 then I don't think it's going to be brought up over and over, especially not in the facility. Not at all. I mean, I would have to imagine nobody in that building has said a single word, even in private conversation to each other, about Mike Vrable's situation, his ordeal, if you want to call it that.

Starting point is 00:21:00 I'm sure nobody in that building has said a word, even in private over the past couple of weeks, because nothing new has come out. Nothing new has come out. It's been about three weeks since the boat photo, came out and that wasn't new. It was, you know, more recent than the bar photo back in 2020. So, you know, my guess is the photos that have been leaked were from people who took said photos. Those people were looking to cash in. Some of the old photos came from people who

Starting point is 00:21:32 probably in real time when they took those photos had, you know, really no thought about what could actually be happening. And then they see the page six story and now they can cash in. So they run to page six, they run to TMZ. That's how this thing works. But the more time that goes by without anything, the more it's about football. And so I just don't think it's really a topic that's on the top of minds, aside from people who want to try to keep engagement farming from it. Now, OTAs are this week. So we got to keep the door open for a strategic leak to happen.

Starting point is 00:22:09 But as it stands now, I think pretty much everybody's moved down. in that locker room on the field, in those offices. The battle for tight end snaps in an Efton Chisholm leap. It's coming up next. This is Lockdown Patriots, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Support for today's episode comes from Square, the system that helps fix one of the biggest headaches in running a business. Starting a business is exciting, but actually running it. That's where things can get complicated fast.

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Starting point is 00:23:41 And many of you who have been following me since the draft are aware of that. I'm bullish on Eli Rairden's future. We're going to tell you why it'll be really tough for Rairden to steal snaps from Julian Hill in 2026. Thanks for checking out the Lockdown Podcast Network, now the number one sports podcast network. Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe if you're watching on YouTube. Let's go to Cheyenne Sully 14. Do you think Eli Rairden and Julian Hill are fighting for tight end two? Not necessarily.

Starting point is 00:24:11 I think that Eli Rarden and Julian Hill right now are different types of tight ends with different strengths and different weaknesses. Julian Hill's number one priority for this football team in 26 is going to be to block the guy opposite of him. That is going to be his number one duty. It's going to be blocking, in line blocking, second level blocking, goal line blocking, blocking for Drake May and pass protection. And so Julian Hill, I think, is going to play a lot because of that. I think Austin Hooper was around like 50% of the snaps last year. Wouldn't be surprised if Julian Hill is out there for a decent chunk. Because right now, he is their best blocking tight end.

Starting point is 00:24:56 So he's going to play. He brings a skill set that they need. Meanwhile, Eli Raarden is more of the move tight end right now within his, you know, developmental timeline. And, you know, he could, he could develop into a really good pass catching tight end. And I think he has that potential to do so. If he stays healthy, I think he's going to be a pretty darn good receiving tight end. But he's still developing as a blocker.

Starting point is 00:25:26 I think he's better and more ahead than people give him credit for. But he's still not at the Julian Hill level just yet. So I think the Patriots will be patient. I think we have to remember this draft class, a lot of patience. These guys might not make an immediate impact. It's not going to be like last year's class. Gabe Accus, I think, could make an immediate impact.

Starting point is 00:25:47 But the other guys, it's going to take some time. I think they're going to be sprinkled in. And it would not be surprising to me if Eli Raarden actually splits time more with Hunter Henry. You know, the big question for me is how much will Hunter Henry play? What's the percentage of the snaps? this year going to look like for him. He turns 32 years old in December. He has played a lot of hard taxing football.

Starting point is 00:26:15 Last year, he played just under 80% of the snaps. Do you drop that down to about 70%? Do you drop it down between 70 and 75% to try to keep him fresher? Maybe. But you'll see Eli Radin. But I think he'll split his time playing for Hunter Henry. He'll split his time playing for Julian Hill. and then we have some fun thoughts.

Starting point is 00:26:37 We talked about, you know, 13 personnel and all that a few weeks ago. It'll be fascinating to see if the Patriots play 13 personnel, the three tight end sets. If they do play that personnel, how often do they play it? And you can even look at 22 personnel with the two running backs, two tight ends, and one wide receiver. That could be very intriguing if slash when you add A.J. Brown next week. So a lot of fun thoughts with the heavy person. I think Eli Raarden will play, but I don't think he's going to battle Julian Hill, especially

Starting point is 00:27:13 with the contract Hill got. I don't think day one, Eli Raiden is going to leapfrog Julian Hill. Now, maybe I'm wrong. If he does, that's great news because Julian Hill is just making money and you use the third round pick, a top 100 pick on Eli Raarden. And if he leapfrogs Julian Hill and he's playing 55, 60 percent of the snaps in his rookie season, that means get ready. get ready for him to fulfill that potential sooner rather than later. But right now, I think he's tight end three sprinkled in. That's what I would guess. All right.

Starting point is 00:27:44 Troxelberg, how big of a leap could Efton Chishol make this year? And could he jump into the Pop Douglas spot if they dump him? I would not anticipate a big leap from Efton Chisholm. You know, if Efton Chisholm is important in 2026, that's not good. And what I mean by that is, you know, your best situation is you trade for AJ Brown. AJ Brown proves to be a bona fide boundary alpha, the number one receiver getting the most targets. Then you have Romeo Dobbs be your reliable, fun, productive number two guy. And then in the best perfect scenario, Kyle Williams leap frogs Mac Hollins and solidifies himself as the third wide receiver on the debt chart.

Starting point is 00:28:30 And then you've got Mac Hollins who slides to being the fourth guy. He's 33 years old. You know, he's got a certain skill set that you can use. But he slides to the fourth spot. And you end up having the Pop Chisholm battle for that fifth spot, which is why I think Troxelberg brought up, you know, Pop Douglas. Could he jump into the Pop Douglas spot?

Starting point is 00:28:53 I don't think Troxelberg was thinking that Efton Chisholm would jump, you know, the first three or four guys on the depth chart. because I don't think Chisholm is going to leapfrog. Any of those top four guys I just named. But I do think it's possible he leapfrogs Pop Douglas. You know, I do think because of being able to utilize him as a run blocker, he's bigger, he finishes through contact better. I do think it's possible.

Starting point is 00:29:23 It might even be probable that Efton Chisham jumps into PopSpot. But Pop Douglas, he also has a skill set. he gets separation. He could be a gadget guy. He's got, you know, better athleticism than Fentchism. But as far as, you know, how big a leap, it's not going to be big because I just don't think that, you know, the fifth guy on the roster at that position is going to get a ton of opportunity, especially given the fact that you also have Hunter Henry, Trayvion, Henderson, Ramandre Stevenson, Eli Raarden that you throw the football to, maybe a sneak a couple targets to Julian Hill. So Fenton Chism ceiling is, you know, wide receipts.

Starting point is 00:29:59 receiver five if he stays healthy. And by the way, that's great for a year two, UDF guy. That wraps up this edition of Lockdown Patriots. Thank you for making us your first listen and for being an everydayer. Reach out to me on Twitter at Nick C Radio. Don't forget to throw a comment in on the YouTube channel. Hit that like button and subscribe. And if you never miss an episode, the Everydayer Club is built for you. Get Lockdown Patriots ad free plus members only discord access and more. Head to Lockdownpatriots.com or check the link and the show notes to learn more. Have a great day, and we will see you next time.

Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - No Guarantees: Will Campbell’s Left Tackle Spot in Question? | Patriots Mailbag

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