Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Patriots, Pass Catchers and Positivity: Asiasi, Bourne, Agholor and More — 3/2/22

Episode Date: March 3, 2022

The New England Patriots are in need of some adjustments when it comes to their pass catching arsenal for 2022. One such reinforcement may come from tight end Devin Asiasi, who has reportedly been working out with wide receiver Kendrick Bourne. Host Mike D’Abate welcomes Clare ‘ClazzyClare’ Cooper. The duo discuss Asiasi and Bourne, as well as which of the Pats’ wide receivers will make an impact for New England in the upcoming season.Support 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 “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!Rock AutoAmazing selection. Reliably low prices. All the parts your car will ever need. Visit RockAuto.com and tell them Locked On sent you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You are Locked On Patriots, your daily New England Patriots podcast, part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Hello to all of you Foxborough faithful. You are now locked into the Locked On Patriots podcast. It's Wednesday, March 2nd, day two of our YouTube experiment here on Locked On Patriots. Just kidding, folks. We found ourselves a good home, and thank you so much for subscribing

and also making Locked On Patriots a daily part of your New England Patriots coverage. On Mike Debate, I cover your New England Patriots for Patriot Maven of Sports Illustrated. And of course, I'm your host of Locked On Patriots, which of course is a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. And folks, because it's your team every day, that means your questions, comments, and feedback are always welcomed. Very much appreciated. So share that feedback.

Send it to the internet by reaching out to me and following me on Twitter at MDABATENFL. And also, while you're out there doing some Wednesday wandering through the Twitterverse, please show some love to the Lockdown Patriots account as well at LO underscore Patriots. Pats fans, it is that time. It's Wednesday. It's the middle part of the week here on Locked On Patriots. That can only mean one thing, a visit from our good friend, the empress of tight endage herself, Ms. Claire Classey, Claire Cooper of patspropaganda.com.

And of course, a Claire perspective, a Patriots podcast found available on full press coverage Patriots. Folks, Claire is always a lot of fun to share the microphone with and today is going to be no exception. We're going to talk a little tight endage after all it is her specialty, but we're also going to be talking a little bit of wide receiver information. Are the Patriots looking to get Mac Jones that number one weapon? Well, according to the information coming out from the Combine in Indianapolis New England Patriots are actually looking to do just that meeting with a lot of top players at the position

but does it necessarily mean that they're looking to the draft or just looking at the position Patriots have a reputation of being a team that keeps its options open let's face it that's all they've done under the Bill Belichick era so will the Patriots be in the market for a wide receiver? Will they look to keep the talent they have in-house? If not, will they look to go to the draft? These are all the questions that Claire and I will talk about today. And here on Locked On Patriots, we always appreciate having our resident lady of Locked On join us every Wednesday to help get us through the midway point in the week with a little bit of class and a little bit of style, as only she can. So, to ensure that you do not miss a single second of the action,

smash the subscribe button if you haven't already done so. Download Locked On Patriots wherever you get your podcasts. Remember, Locked On Patriots is free and available on all platforms. And without much further ado, allow me to welcome in our good friend, my guest today, Ms. Claire, Classy Claire Cooper from West Midlands in the UK, when this episode of Locked On Patriots podcast continues. And don't forget, Patriots fans, even though the 2022 NFL Draft is a couple of months away, what is also a couple of months away what is also a couple

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Visit Built.com. Patriots fans, welcome back to Locked on Patriots. And once again, thank you for making Locked On Patriots your first listen every day. Remember, Locked On Patriots free and available on all platforms, including YouTube. And if you're watching this show on YouTube right now, please make sure to smash that subscribe button so you don't miss a single second of the action here on Locked On Patriots. Folks, it's Wednesday on Locked On Patriots, and that can mean only one thing. The resident lady of Locked On here on Wednesday joins us,

and as you can see, she is in all her regalia. She is the empress of tight endage. She is the queen of TE. She is the baroness of blockers, the principal of positivity, the countess of class herself, my good friend, illustrious colleague with full press coverage, and of course with PatsPropaganda.com, where she is a phenomenal columnist, also hosting her very own podcast, The Claire Perspective.

Folks, I tell you each and every week, it is one of the best Patriots podcasts out there, from an entertainment value, from an informative value. Really, you cannot get much better than A Claire Perspective, the podcast, so make sure to subscribe to that right after listening or viewing this podcast. She is my good friend, most importantly. Claire, classy Claire Cooper joins me today. Claire, thank you for joining me from across the pond. Welcome to the new visual Lockdown Patriots. Oh, well, thank you very much for having me, but as it's Wednesday, even if it is visual visual where else would I be

Absolutely well Claire is definitely bringing a lot of class and definitely a bit better visual perspective than I give you if you can avert your eyes from one side of the screen you'll be in good shape for this podcast but in any case Claire this is great to

finally be able to launch Locked On Patriots on YouTube. You are our second guest here on the YouTube broadcast, of course. Our good friend, the green man himself, Thomas Murphy, joined me here on Monday. And we talked a lot about the combine. We talked a lot about the draft. And we mused the draft a little bit like Murph and I love to do here on Locked On Patriots. We don't mock the draft, Claire. We don't make fun of the draft. We muse it. We use it as a tool to enrich ourselves. Okay, folks, I promise you I'm going to stop being pretentious right now

because the clowness is here. She's going to be able to give us her perspective and her wisdom and counsel the way only she can. Claire, there's a lot of Patriots news circulating out there. Obviously, the combine, a lot of our colleagues out there in Indianapolis, taking a look at what is going on with the Patriots, what players they might be scouting. We're hearing that they're going to be interviewing a lot of wide receivers. That could mean something for the New England Patriots down the line here. We're going to get to that in just a moment, But there is a smidge of tight endage in the news right now. And this being your area of expertise, my friend, I thought it would be good if we got a chance to, you know, really pull on your expert tutelage and knowledge in the subject. The tight end we talked about a little bit here on Locked On Patriots, not a ton, but a little bit, is wide receiver Devin Asiasi.

Devin is about to enter his third year with the Patriots. Former third-round pick, came over from UCLA. A lot of pedigree, a lot of people were hoping that he was going to be the new tight end of the future or at least the pass-catching threat that a lot of people believed he would be. It hasn't quite worked out that way. Right now, Devin has been uh for lack of a better term

folks he's been a healthy scratch for much of his tenure here in New England spent some time on injured reserve so I don't want to definitely uh you know take away from that that is a big part of this and you know obviously injury can derail even the best of careers but Devin hasn't quite lived up to expectation and over the weekend it was reported that Devin has been working out with a Patriot that had a very good season in 2021. Say for Mac Jones, you might say that he might be the offensive story of the year for the New England Patriots, not including the running backs too. All right, folks, I understand that.

But Kendrick Bourne working out with Devin Asiasi. And this caught my eye. And I'll tell you why it caught my eye. Because one of the things I loved about Devin coming out of college from UCLA is that he's a natural hands catcher. This kid is a very good securer of the football. And that's one of the things that I think the Patriots were pretty enamored with or, dare I say, really excited to get when they looked at what he could be in this offense. Again, it hasn't quite worked out in that fashion, but I think working with someone like Kendrick, who's such a good catcher and always has that ability to get yards after the catch. That one's for you, Murph, if you're watching.

I know you love your yak, buddy. What are your thoughts on this am I off base because I leave it to you you're the resident tight endage expert I got excited when I saw this because I still have some expectation for Devin Asiasi I still think he can be a solid number three tight end in this offense a lot of people have written him off but what was your take on this do you think that him working with Kendrick is really going to help him for this season or is it kind of like a situation where he's just you know searching for answers at this point well I think I do think you're right there in in the fact that I don't think it can be anything but good that he's working out with Kendrick Bourne like you said big success he had a really good connection with Matt Jones so I mean look at it 17 out of 18 games for the Patriots last year Asi Asi was a

healthy scratch so 2022 was may not be his last year on contract but it could be his last as a Patriot simply because if 2021 wasn't already Kendrick and Matt Jones have a great rapport. So Asiasi, as I said, could be helping to capitalise on that by working out with the receiver, who kind of seems to naturally have meshed with the quarterback. It can only really be a positive thing. Whether or not it's a thing that shows that there's going to be success kind of going into 2022 for Asiasi as a Patriot, I think that's kind of a bit of a stretch in all fairness. The things that I found puzzling was last year when Smith was injured,

they still didn't seem to plug Asiasi in. As we said, 17 out of 18 games, he was a healthy scratch. And although it was a COVID year, Asiasi, you know, he didn't really have time, even though he, sorry, even though he was a rookie in a COVID year he would have still had more time in the system than Smith had so I think it was a little bit of a kind of not a warning like a search I want a better phrase than that in all fairness but to have not put him in instead of Smith just sort of jarred with me because he would have had as I

said he had more time in the system than Smith had had. And I think that was one of the problems that Smith was encountering, was the kind of meshing within the Patriot system. So, I mean, nothing the Patriots have done have given me hints, really, in their confidence in me, in all fairness. And I mean, they traded up to get this kid. And I mean, several picks to get to. I think it was 1-3-9 in the draft. But kind of since then, I feel it's been the same kind of story

as poor Nikhil Harry. It just gels with that kind of the same kind of lines. And I mean, there's been reasons that he hasn't been able to play and it's when he has played, he just, he hasn't really, there hasn't been much there. Now, whether or not that's they haven't given him much, I mean, he was blocking and and stuff but we didn't really see sort of anything you know on his on his stat sheet shall we say that there isn't really much really much there now as we know this could be for

various reasons so there's multiple reasons and as you mentioned he lost time due to injury and you can't you know you can't hold that against a player at all and I mean I've got nothing against him whatsoever you know I'm really not down on Asiassi but I've seen some tape kind of at the time of the when he was drafted and I saw that was good and a lot of other people were sort of telling me as I've mentioned before you know this this is this is your tight end this is your tight end for you know kind of for this year when he was drafted. It was like, you know, you can look forward to him. We think, you know, there's good things coming from him. But I just, now my gut kind of just says no. I mean, yeah, working out with Bourne is definitely a positive,

as you mentioned, as we've said. I just don't really think it sort of, I don't really think it indicates as much. And I know that as media that they like to kind of look into, we kind of get sort of, we try and grow plants from seeds, in all fairness, sometimes when it comes to information. And it's because we're given so little that we have to kind of try and get so much. But I don't think it's a bad thing that he's working out with him.

I mean, that's great. And I mean mean Kendrick Bourne has got such a positive attitude that any kind of players that are sort of working together maintaining that kind of bond maintaining within the system it is good it's it's never a bad thing I just don't know if it's really going to be of any significance for ACAC Ii. I mean, at this point, I must admit, I would be interested in what the Patriots could benefit as a trade with him. There's a lot of veteran tight ends that are going to be out there in free agency. And I think this is really something that is significant this year. So Asiassi may be a bargain to some of those teams that are going to possibly

lose most of their tight endage when it comes to free agency or they have to drop a lot of capital on their tight endage i mean there are several teams that all their top tight endage are onto free agency listing as such as the cardinals and the books and that's just to name two so i mean maybe asiasi would benefit from a new start granted some of this comes from a selfish perspective of mine because I'm looking at the draft and I'm kind of hoping that the Patriots kind of will get their next thing in all fairness I know they've got Hunter and Smith and we know that I love Hunter and Smith I'm just wondering if they're going to clean out the closet when it comes to like the backups or the TE3s and things like this and

maybe draft me somebody there's definitely a draft Chris i've got my eye on out there in all fairness and he's a low round pick so or a later round pick should i say so yeah so yeah that that's coming from my personal tight-ended enthusiast preference in all fairness but i do when I put when I put that part of me to one side and do just look at Asi Asi as as a complete picture I just it feels like it's kind of too long now it feels like if they were going to utilize him if he was going to give us something it would have happened by now and I hate to be that impatient fan but like I said I think it really it really flows within the same pattern of Nikhil Hari which I know he's not exactly a fan favorite with some and some want to give him a chance I just think the story sounds very very

similar that they you know they drafted okay they didn't draft high but they moved up in the draft as I mentioned to to get him. He'd got this really kind of quite a dynamic skill set, that kind of thing. And then he just wasn't really utilised. He had injury. He was out. This certainly that he just didn't seem to have made that gel. Now, like you mentioned, this time with Kendrick Bourne might be his way

of really making that gel sort of happen, that mess kind of happen within the team. But I don't, I don't think I hate to be negative because you know, I hate to be negative. That's just not my jam. I just don't really see him spending time working out with Kendrick Bourne

makes this big significance to the jump that we've had you know what we've had prior now he's going to go and prove me wrong now so he's going to be amazing this year and they're not going to drop him they're going to utilize him more than the Smith or something and he's going to be like the next best tight end ever to have like happened in New England just just just to make me look bad in all fairness. So, you know, that's just how it tends to happen. You know, that's how it's going to go. But my personal Patriot fan gut feeling is, I think he's just kind of going to sip away quietly.

I would like them to utilise maybe in a trade because he's still a young kid and, you know, he's still got a lot going for him. I'm just wondering if maybe this system isn't his system and maybe he would benefit from elsewhere because I'd like him to do well. I never want anyone, you know, in the NFL to not do well sort of thing, especially when it comes to tight endage. So I just hope that if he moves on, he really moves on into a system

that he can excel at, because it'd be it'd be good to be able to sort of see what his full capabilities are, because we haven't really seen that. He really has just been this absence. So, yeah, I mean, personally, Clasiclair wouldn't mind if they kind of got rude and restocked. But yeah, and I don't and I don't think the Kendrick Bourne thing really indicates that anything significant. But hey, it's the Patriots. We shall see. Well, I think you make several good points. First of all, if Kendrick, or if I should say, if Devin does end up working with Kendrick

and it proves you wrong, that's a good thing for the New England Patriots. Because it means that he's moving forward. It means that he's actually settled into his role. So nothing personal, Claire. But I mean, if he does, then that is a good thing. But at the same time, I think you make an excellent point. These guys are teammates. And I think sometimes, myself included, we forget that.

We look at, oh, he's training with this guy. Oh, they're talking about this. They're plotting this. They want to develop each other. Of course, teammates want to develop one another. They they want to get better they want to be more complete players and by working with each other they realize that they can do that that's the best way for them to do that so when you look at what the Patriots are capable of doing on the field and you look at teammates helping each other out in the offseason, I agree. Maybe not a huge reason to think that something is afoot or that they're trying to train him

in a certain way. I think Devin is probably his own player. He's got a lot of growing to do. If, in fact, the Patriots decide that he doesn't fit this mold any longer and that Jonu and Hunter at the top of this depth chart is the way to go, then I think that's the way that they will go. And maybe, who knows, maybe they will bring in a tight end from the draft. We talked about a few last week here on Locked On Patriots.

I know you've got your eye on somebody. I know that. If you haven't listened to last week's show, folks, please, by all means, go back, listen to last week's show. Claire was amazing in her analysis of some of the tight ends that are available in this draft. And she'll continue to do that here on Locked On Patriots. And we'll talk about that probably a little bit more next week.

But I wanted to get your take on the whole Kendrick Bourne, Asiasi workout thing. It's not something that I think got enough play in the New England media, probably because of the combine and everything else that's going on. But these are the things that are significant. These little moves in the offseason that a lot of people don't pay attention to, that could lead to something. So who knows? Maybe it leads to Devin making an improvement,

or maybe it leads to him, like you said, getting a change of scenery and maybe doing a little bit better elsewhere. Patriots also have Dalton Keene scheduled to return from injured reserve as well. Is he going to be that blocking presence that the Patriots need maybe an heir apparent to Jakob Johnson at the fullback position you've discussed that several times you've been beating that drum before anybody so there's a lot there's a lot to digest here and the good thing about the tight end position Claire is you have your tentacles on all aspects of the game. And that's something that you can always,

it all comes back to the tight ends. It really does. It affects the quarterbacks, the running backs, the O-line, you know, everything, the receivers. And that's always a good thing. And speaking of the receivers, that's a great segue into the topic that we're going to discuss next here on Locked On Patriots.

Folks, Claire is not just a tight-ended expert. She has become one of the foremost Patriots experts. And when it comes to pass catchers, it's a pretty sore subject around here in New England. We'll be talking about the current crop of wide receivers still on this roster until March 16th, who might be the odd man out. Claire has her thoughts, and we'll share those with you when this episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast continues. Folks, football might be over for this season,

but basketball is in full stream, both for pro and for college hoops. For all the latest odds, totals, player performance props, to where the next coach is going to land, BetOnline.net is the number one spot for all your betting needs. BetOnline remains the best for all of your sports scores, podcasts, and news this season. And it's not just basketball. BetOnline is your source for hockey, boxing, UFC odds, right through Olympic competition and information. Head to the website today or use your mobile device to learn about the trends and the action bet online where the game starts welcome back patriots fans we are talking here on wednesday it's wednesday so you

know our resident lady of locked on has graciously joined us here today to help us hit the midweek in style and i'll run them down again because i know you'll love when I run them down. She loves when I run them down. The Baroness of Blockers. The Queen of TE. The Empress of Tight Endage. The Principal of Positivity. And you said in the previous segment, Claire, you don't like to be negative.

Your name is the Principal of Positivity. How can you be negative? You can't. It's just not in her nature, folks. Of course, my good friend, the Countess of Clas herself, Claire Clasie, Claire Cooper, phenomenal columnist from PetsPropaganda.com, as well as the host of her very own podcast, A Claire Perspective, the podcast, which is available on FullPressCoverage.com and always available wherever you get your podcasts.

Again, folks, smash the subscribe button. You will not be disappointed. But here today on Locked On Patriots, you are our resident lady of Locked On. And you've already given us your wisdom and counsel when it comes to tight endage, Claire. We appreciate that. It's always welcome. Always appreciated. But tight ends are not the only pass catchers on this team.

And I know you're keeping a close eye or sharp eye, I should say on the Patriots wide receiving core. The Pats right now have some decisions to make at wide receiver. Obviously the big question is whether or not the Patriots are going to go out and acquire that number one weapon for Mac Jones. We've heard that all up and down social media. Several colleagues of mine in the media have prognosticated on that. They've thought about that, what the Patriots might do to increase their value when it comes to this position on their roster.

Jacoby Myers is a restricted free agent. Word has it, especially even yesterday coming from the Combine, that the Patriots and Jacoby have opened up negotiations. They're pretty optimistic that something's going to come down from this. And honestly, I don't think anybody expected Jacoby Myers to go anywhere. So him coming back is a good thing for New England. Mac Jones is very comfortable with him. And it looks like these two

will continue to develop a nice relationship. And Jacoby is a solid receiver. But the fans still want more. They want the Calvin Ridley's of the world. They want Randy Moss 2.0, whoever that might be. They want the Patriots to go out and acquire that type of prolific player at that position. And look, I can understand it. I do recognize and I do appreciate how the Patriots fans especially feel about having that number one wide out. It's been a while since we've had that number one wide out that you can really get excited about that makes the big play that makes us all jump out of our couches and out of our

seats when we're watching games on Sunday, but you and I both know that the Patriots kind of dance to the beat of their own drum. Uh, they don't really, they, they have a plan and they're going to stick to it. Um, there are several receivers on this roster that have, how should we say questionable futures? Nikhil Harry, I think is probably the biggest pariah right now on this roster. I've been a defender of Nikhil in the past, but, you know, there's only a limit to so much how anybody can take. And right now I think that, you know, maybe the Patriots might be better off, you know,

trying to move on in that regard. Gunnar Ryszewski right now is up for a restricted free agency as well. So there are questions on this team. Claire, when you look at the wide receiving core, especially knowing what you know about the tight ends and knowing that Hunter Henry and Jonu Smith, especially, are going to be called upon to play even bigger roles this year than they did in 2021. They're a big part of the Patriots receiving core. Who do you look at as the receivers that might be how shall we say expendable on this roster well as you mentioned I mean the wide receiver depth chart isn't the most

what you'd call stacked but there is actually quite a list of names that Patriots currently have as you aforementioned we've got Gunnar and Jacobi Meiser's restricted free agents signed for the 2022 season there's Nelson Aguilar, Kendrick Bourne, Nikhil Harry and there's Malcolm Perry, Kristen Wilkinson and Trey Nixon now quantity not quality I you know I fully understand and there's a couple of names there that people are already wanting out of New England and mostly I don't disagree I mean Nik Harry, the problem is the promise may have been bigger than the result. And that's not really of any fault of his own. I'm not one for kind of, I was never a huge Nikhil Harry fan.

I've never been a massive plugger of him, but I've never been really down on him either. He's just one of those guys that I've always been just fine. He's a patriot, you know that kind of thing I just I just don't know that if he wasn't used in the scheme well or you know I think it's on both parties I don't necessarily blame you know one side or the other Nikhil Harry you know all the patriots are such he's a good blocker but they need guys that can get open and I mean the Patriots system just might not be what works for him as we mentioned earlier um in regards to Asiasi that that kind of story of you know sort of high draft pick so high expectation he you know he ticked the boxes on paper as as we mentioned

as like Asiasi did kind of thing but it just doesn't really maybe feel that it's worked out within New England for him and that you know nothing to do with whether he's a fan favorite or or kind of not as such I mean maybe some of this is the transition of from boys to men maybe the whole from college to NFL just didn't gel for him maybe his size and skill set just didn't translate as well as expected or he just didn't translate into the Patriots system as expected it's another one of those kind of high expectations and kind of low sort of results that we've sort of seen now on that sort of topic high expectation Aguilar is another name that's sort of being utilized in main you know in trade talks in kind of rumors

as it's being discussed of what's kind of going to go on in the Patriots and I mean I've got to sort of say that there is sort of a spark of a possibility that I sort of think is logical is there may be a team that's interested in him in regards to the Raiders

I mean now Josh McDaniels has gone there, granted he only saw Aguilar for a year but he's seen what this guy can do. And I understand that there's quite a good chemistry between Aguilar and Derek Carr. So he played one of his best seasons as a Raider as well, I think. So there's those glimpses of, you know, a logical reason for him to be traded away. Now, I don't really see the Patriots moving on for him if i'm honest and i think i've mentioned this previously because they used a lot of capital on him and i think to only really go

into to go into something like that in sort of monetary wise and term wise because i think it's i think he's over four years i may be wrong now and i've got that in front of me but i know that that you know he went down in regards to capital wise that i don't know if they would give up on him quite as quickly as just giving him one year in the system i mean at least not forget he may have been low on catches but he drew coverage this is sort of a significant thing that sort of needs to be looked at is just because he didn't put the numbers up he may have been significant in giving other people numbers as in giving other players the opportunity to get catches just by being on the field and running his routes kind of thing or routes as you guys say i mean it's kind of the same for smith big

price tag not really much to show for it in a year but he still you know had some integration and some usage it'll be it will be really interesting to see how plays are called now that Josh has kind of as McDaniels has left and if these guys do develop more in the system or maybe even less so I think for me when it comes to the wide receivers I just can't see really what the use of Nikhil Harry is I just I think they got out of him what they're going to get out of him and I think that was just blocking and I don't know if with the strength of the offensive line if this particularly if they make any moves like in the draft or a free agency you don't really need a wide receiver that's really blocking you you need him for for more than that sort of thing

particularly as you said if Hunter Henry and Johnu Smith have a step up in their second year. Granted, I mean, in all fairness, I personally as a tight-ending do just don't really feel that Hunter needs to. I think he has an epic year. But if he does kind of transition further in his second year as a Patriot, and Smith brings it as well, the usage of a large wide receiver who really only kind of gives you much blocking, it's just not really going to be there for its worth. and he's going to be taking a spot in a roster that's going to be

necessary for you know another body for in in another way i mean when it comes to that i think the popular opinion is to move on from him um and granted i think it just seems to make sense particularly if they gain from it in any way Aguilar although what I mentioned I think I think he's in the system for another year I think there'd be if they did go and trade him particularly to the Raiders I really don't think I'd be surprised because it's moving him back into somewhere that he was more successful however I mean I kind of see him in the system for another year as I've said I mean Bourne obviously contracted and performed really well of the list that may go

somewhere I really hope that Myers isn't on it as you mentioned they were in talk so I really hope that that comes out of it because he's been in the system he's a patriot I really think he is he's somebody that they kind of need to keep I think that's imperative to to go forward with that and with Bourne I'm fine if Aguilar is utilized for a trade etc but that's just me personally I think looking at the logic of it as I said I think it's it's doubtful they put too much money in him to kind of move on from from one year it's just if the if the demand for him suddenly comes from somewhere which you think with what he did last year in new england because we look we're sort of discussing

him as in possible trade capital you don't really think he's going to be one of the ones that sort of people are seeking out to be like oh yeah we'll give you some trades for him we have to have nelson aglow on our team kind of thing so i don't really think that that's sort of going to be an issue so i think personally i think he's going to stick around and if he does that you know no issue as i said he drew coverage i think that a lot of the plays happened because he was drawing coverage because he's got speed so right hopefully he can get into the system a bit more he can be used as a bit more maybe he develops that connection with mac a bit more so we kind of get from him a bit more and then everybody will kind of it'll be great it'll be fine it'll be wonderful so you know I think I think really if you were to stop any kind of Patriots fan in the street

wherever you did so I think Nick Hill Harry is just the obvious choice and I hate to bag on a guy I do because as I mentioned I am not a negative person and I don't think he's a bad player I don't think he's trash and all these are the things that people do like to easily throw around sometimes that I think he's just way too harsh I just feel looking at him they've given it a go try and get something for him while you can because there's plenty of wide receivers that are kind of like coming up in the draft, I know a lot of people are excited about and stuff like this. And even in free agency, if they can sort of juggle things around cap space wise, because I know that it's not significant this year. I just think he's taken up a roster spot now that you could bring up a player and develop

or you could plug in a new player and I just think unfortunately he is really kind of exposable now in all fairness if you like and disposable sorry I'll get the word right would help you know what you're really yeah you know why you always know what I mean that's fine but yeah I think um I think unfortunately with no on his talent, I think he's just disposable in the Patriots system. I think the sort of time and effort needs to go into developing a guy who's already in the system or bringing a brand new one in, that kind of thing. I know there's lots of calls for wide receiver one,

and I don't think losing Bourne, Myers and Aguilar really is the place. So it's like, it's a little bit of a kind of, it's a given really. He just seems so obvious. And I don't think anybody will be surprised if he's the slot that becomes open for wide receiver. You make a good point. I completely agree with you on Harry.

And look, this is from someone who's been called an Akil Harry apologist, carrying his water. Really, I've had a few uh you know yeah i mean i've had a few uh you know uh you know pieces of uh shrapnel thrown my way for defending the heel and look bottom line uh there was something that i saw in him coming out of arizona state this kid his ability to go up get the catch his ability to stay tough and hang in there and not be afraid to take a hit was something that I really thought was going to endear him to the Patriots offensive coaching staff, really endear him to the Patriots fan base because he is that type of, and Claire, I'm going to invoke the name of Rob Gronkowski

here, just please bear with me for a moment. But it reminded me of a Gronk type player. Was Nikhil Harry ever going to be him absolutely not that was an expectation I never put on him but it reminded me of the type of style that he wanted to play and something that if the Patriots wanted to keep that type of style Nikhil was more than capable of you know shouldering that load but for some reason it just hasn't been a fit I don't know if it's the precision route running if it's the cuts if it's the ability to stop on a dime uh the patriots offensive system is very precise every single move they make is designed to counteract what your opponent is doing

your opponent thinks you're going to go into this spot you have to be right on the money in order to be able to make the catch make the spot hit the run hit the hole that's what they have to be right on the money in order to be able to make the catch make the spot hit the run hit the hole that's what they have to do and they have to be precise in that I don't know if necessarily maybe that's just not Nikhil's style or if there's just a problem with his progression from uh the college game to the pro game but I still think he will be an effective receiver in this league I just don't think it's going to be in New England any longer. So based on that, where do you go from here? And that's what the New England Patriots have to decide.

They're meeting with a ton of wide receivers this week in Indianapolis, reportedly already trail on Berks coming out from Arkansas. He met with reporters on Wednesday morning, said that the meetings between he and the Patriots went very well. So, you know, monitor that. That's something to keep an eye on. There were other, John Meche from the University of Alabama said his meeting with the New England Patriots went very well. Chris Olave has become my draft crush.

You want to talk about a draft crush? I love this kid. Evan Lazar and myself love precise route runners. It just really does something to us when we see these guys on film. And think is the best pure route runner in this uh draft and uh you know Jameson Williams also from the University of Alabama all of these guys meeting with the New England Patriots so there's a lot of indications that New England is looking to give Mac additional targets this year I don't like to use the word weapons I always hate that word because it makes it sound like that. In order for Mac to be effective, he needs the receiver.

He can't be anything without the receiver. It's a hand-in-hand, you know, glove-type fit. Mac needs a receiver, but the receiver needs a good quarterback to get on the ball accurately and on time. Both of these guys can do that. So if they bring in another target, another prolific target for Mac, I'm all for it. The question is whether it will be in free agency or whether it will be in the draft.

And you know what, Claire? That might be a good topic for the next time we talk here on Locked on Patriots. I really, I've enjoyed this thoroughly. It's been great to see you on the other end of the microphone now. We've been in the dark for far too long. You didn't think I was going to let you go without sliding the other, you didn't think you were going to slide

that Boyz II Men reference underneath, did you? You really didn't think I was not going to comment on that? Any 90s kid, any late 80s, early 90s kid that grew up listening to Boyz II Men, you know what I'm talking about. They were the stuff back then. And I love the reference, by the way. That was great.

But all kidding aside, it's always my honor to join you here. Now on YouTube, visually, audio, whatever the platform may be. I love having you here on Wednesday. So thank you so much for taking the time out today to join me here on Locked On Patriots. Before I let you go, you know this drill. Please let all of our listeners know where they can find you, where they can interact with you on social media, and what we can look forward to in the coming days and weeks from the great pen and the great voice and accent of claire clazy claire cooper of course well as you all know you

can get me on twitter at clazy claire which is c-l-a-z-z-y-c-l-a-r-e you can read my stuff at patspropaganda.com we're kind of off for the moment but i think we're going to be coming with some draft stuff so there's going to be some tight-ended draft stuff on patspropaganda.com from me so if you want a bit of tight-endage then you know hold on to your hats folks i'm i'm allowed to run free when it comes to that but um and my podcast declare perspective as you mentioned kaseya full press coverage fullpresscoveragepatriots.com. So the latest episode was last Monday, I believe. I'm usually out every kind of two weeks because I don't want to bombard people.

There's only so much of me that people can, you know, can take really. But yeah, my episode was out last week. So if you've missed that, then please go and check it out. But you will find i'm going to be recording next week hopefully straight after the combine with someone so keep your eyes peeled for that but yeah all places that you are available to get your podcast you can get a clear perspective and as as you guys all know i am the third voice of one patriots place with steve balistrari and thomas Thomas Murphy and we are there for you each and every

week absolutely absolutely and of course Murph was our guest yesterday Steve will be our guest tomorrow so a lot of stuff going on here with the New England Patriots and all of the draft coverage the combine coverage free agency coverage we'll have you covered here but each and every Wednesday the Countess of Class herself joins us not only to class up the place a little bit, after all, it is her name, she lends that class, but also to lend her wisdom and counsel and her insight that only she can provide. And folks, let me tell you, when it comes to insight and when it comes to evaluation, she's second to none. Don't let her tell you otherwise. It's the truth. Claire, thank you very, very much for joining me here today. Until next time, continue to stay safe, stay well.

Folks out there, please, thank you from the bottom of my heart for continuing to make Locked On Patriots your first listen every day. Remember, just like a Claire perspective, a Patriots podcast, Locked On Patriots is free and available on all platforms. So stay locked in so you don't miss one second of the action here on the Lockdown Patriots podcast. Until next time, stay safe, stay well, be the change you wish to see in the world. Have a great day, everyone.