Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Schedule Set, Stidham Out: Breaking Down the New England Patriots 2022 Season Slate — 5/13/22

Episode Date: May 14, 2022

The New England Patriots 2022 season schedule is set. The Patriots will open the season with back-to-back road games, will play on Thanksgiving night, and are set for a Sunday Night showdown with Josh McDaniels and the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 15. Joining host Mike D’Abate is Thomas ‘Murph’ Murphy, as the duo discuss the most intriguing matchups, the trade of quarterback Jarrett Stidham and pay their respects to the late Gino Cappelletti.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!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

Two trips to Las Vegas, a Thanksgiving night matchup, and Stiddy's got a brand new home. We're breaking down all of the Patriots 2022 schedule information, along with the trade of Jared Stidham to the Raiders. I'm Mike DeBate. Joining me is the green wisdom and counsel of Thomas Murphy. 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 your daily home

for news notes and analysis infused with the occasional opinion on your six-time Super Bowl champions, the New England Patriots. Remember, Locked On Patriots, free and available on all platforms, including YouTube. Please make Locked On Patriots your first listen each and every day. I'm Mike DeBate. I cover your New England Patriots for Patriots Country of Sports Illustrated. I'm also your host of the Locked

On Patriots podcast. And joining me today on Schedule Recap Weekend Edition is the only man that can provide the green wisdom and counsel that we need, the true evaluation that we need on the Patriots schedule, my good friend, that

Count of Murphy Fisto himself, my benefactor in this business, the legendary Thomas Murphy is back. Murph, thank you so much for joining me today. I apologize. Thank you for joining me today. Don't Murph. Oh man, my pleasure. My pleasure. Book ended. Book ended. Start the week and finish the week. Gotta love it. And there's we're sorry, folks. Oh, please do not apologize. Everybody in the Lockdown universe loves their Murph, mostly me. And I'm definitely happy to be sharing the microphone with you on a day that I think a lot of Patriots fans low-key love but low-key dread.

And that is Schedule Reveal Day. Of course, it is not today that the schedule was revealed, folks. That was revealed on Thursday evening. And Murph, we're going to talk a lot about the Patriots schedule and the strength of schedule and things that will actually happen for this team this year, whether or not this is a playoff caliber team with the schedule they've been giving. Intriguing matchups, all of that. But first, Thursday did not only bring us the schedule. It also brought us a trade that I think a lot of us have been anticipating for quite some time. And that is the shipping of Jarrett Stidham off to the Las Vegas Raiders. A pair of late round draft picks included in the mix.

And Stidham now finds himself joining Josh McDaniels and the Raiders in Las Vegas, presumably to back up Derek Carr. Murph, Stidham went from being a potential backup to Tom Brady and a lot of people talking about him in a method that gave some optimism. He was hyped up pretty much really from the day he was drafted. I remember being in the room when he was brought aboard and Tom Brady was still very much a New England Patriot. And I know he gained an awful lot of support throughout the media for the way that he handled himself early on. A lot of people were trying to, you know, paint him as the second, you know, option now behind Brady and eventually his heir apparent. It didn't quite happen that way way Brady went off to Tampa Bay

obviously the Patriots brought in Cam Newton Cam was the starter for 2020 and then of course the keys to the kingdom given to Mac Jones last year once they drafted Bailey Zappi you pretty much knew that Stidham's days in a Patriots uniform were numbered um your thoughts on the Stidham trade first of all your thoughts on the return did the Patriots do the best they could And just your thoughts on Stidham in general, not only his time in New England, but how you think he's going to fare in Las Vegas. Yeah, I mean, the return is fine. I really have no – they weren't going to get anything for him if he went out and he signed a free agent deal after this was all over with.

Miguel would know better than me on that. I could be completely wrong. But no, the return was fine. They swapped picks and sent Stenum out, got his contract off of you. This is what the Patriots do, people. 12 times since Tom Brady was drafted, another quarterback had been drafted by the New England Patriots, 12 times. And each time at the end when with one year left on their contract or or a little more than that they were traded out and uh and the new guy got brought in and the new guy now is Zappy who um I think could be the Don Strzok of the New England Patriots uh over the next 10 or 15 years. Yeah and I think in a lot of ways uh Zappy coming in here is definitely going to be something

interesting. The kid's definitely got a good arm. He put up gaudy numbers last year for Western Kentucky, very much in the mode of what Mac Jones likes to do and the type of quarterback that he is, which leads me to believe that the Patriots looked at this move Murph and said, you know what, this is the good opportunity for us to be able to find a like for like, you know, Jarrett was not going to be that guy that's not his game it wasn't his game in Auburn and it's definitely not his game here and now going to an area where Josh McDaniels knows his capabilities seeing him in practice he can sit behind uh Derek Carr and I think that's a good opportunity for him so he knows what Josh wants

he knows what he knows Josh's playbook that's what's that's That's the bottom line of it. And he's very comparable in style to Derek Carr and what Josh is going to want to do with Derek Carr. That's a good point. And that's a real problem around the NFL, that a lot of teams don't see that in their backup. What they do is they go out and they grab the cheap guy that, yeah, if so-and-so goes down, he can come in and keep us in a game

or maybe win a couple of games for us, but they're not the same style of quarterback. Good point. So this is something that works out for both. The quarterback room gets a little bit less crowded here and a guy that just was not going to make it. He's had every opportunity. If he was going to make it, it would have been the year that Cam Newton was here,

and they didn't hand him the keys to anything. Yeah, exactly. And look, there was a time where I was climbing on the Stidham stump just like everybody else. I know people, long-term listeners of Locked On Patriots are going to wag their finger, and they're going to say, Mike, I remember when you were talking about Stidham and saying you had confidence in him, i fully own that i fully admit that and i still have confidence in him as an nfl quarterback but the minute they made the move to mac and the minute that you knew that this was not going to be his team especially when it came

to cam newton getting the keys to the kingdom in 2020 you had to kind of read the handwriting on the wall and say to yourself nah it's just probably not going to be a fit. Jared had some back issues last year. Otherwise, I think this move could have been made last year, to be honest with you. I think the Patriots would have definitely either considered that or looked at long-term options. But Zappi is someone I know that Matt Groh has sung the praises of, and maybe he can be that backup that the Patriots have needed. And you always have Brian Hoyer as the ace in the hole,

waiting in the wings. Brian's just the overpaid, he's the overpaid tutor, the quarterback coach. He is the quarterback coach. He's the highest paid coach in New England, not named Bill Belichick. Absolutely. And you know what I mean?

And in the long run, he's definitely going to be someone that will help Matt Jones this year, especially having him be devoid of Josh McDaniels oh hard agree and some of the offensive coaches on that staff even guys like Carmen versillo and Mick Lombardi they work very closely with Matt a lot of new coaches a lot of new faces on the sideline in New England who are also in Las Vegas absolutely and they're going to welcome Jarrett Stidham with open arms. And Mac is definitely going to be missing those guys.

But how much is he going to be missing them? And will it have an impact on the upcoming season? Well, we now know week 15 is going to be the matchup between Bill Belichick and Josh McDaniels, the Patriots flying out west to take on the Raiders. But it's not the first time these two teams are going to lock horns in this 2022 calendar year. Murph and I will get into that along with all the ins and outs of the Patriots 2022 schedule when this episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast continues.

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especially those pesky Boston Red Sox right now that are kind of breaking our heart a little right now, Murph, but we still have faith. It's still only May. I was told this was a safe zone. Okay? I was told that it was a safe zone. It should be, but you know what? I don't know. I think of the Sox.

Something comes out of me. I can't help it. Can't help it. Hooah! In any case, Murph, a lot of patriots fans were saying who are last night because the 2022 schedules across the league were dropped in now what whether you love roger goodell or whether you hate him you have to be able to give him credit for making a two plus hour event out of this that really lasted multi days uh you've got the corporate sponsors you've

got television deals i mean you know for better or for worse i mean you just you got to tip the cap i guess it's it really is a spectacle now the schedule release i remember the days where it was just released in the uh in the paper the next day and you just that's that's when you found out but um it's a lot of fun for the fans tip tip of the hat to pt barnum there yeah exactly one every minute um but in any case uh the new england patriots uh finding out they're going to begin their 2022 regular season on the road they're going to open the season on the road and they're going to continue to be on the road for the first two weeks uh they open uh september 11th at one o'clock against the miamiphins in Miami Gardens, Florida.

And then they travel to Pittsburgh, Hines Field to take on the Pittsburgh Steelers. They'll be opening their home opener against the Ravens on September 25th in Week 3. Murph, from start to finish, you're hearing mixed things about the Patriots' schedule. We're hearing that this is going to be a gauntlet that they can never recover from. I'll be surprised if they get five wins. Two Patriots fans saying this looks easier than I thought. I think at least 13, 14 wins. You know how I feel.

Virtue usually lies in the middle. I don't really fall into the category of either extreme right now. But there are some intriguing matchups on this schedule for the Patriots. And obviously, divisional matchups are always going to be big. You're looking forward to the opener against Miami. You want to see that new vaunted Miami speedster offense and what they're going to bring to the table. Buffalo.

Absolutely. Those games are circled on every Patriots fans calendar. The Jets are the Jets. That's, you know, always, always a contentious matchup. These two franchises and teams just

don't like one another, and it's very evident on the field. And of course, non-divisional matchups as well, a lot of big intriguing matchups. Before I get into my most intriguing matchups, I want to turn the floor over to you. I don't want to steal your thunder, Don Murph. What stood out to you about this Patriots schedule when you first saw it? Which ones are getting that green circle on Murph's calendar? Well, right off the bat, the Miami game, I'm really intrigued to see what they're doing down there, what Mike McDaniel has in store for the Patriots. Going into Miami is always an issue with New England, especially early in the season or late in the season. it seems to to level out when when you get those week nine ten matchups but but not not you know when it's right out of the gate like

this not when it's still humid is all get out down there in uh in miami or it's getting that way again at the end of the season so i i'm really intrigued to see what happens there. The other, Pittsburgh, I'm not really in much of a worry about. Green Bay intrigues the hell out of me. After losing what they've lost on offense and bringing in the new pieces, I'm really intrigued to see what discount double choke is going to be able to do there. And then there's that that middle of the of the schedule the the pats uh the athletic has them ranked as the 16th toughest schedule 16th in in the nfl so i mean hats off to them with what they're doing i don't put a lot of stock into strength the schedule because it goes

off of what everybody did last year not what they've done or what they've brought in and things of that such. There are a lot of people making hay about how Kansas City is facing six straight playoff teams to start the year. Well, oh well. You don't know what they're going to be doing this year. But right here in the middle of the schedule is where week five, week six in Cleveland, seven in Chicago, then the Jets, Indianapolis, and then the Jets again after the bye week. The Patriots are really going to have to make hay right here. These are the teams that are on the cusp of being something that they haven't been in a while. And I think the Patriots are going to have to string some wins together like they did last year.

And because just the back end of this schedule is just a killer. I mean, after Minnesota, you have Buffalo travel out to Arizona. This I like is the travel games week 14 and 15 to Arizona and Las Vegas and see if Bill wants to just stay out there. Yeah. Actually, we're hearing reports on Friday that he's actually going to do just that, that that seems to be the call in the building. So once again, Don Murph, you are prognosticated correctly. Thank you, Godfather, for your wisdom, for your counsel on that one. But no, it makes perfect sense. You're absolutely right.

Because, I mean, if you're going to be out in the desert anyway, you're going to be out west. It makes perfect sense to stay out there. You know the Patriots players are definitely not going to object to that. Less, you know, wear and tear. Less flying back and forth. But that will be a gauntlet for the Patriots. And then, you know, they come back home after that, and you're facing the defending AFC champions.

And a matchup that is definitely intriguing to me in the Cincinnati Bengals. That's going to be a real interesting matchup. Everybody's been wondering what Mack and Joe Burrow are going to look like going head-on-head. But I'll tell you, it's going to be tough for the secondary to match up with Burrow and Chase. It really is. Then you've got Joe Mixon running the football.

That's a dangerous offense if they get going. Right. History is going to work against them. The Patriots are 8-2 versus Cincinnati under Belichick, and let's just hope that they can get to 9-2. I really think, not to be that guy, but I do believe Cincinnati is going to end up with a bit of a hangover from what happened last year. There were a couple of times that I felt that they weren't a complete squad. We'll see what happens.

They lost a few pieces. They gained a few pieces, and they had a decent draft. But let's just see how this works out. I hate the crowning of the next great quarterback i really do after a season how many how many times have we seen a quarterback go to a super bowl and then you never see him back there again yeah you know it just happens i mean you can yeah i mean you look at you know you look at the laundry list of guys you know jake the DeLong comes to mind, you know. Dan Marino went to one freaking Super Bowl.

Yeah, exactly. And there you go. Absolutely. I mean, there's a Hall of Fame career and, you know, generally regarded as one of the greatest at his position of all time. And no argument, Dan Marino belongs in that discussion. But it's not that easy to get to a Super Bowl, which makes what Tom Brady was able to do just absolutely that much more remarkable. Here's one more point that not a lot of people are talking about. The quarterback in Cleveland may be suspended when the Patriots play them week six.

Nobody is talking about this. What is Cleveland going to be by week six? He's suspended. He's not practicing. He's not in the facility. Okay? So let's pump the brakes a little bit on everything that's going on there in Cleveland because we might not see Mr. Watson.

If we do, it might be with just a week underneath his belt with a brand-new team. We're not talking about Tom Brady showing up in Cleveland after a four-game suspension and just lighting up the world. Absolutely. It is. It's something that I don't think a lot of people are talking about. You're hearing very little of that.

You're seeing very little written on that. Once again, Don Murph, this is the wisdom and counsel that we love having every time you join us here on the microphone. Before we move on to looking forward into what this schedule cumulatively may mean for the Patriots, I didn't get that out very well, folks. I apologize. Obviously, everyone's talking about Week 15. I mentioned it earlier. The Nevada Desert, the Patriots, and the Raiders alluded to this earlier.

The Pats and the Raiders are actually going to lock horns earlier, meaning summer early. They're actually going to battle uh in the final preseason game preseason game three the date has not been confirmed for that yet neither has the time but we know it will be at allegiant stadium uh we it will be out west in vegas patriots are going to hold uh joint practices greg bedard of the boston sports journal reported that last night through a league source since been ultimately confirmed so it's looking like the new england patriots are going to try to get all of that josh mcdaniel's reunion hoopla out of

the way does that diminish this matchup in any way or do you think this is still a very intriguing matchup between two playoff teams last year right i i do i think it's a it's a very intriguing matchup um i i i really like the way that that that Bill and Josh have decided to not have a hatchet in the freaking conversation at all, never mind bury it anywhere. Bill was very happy for Josh. He was not upset about the rating of the staff or players or anybody else. Hey, Brandon, how you doing brandon um i gotta get it in gotta get it in um and uh no i don't think this is going to take anything away from

it the the game is happening at a time where i feel both teams will be in a fight for the for a playoff spot and um they're going to pull out all the stops. I don't, I think in the end though, I think the Patriots go out there and they win this game because I think Josh overthinks it. It's a possibility. Don't forget, Josh was able to edge out Bill the last time these two teams hooked up. Like these two teams, these two entities went at one another.

Of course, Josh was the head coach of the Broncos back then of course talking about 2009 week five of that season right was a victory a 20 to uh 17 overtime victory uh for the uh the broncos over bill but yeah i think there might be a tendency to overthink it a little bit don't forget bill's grown a lot since that moment too so i think he's looking at this especially this raiders team with a lot of star power on both sides of the ball you're talking derrick carr you're talking josh jacobs running the football darren waller at tight end davante adams is a wide receiver brandon bolin is your all-purpose man you know i had to bring it up i had to bring it up murph i know i i'm not in murph's good

graces today i've already brought up i brought up Brandon Bolin. He's really going to kill me, folks. All kidding aside. No, this definitely is intriguing, and I think it presents a lot of good opportunities for the Patriots to see where they are. And it's at the point in the season where they have to be playing their best football if they want to make a playoff run. I think we'll know a lot about this team by the time these two teams are ready to do battle in late December. Well, Murph, what can we say? I mean, the New England Patriots schedule is out, and it is definitely a gauntlet. There's no question about it.

But how much of a gauntlet is it really, folks? Is this a schedule that the New England Patriots can look at and say, we're a playoff team? Now, some people may disagree. Murph and I are going to give our thoughts on that in just a moment to bring this all home today but first Murph the warm weather is here in New England there's no question about it it looks like it's here to stay that the uh weather forecast looks like it's going to be in the 70s and beyond now summer is just around the corner and naturally you always want to feel better you want to look better

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Absolutely. And they really are. I mean, the products and service and whatnot. I found myself in need of plugs not too long ago. I mean, you look at what you can get from these guys, and they are. They're reliable. They're a family business. You get the thank you after the order.

Really. I mean, you really felt like you've done business with a family business that you've known all along so folks when we tell you definitely check it out murph is a do-it-yourselfer i'm a do-it-yourselfer and believe me if it's into any budget you won't be disappointed when it comes to what they can do and murph talking about disappointment oh sorry no no no no no folks i'm only joking it is way too early to determine the New England Patriots' fate. I always love guys that can, you know, prognosticate exactly the win-loss record, the scores, the things. Of course, I'm taking a couple of shots of our good friend Tom Curran, who we absolutely adore. He knows I'm only doing it in good faith.

And because we share a Providence College connection, of course you know graduation and you know his son going uh I can do that but all kidding aside um I just think it's way too early to really make an accurate assessment as to where the Patriots are going to end up but you know what but it is a part of our business and we have to do it um and we do it because it elicits a lot of conversation, which is what we're going to do here today. When you look at the Patriots schedule, I'm talking just regular season now, top to bottom, all 17 games on the slate. Is this a schedule from top to bottom where you look at it and say, you know what, the Patriots can win enough games to get to the playoffs in 2022. Keep in mind their competition and keep in mind what they're up

against. Is this a playoff caliber schedule for the New England Patriots right now as you see it? I look at this schedule and I go win, win, win, win. No, I get my little John Gruden in there, but this is a schedule that they can squeak into the playoffs with. I do not believe that this team is going to be able to win the AFC East this year, but they can get into it. If they make the hay that I said, have to be in the middle of this schedule, if they can come out and just go two and two.

I don't think they're going to do it if they do what they did last year. What did you start, one and four last year? I don't think there's coming back from that this year. I really don't. But I do believe that they're going to be able to go out during the middle of this and make, I'm not saying another 7-0 run, but they could put together four or five games, win a game that they're not supposed to. If they don't lose any games that I feel that they should win, you know, if they don't go out to Detroit on Thanksgiving and just ruin my pie,

then yeah, I do believe that this is a playoff team, and they could probably end up getting a playoff victory even on the road. Yeah, I mean, I agree with you. They have to come out, and they can't put themselves in an 0-2 road hole coming home to face the Ravens for their first game. This is a team that actually fared a little better on the road last year, believe it or not, at times, than they did at home. Started the year, like you said, 1-4, 2-4. I mean, this is a team that is, I don't know if they're necessarily built

or the schedule is not necessarily built for them to be able to do it based on the competition that they're facing. And for all intents and purposes, you can assume Miami is going to be an improved team, at least on paper. We don't know what the new coaching staff is going to look like. I think that's a wild card. I think a lot of people are leaving that out. I'm a fan of Mike McDaniel. I think he's going to do going to look like. I think that's a wild card. I think a lot of people are leaving that out. I'm a fan of Mike McDaniel.

I think he's going to do a great job there. I think he does have the ability to take this team to a height. I think if they were going to jettison Brian Flores, getting a guy like Mike McDaniel was a good move for them. This is the guy that they wanted and a good guy that can come in and do his job. So I like that. Even though neither of us agree with the move, and I'd really like to see some more talk around the league right now in and do his job so i like that even though even though neither of us agree with the move

and i'd really like to see some more talk around around the league right now about uh being offered money to throw games i i i'm sorry i'm sorry you're right no i really i really you're saying what everyone else is we get 0.5 in air pressure and there's 17 billion dollars spent to find out what happens and we have an honest to god you know somebody that if he told me that the sky was green and grass was blue i would take his word for it that's how that's how great this man is who came out and said that yeah i was offered money to throw games and we're not hearing anything about it nothing kind of makes you wonder doesn't it yeah really kind of makes really nice about that and uh no i i i applaud you for saying that because it's what everyone's thinking but nobody is really saying right i'm glad that you said that it's true and we do hold

brian in very high regard because you too and we always will um but bottom line you're also looking at now getting back to you know the schedule part of it uh oh no that's fine no but, you know, the schedule part of it. Oh, no, that's fine. No, but, you know, in terms of Miami and then, you know, of course, Buffalo is the defending, you know, division champions now for the past two years. And, you know, despite of the fun that we like to poke at some of their members of their fan base, this is a team that's not going anywhere. They're going to be right in the thick of things.

And the Jets have a chance to be better. As much as we cringe at saying that, they didn't have a half bad draft. We wanted to really go holes in that. They had a good draft. They they didn't have a half bad draft we wanted to really know holes in that a good draft they still don't have a quarterback he's trash zach wilson's trash i'm gonna say it prove me wrong it's trash yeah everything he does is the same thing he can't throw over the middle he's short he's short okay you're short and and uh but no this could come down to December, okay? A lot of times we say that the Patriots don't really get started

until Thanksgiving. There's that second season. Bill breaks up his seasons. He quarters out his seasons the way he would a football game. And it could end up with what happens after Thanksgiving could determine whether or not this Patriots team is a playoff team or not. But I see, I, you know, you, you told me before that you weren't going to put me on the, on the line. My, my, my floor for the Patriots this year is nine wins. My ceiling is 11. Wow. They could

win 11 games. Interesting. I'm almost right there with you. I think my cellar is seven. My ceiling is 11. Wow. They could win 11 games. Interesting. I'm almost right there with you. I think my seller is seven. My ceiling is 10 in terms of what I believe that they could do. I don't think they'll do any worse than losing seven. I mean, to me, that's catastrophic. Worst case scenario, this team's got way too much talent for anything less. I'd be shocked. I would be. I'd be really shocked if that was the case. But judging by what I can see from this schedule and the competition they're going to be facing, I think 10 is pretty reasonable in terms of what they might do.

11's a bit of a reach. I'll agree. It's a bit of a homer take. If you want to hang that on me, I'll wear it. But I do think they could end up winning 11 games. It's a long season, folks. Like I said, there are storylines that nobody is talking about. There are injuries that are going to come up and take place.

There are offensive lines that need to learn each other. And so if the Patriots can come out and get out to a good start, two and two, three and one would be a freaking amazing act. And that could be the 11th win on this year if they end up, you know, taking something from, if they end up, you know, beating Baltimore, that could be the 11th win in week three. Yeah. Oh, I definitely don't think you're crazy for saying that.

I think that 11 wins is something that you're not reaching for the stars at that point and like i said uh i mean we're pretty much in the same wheelhouse in terms of what this team can do and who knows that's why they play these games on the field murph not on paper uh again that's why i think sitting here on may 13th 14th whenever you're viewing this podcast folks i think that's what you're looking at. I think that's what's going to end up deciding the Patriots' fate is how training camp goes, how preseason goes, and how these regular season games start stacking up. And this team has the talent to be able to string some of those together. Can they do it consistently? Well, the jury may be out on that, but we're going to continue to see what the Patriots can do.

Right. Irv, what can I say? Always, always appreciate you stopping by for your wisdom and counsel. It sounded like you had another thought, so I don't want to step on your toes there. No, no, no. I just wanted to apologize for saying Detroit on Thanksgiving and not Minnesota. Oh, it's no problem. It's no problem at all. By the time that we're ready to eat Thanksgiving dinner or Thanksgiving night. We'll get, Thanksgiving, uh, yeah. Patriots fans are probably not going to know the difference.

I really, I shouldn't say that. No, Minnesota actually was one of my intriguing matchups that I wrote about for sports illustrated earlier. Uh, not just because it's a Thanksgiving night matchup, but you know, there's a couple of receivers on this team that I really, really love watching Adam Phelan and Justin Jefferson. Evan Lazar and I still haven't gotten over that yet. We talk about that all the time. We just love Justin. What a Patriot he would have made. He would have made a great Patriot. Absolutely. Great, great stuff. Murph, before we take our leave today, I think it would be remiss if I didn't take a moment here on Locked On Patriots and joining, I know Murph joins me in my sentiments,

to mention a true Patriots legend that unfortunately we lost yesterday. Gino Cappelletti, at the age of 89, passing away. Some called him Mr. Patriot, others called him the Duke, but one thing you can absolutely call him is a legend, both professionally and personally. Gino still ranks third all- in Patriots history and scoring with 1130 career points, 10th on the Patriots list with 292 receptions and 12th with 4,589 receiving yards.

Not just a kicker folks, but also a great wide receiver. Following his playing career, Gino hung up the cleats and he went into the broadcast booth where yet again, he was a legendary broadcaster for the New England Patriots. Took his talents to the sidelines, coached special teams a little bit under Ron Earhart, but ended up coming back to the booth and formed one of the great tandems in radio history with he and the late, great Gil Santos.

I had the opportunity to meet Gino a couple of years ago during training camp and just one of the nicest, most humble and truly one of the most appreciative men I've ever met at being who he was. I remember you telling me. He was so just gracious to be in the position that he was in. And you can tell that he really enjoyed it and he appreciated every bit of it, including the fans that always, always had great things to say about him.

While I didn't know him nearly as well as some of my colleagues who lost a dear friend yesterday, I definitely join everyone. And I know Murph does as well in mourning the loss of Gino Capoletti, who was a true legend. And he will be missed in New England this season, and he will always be missed in New England. But a piece of him will always be around, and number 20 will always be in our hearts.

So on behalf of Lockdown Patriots, on behalf of my good friend Thomas Murphy, we offer our sincere condolences to the Capoletti family. And rest easy, Gino. You will forever be remembered and i'll always remember you in my heart because you shared the same first name as my father uh my father who passed away in 2009 so if i know my dad and there is an afterlife and it does exist uh he definitely went up to gino capoletti and the first thing he said was yeah my son is the guy that you met a couple of years ago at training camp and good first name. And knowing Gino, he probably would have looked back at it and said,

absolutely. Absolutely. Just one little note, folks. If Gino Capoletti had played his career in New York or in Green Bay, he'd be in the Hall of Fame right now. Absolutely. Deserving Patriots. Yeah, deserving Patriots.

Deserving Patriots Hall of Famer. He would have been a national football. He should be a pro football Hall of Famer. He should be a pro. Absolutely. Deserving Patriots. Yeah. Deserving Patriots. Deserving Patriots, Hall of Famer. He would have been an actual football. Yep. He should be a pro football Hall of Famer. He should be a pro. Absolutely. Well, Murph, unfortunately ending on a sour note, but Gino wouldn't want it any other way than the show must go on.

And that's exactly what will happen here on Lockdown Patriots, folks, because each and every day we'll continue to bring you the latest news notes and analysis from Foxborough. I thank my good friend, the legendary Thomas Murphy himself at TMurph207 on Twitter. Catch all of the great work that he does, whether covering the Patriots, all the excellent

coverage he's providing right now with the Red Sox. Folks, it's not always pretty, but Murph covers it accurately, and he covers it with a style all his own and he's always spot on in his analysis but he's also honest and that's just so important when it comes to the work that we do that's why I admire the man and one of the reasons why you still are the only guest Ask President Future with his very own branded hashtag my friend thank you once again for joining me today and I can't thank you enough for always lending your wisdom and counsel and being an amazing friend.

Thank you, buddy. Also, you're very welcome. My cap to you, my friend. And also, I can't thank each and every one of you enough, the great fans of Locked On Patriots, for not only making Locked On Patriots a daily part of your New England Patriots coverage, but also your first listen every day. So continue to stay locked into Locked On Patriots by downloading, subscribe to, and following us wherever you get your podcasts, and smash that subscribe button on YouTube. Until next time, Foxborough faithful, on behalf of Don Murph himself, the legendary Thomas Murphy, I'm Mike DeBate.

Stay safe, stay well, be the change you wish to see in the world. Have a great day, everyone.