Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Three Reasons To Be Hyped For 2025 Patriots Training Camp

Starting point is 00:00:00 I've got three reasons why we should all be pumped about this Patriots training camp. That's where we start on this episode of Locked On 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 up, Patriots fans? I am your host Nick Cattles, born and raised in New England, also the host of the Everything Pats podcast, co host of the Greg Medard Patriots podcast with Nick Cattles and a sports talk show host veteran on today's

Starting point is 00:00:37 episode. There are three players that the Pats cannot have plateaued this season. And I'll give you those names and why also the very latest on the wide receiver room and how guys fit or might not fit. But first, we cover three reasons to be hyped about training camp. We appreciate joining the show, making us your first listen and for being an everyday of the lockdown Patriots podcast is a proud part of the lockdown podcast network, your team every day.

Starting point is 00:01:05 And a reminder, starting this Monday, July 14th, we go back to five episodes a week, Monday through Friday. You want your Patriots news? You want Patriots opinions? Nowhere else. But right here, you can get it from yours truly. Let's talk about. Why we should be hyped about this Patriots training camp less than two weeks away. This is really the most optimistic I've been since maybe 2021. And you might

Starting point is 00:01:34 say 2021. Nick Mac Jones. Yeah, yeah. When Mac Jones was drafted, I was excited. I was optimistic. And then you had the free agency period to go along with the draft that came later, the spending the money on John who Smith and Hunter Henry Nelson Aguilor. It was an exciting time and it felt like the Patriots were going to get back on the tracks. They kind of sort of did. They made it to the playoffs that year, got drubbed. But this is the most excited, optimistic I've been since that season. And there are plenty of reasons for excitement, but I want to give you three of the best, three of the best reasons why we should all be hyped about training camp. Number one, you've got to start with the quarterback, the quarterback, the most pivotal, the most sexy position in all of professional sports. Women want the guy, men want to be the guy. Been the story since the high school years. And you start with Drake May, but not only Drake May.

Starting point is 00:02:39 The Drake May, Josh McDaniels relationship. This gets me excited about training camp. I wanna see how this develops. I wanna see how both of these guys grow together to get the most out of this offense. Drake May is the most talented quarterback that Josh McDaniels has had since Tom Brady. He is somebody that has a great arm, has impressive athleticism,

Starting point is 00:03:05 a decent frame that he still has to continue somebody that has a great arm, has impressive athleticism, a decent frame that he still has to continue to kind of build out, but he's a bigger guy. And we've all read about his processing ability in 2024, how he was ahead of the curve with that. Football IQ, loves to study and learn the game, his work ethic is through the roof. This is the most talented cat that McDaniels has had at that position since the GOAT. And when I think about Drake May's football intelligence married with McDaniels and his

Starting point is 00:03:38 football intelligence, that's when some special things can happen. When the OC and the QB are both understanding what's in front of them, what needs to be done to combat that and actually respond accordingly. Knowing what's going to happen before it happens. And this partnership between OC and quarterback, if it's successful this year, you can then look down the road and say, well, McDaniels is not going to get hired as a head coach for I don't know how long, unless he wants to go to college. I don't think he'll ever be an NFL head coach again. start to see this partnership improving and developing from day to day to day, you could only think about what that means down the road, long term. Josh McDaniels will lean into the strengths of Drake May. We will see him run the football more. We will see him

Starting point is 00:04:40 rip the football into the middle of the field. We will see this offense attack the seams. And I'm excited for that. I think we're going to see some read option with Drake May. So reason number one to get hyped, May and McDaniels, that partnership. Second reason, the 2025 draft. We get to see Will Campbell versus Keon White on a daily basis during training camp. Then we get to see Campbell tested versus Keon White on a daily basis during training camp. Then we get to see Campbell tested against Washington in a joint practice. Then we get to see Campbell again tested in a joint practice, this time against Minnesota. Will Campbell, will he, will he prove to all of us before week one that the Patriots were right in drafting him fourth overall and putting him at left tackle.

Starting point is 00:05:28 The development of him, the development of Trevion Henderson, watching his impact. We've read already that the Patriots have involved Henderson an awful lot with this offense. He's going to be doing different things for Josh McDaniels. He's going to be that receiver. He's going to be that receiver. He's going to be that dynamic runner. He's going to be, I think, put in different spots. Pony formation, three running backs at one time, Henderson lining up in the slot, Henderson lining up outside, Henderson

Starting point is 00:05:55 in the backfield, catching screens, going out and running routes to watch Henderson and his impact, which I think is going to be immediate. I'm not so sold on the immediate impact from Kyle Williams. I am sold on the immediate impact of Henderson. I think week one, Henderson is already making a difference. That's exciting to watch a guy like that. that just is different than what we've seen in a long time at that position to see him at training camp and to appreciate what he brings to the table. Now speaking of Kyle Williams, he's got potential and I'm fascinated. I am I am truly genuinely compelled.

Starting point is 00:06:44 If Williams can make this thing work. If Williams can be an impact player for this offense sooner than I might even think. I'm thinking second half of the season Williams might be able to start making some plays consistently. Can he surprise me? Can he do more than that earlier than that? And then you got the interior offensive line. Can Jared Wilson wrestle the starting gig from Garrett Bradbury or Cole Strange if he slides to left guard? That interior offensive line. And then you got the defensive line guys. Can Brayden

Starting point is 00:07:19 Swinson pop a little bit? Can Joshua Farmer pop a little bit? The 2025 draft class is going to be a heck of a lot of fun to watch at training camp. And my third and final reason to be hyped about camp is the defensive changes. Episode earlier this week, Wednesday's episode, we talked about the defensive versatility on that line and what they can do. But the thing about the defense is it's just not only talented with Williams and Spillane and Carlton Davis and Christian Gonzalez and the new talent that was brought in, those first three names I just mentioned. Craig Woodson watching him at safety,

Starting point is 00:08:00 watching him maybe at Nickelback, play some there. It's gonna be a lot of fun to watch. But this defense will also be fun to watch because it's going to be different than what we have been used to. It is going to be an attacking defense. It is going to be an athletic defense. It is going to be a competitive defense. Now, Steve Belichick did a great job in 2023 and did a really good job for most of his time in New England. Last year with Covington, it was a different story. We don't have to relive it. But I have been waiting for the day, even with Steve Belichick and Bill,

Starting point is 00:08:33 as good as that defense was, it wasn't as athletic as I wanted it to be. It would not attack as much as I wanted it to attack. This is going to be a violent, competitive, attacking athletic defense. It's gonna be flying around the football field. We are going to see things that we haven't seen in a long time. Lot of young fans are gonna be seeing this for the first time.

Starting point is 00:08:57 A Patriots defense that is getting downfield. A Patriots defense that is not afraid to pin their ears back and go after a quarterback at least every once in a while the defensive scheme the defensive structure the defensive differences of This year's defense compared to the last several years. It's gonna stand out like a sore thumb, but in a good way and That should get us all hyped this defensive intensity the the defensive speed, I cannot wait. I cannot wait. All right, let's continue here. If these three guys plateau in 2025,

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Starting point is 00:10:56 first year at Monarch Money. We talk about guys that are going to improve in 2025. We talk about guys that might decline in 2025, but what we don't spend a lot of time on is discussing guys that could plateau. They might not get better, but they might not get worse. They just kind of float along the season. And there are three players on this year's roster that cannot plateau. The Patriots cannot, cannot have these three individuals

Starting point is 00:11:33 plateau in 2025. And I'm sure that many of you know immediately the first name on this list. If you don't, I'll tell you, it's Drake May. Drake May cannot plateau. We can't look back at 2024 and say that that's who Drake May is. You did not draft Drake May because he was going to be the best quarterback in that class on day one. You drafted Drake May because you felt like May had that ceiling, had that potential

Starting point is 00:12:07 that he was going to grow into certain things on the field. He was 21 years old when you drafted him. And he is somebody that you draft, of course, because you like who he is right now and he's got the intangibles and he's got this he's got that but you don't draft Drake May for October of 24 you draft Drake May for October of 27 because you you can see that he could be that next guy that the Josh Allen comparisons that's why it's not because that's who he was in the moment in real time. And if we're looking at a 2025 Drake May where it's too many turnover worthy plays, which he had last season, that's the biggest hiccup to me. The turnover worthy plays, he's got to get better. If he doesn't get better, if he doesn't show improvement with those turnover worthy plays via PFF. We got a problem folks

Starting point is 00:13:08 Drake may had a bunch of big-time throws at UNC He did not have a ton of big-time throws For last year's Patriots now. This isn't all on May Obviously the offensive line was wretched. The receivers weren't very good. We know. We know about the offense, the play caller, all that stuff.

Starting point is 00:13:33 But May's lack of big time throws. They have to improve. We have to see more big time throws in 25. We've got to see them fit it into tight windows downfield to make a big time play. We have to see a May, a version of May who is always decisive in the pocket. And if he's not always decisive in the pocket, I want to see a May who was decisive for at least 95% of the time in the pocket. Greg Bedard has talked about this.

Starting point is 00:14:03 When May is indecisive, that's when he develops the hitch that Bedard's been talking about the last year and a half. He develops that little hitch. That's the indecisiveness. Not really knowing what to do in the moment. I want to see a confident, decisive May. I want to feel like by the time we're in the middle of the football season that he is stepping back in that pocket and he's surveying the field, understanding what's going on, and he is going to step into that pocket and deliver a throw that he is confident in. He shows that decisiveness. We have to walk out of 2025 saying, May is the guy.

Starting point is 00:14:45 And if he plateaus, if he is mostly the same quarterback that he was in 24, we cannot, we simply cannot walk out of 2025 saying that he is unequivocally that guy, that franchise quarterback that you need to consistently win football games and contend in the NFL. Player number two that the Patriots cannot cannot have plateau in 25 is Keon White. When you look at defensive edge when you look at pass rush we've talked about a lot Williams and Barmore they're gonna bring you a pass rush. Harold Landry will give you a pass rush from time to time, a lot of clean up sacks from Landry.

Starting point is 00:15:28 He's 29 years old. And when you look at the depth, when you look at the depth of that position, defensive end, Anthony Jennings, does he fit? Does he not fit? He might not make the team this year. Braden Swinson, is he a sub pass rusher? Is he a three down guy? Does he bring any impact this season? Does he bring impact in 26? I don't know. Galevon Chaison had a strong finish to his

Starting point is 00:15:57 time with the Raiders. Still on the younger side, former first round pick, plenty of potential. younger side, former first round pick, plenty of potential. Was the finish to 2024 a signal as to what was going to come from Chase on moving forward or was it just flashes for a team that wasn't necessarily really good and you know, maybe teams took them lightly. We'll see. We'll see. We'll see. But the options at defensive end, the options at edge that can get to the quarterback, it would make such a gigantic difference if we could walk out of 25 and say the Keon White that we saw in the early stages of 24 was

Starting point is 00:16:40 the Keon White that we saw throughout the entire season in 2025, that that guy was as good as we thought he could be. If we see that potential being fulfilled, then we could walk into 2026 saying that the Patriots have a legitimate young edge star or borderline star. And that would change the trajectory of this defense. It would change the trajectory of this defense. It would change the trajectory of this team because you could add another blue chip to the list. We cannot see a key on white that is once again highly effective for a couple of weeks, then goes in the witness

Starting point is 00:17:19 protection program for the next couple of weeks. We have to see it game one to game 17. You cannot have white plateau. He has to improve and he has to show that potential, prove that he can be that guy. And then we can go into 2026 saying, Patriots do have a legitimate edge guy, a guy who can make impact plays week in and week out and that guy is Keon White. All right, third name. Might be a little bit of a surprise, maybe a little off the grid, but I'm going to go with Alex Austin.

Starting point is 00:17:55 Now Alex Austin has been a little bit of a binky for me. I have pumped his tires a little bit more than others, but I think he showed flashes in 23. I thought when he came back from injury last year, he showed flashes. And here's why I want to see Austin get better. I want to see that trajectory going up. Want the incline. I don't want the plateau. Because Carlton Davis as good as he is. He's older. He's had injuries.

Starting point is 00:18:25 Austin's had injuries. If Austin can be healthy and he can continue to develop and improve, then I am more confident that in 2026, if you've got to deal with Carlton Davis injuries yet again, you can slide Austin into that cornerback number two slot. If Austin plateaus and the flashes were just the flashes and he's not going to give you that in 25 consistently and he's not going to show that growth,

Starting point is 00:18:51 then you go into 2026 with questions about the second cornerback spot. You hope that Davis can get through a second season. That's why you gave him the deal that you gave him. But if he can't, what's going to be the solution? If Austin's's not the solution you might have to go back into the draft and find a guy and It's not always easy to do that if Austin doesn't plateau if he improves Then you could say to yourself He is a future affordable

Starting point is 00:19:22 Outside corner opposite of Gonzalez and if you can tie up Alex Austin early with an extension, then when you pay Gonzalez, inevitably the money you're going to have to pay him if he continues to play the way he's played through his first 20 NFL games, then it makes the roster more manageable, the payroll more manageable. And now you have two young corners who can be good for you if not great for the next five, six, seven years. Can he stay out there? Can Austin stay out there and can he not plateau? The wide receiver room continues to be one of the most fascinating situations. We'll have the very latest on that position next as we continue with today's episode of Locked On Patriots, part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day.

Starting point is 00:20:14 The wide receiver competition for 2025 is a heated competition. You got about 12 guys trying to make this team. You're obviously not going to take all 12. You might take half. You might take a little bit more than half of the 12 guys that are battling. Now, of course, they're not all battling. There are some locks. We'll get to that in a minute. But the day to day updates during training camp is one of the things that I'm really looking forward to. I want to see who steps up. I want to see who steps back and who makes this team. Now here's the latest. Greg Bedard at Boston Sports Journal recently wrote about the wide receiver room and here's how Bedard sees it. Stefan Diggs, Mackins, and Kyle Williams are these stone cold locks.

Starting point is 00:21:06 That makes sense. I mean, you signed Diggs, you signed Hollins, you drafted Williams. I don't think you signed those guys, drafted that guy to say goodbye. I don't think that's the case. So I would agree. Stone cold locks feels right.

Starting point is 00:21:20 Diggs, Hollins, and Williams at the least. But Dard then writes about Kendrick Bourne and Pop Douglas. He calls those two guys near locks. So not stone cold locks, near locks. And Dard writes, I think the team would listen to trade offers on Bourne, Douglas, Polk, Booty, and Baker. And after Baker, Greg puts in parentheses good luck. And then he continues to write, I'm giving Polk another year to prove himself, but that

Starting point is 00:21:47 could end quickly and he could be traded. Afton Chisholm makes the team, but we still need to see him in pads. If his film is good in the preseason, they might not be able to get him to the practice squad and he might make, uh, he might like someone else's P squad offer. Like from a West coast team, Greg throws out there because he's from the West Coast like hometown Seattle Seahawks or the Rams the Chargers the Niners etc. Greg finishes by writing booties the odd man out right now, but that could change I think they could get a late-round pick for him looks like the end of the road for Baker. Oh

Starting point is 00:22:23 I have thoughts I have thoughts. I have thoughts. First thought I have is maybe there's more opportunity for some of these receivers than I first thought. Maybe my initial anticipation of pop and booty making this team pop and born, not booty, sorry, pop and born making this team. Maybe I was a little off the mark there. Pop, Bourne, quote unquote, near locks, not locks. And Greg writes that either of those guys could end up being traded. So if Pop Douglas gets traded or Kendrick Bourne gets traded, then the whole near lock thing, obviously out the window, they gone. And if you move on from one or both of those guys, it opens up opportunities for everybody else. Now, I understand not calling them surefire 100%

Starting point is 00:23:19 locks. But right now, if you asked me, I would say that Pop Douglas and Kendrick Bourne are locks. I feel like both of those guys will be on the team. I do think it's possible that one of them could be traded, but I feel like they'll both stay. Pop was the best receiver at OTAs and mandatory minicamp. Of course, there was no digs, but still, it means something. And so does Kendrick Bourne's experience in Josh McDaniel's offense back in 2021. And he also was solid at OTAs and mandatory minicamp. So I think both of those guys make the team. So you could really say there are five locks. That brings me to Jaylen Polk because I actually agree with Badard about Jaylen Polk.

Starting point is 00:24:06 You spent a second round pick on him. Now that doesn't mean he's guaranteed a spot and he should not be guaranteed a spot, but it does mean you need to try to get this guy going and you need to try to keep him on the roster because you do not want to wave goodbye to a second round pick one year after drafting that guy. He might not work out, but to cut Jalen Polk after one year, that would be awful. You want to talk about asset management and being able to, you know, curate productivity from your draft picks. When you spend a second round pick on somebody and you cut them a year later, that's a disaster. Especially if you cut them with no off field stuff. That's

Starting point is 00:24:58 even more of a disaster. Like you could understand, okay, you drafted them in the second round, something happened off the field and you just had to get rid of him if you're getting rid Of him because he can't stay on the field because he he's not good enough to get reps That is an abject Failure it's a catastrophe To waste the second round pick in that way and it begs the question. Do you think Jalen Polk has trade value? I don't what kind of trade value does he bring? Could he get you a sixth round pick? Maybe,

Starting point is 00:25:30 maybe a seventh round pick. I don't think you could get a fifth for poke after last year. He was a non-factor and he's coming off surgery, has not been able to be involved fully in OTAs or mandatory minicamp. So how in the world does he have any trade value? He's got zilch. If I'm a team I'm not trading anything for Jalen Polk. Sorry about it. He's not doing it. But here's the thing with Polk. He doesn't have to be great. Now last year he had to be great.

Starting point is 00:26:02 He drafted him. He had to make impact right away. He had to be a big deal. And Elliott Wolf mentioned that months ago when he said they put too much on his plate because he was really one of the top guys in this offense that you were hoping was going to show up, contribute, produce at a big level and be the answer to at least wide receiver two for the next seven, eight years. This year's different though.

Starting point is 00:26:28 Pop's third year, Kendrick healthier, history with McDaniels, you signed digs. You don't need Polk to be great. Polk could make this roster if he's fine. If he's fine, he's OK. Doesn't have to be really good. Doesn't have to be great. Has to be better than the other guys on the roster. Has to beat out the other guys for that, you know, sixth receiver spot. If you carry seven to

Starting point is 00:26:54 seventh receiver spot, but he just has to be good. He just got to be okay. And poke theoretically brings versatility. Can play inside, can play outside. And he is a contested catch guy. I mean, he still is the dude that made spectacular catches downfield for Washington. I don't know what happened to him last year. I don't know. And he might be fried, he might be done. And if he is, say la vie, I was wrong. But I am going to give him every chance to make this roster because I do not want to waste the second round pick number one and number two, he was a good football player. He was a really good football player in college. And I want to see if you can get at least some of that back. All right,

Starting point is 00:27:37 let's talk about F and Chisholm for a minute here because Bedard has Chisholm making the team over K Sean Booty. It's interesting. When you look at Booty, he's an outside option. Chisholm is not an outside option. I know he played a few snaps outside at mandatory mini camp, no pads and all of that. He's not an outside guy. I do not expect Afton Chisholm to be playing on the outside for this offense. So if Chisholm makes it over Booty, you lose some of that versatility. You lose an option on the outside, which means you have to be confident

Starting point is 00:28:11 in Kyle Williams. You've got to be confident that Pop can play some on the outside. Bourne can play some on the outside. Diggs can play some on the outside. You need to see enough from your outside options. Mack Hollins, another guy, you need to see enough from at least one, if not a couple of those dudes that they can give you the consistent play on the outside. Diggs in Houston was more slot and he was very productive out of the slot. So if you pick Chisholm over Booty,

Starting point is 00:28:37 you're waving goodbye to one of those outside options. Now, that's fine. If Chisholm deserves to make the team over Booty, he deserves to make the team over Booty. I'm just telling you that that would handcuff this team a little bit unless those other guys prove it, especially Kyle Williams. If you can get some early stage production from him

Starting point is 00:28:53 on the outside, that would be so huge for this team. It would open up the idea of having Chisholm and not being worried about limited options for you. And I can't forget about Kayshaan Booty's connection with Drake May. There's trust there. And how much does that matter? Do you get rid of Booty if May likes Kaishan? Does Chisholm look like a different guy when he puts pads on, when things get physical, when he slows down a little bit with that 4.71 40 yard dash, how's that how's that play with the pads?

Starting point is 00:29:30 And the practice squad notes an interesting one from Greg. It might not be easy to slide Chisholm to the practice squad. He might want to go west if he gets an offer. Wide receiver room. Intriguing to watch over the next five, six weeks. That wraps up this edition of Lockdown Patriots. Reach out to me on Twitter at Nick C Radio. Don't forget to throw a comment in on the YouTube channel and don't forget to hit that like button and subscribe. We hit over 5,000 subscribers. Thanks to all of you. And thank you for making Lockdown Patriots your first listen today for your second listen, Lockdown NFL Scouting. Krabs, Marino, they'll take care of you. Find Lockdown NFL Scouting on YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Starting point is 00:30:13 Have a great weekend and we will see you on Monday.

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Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Three Reasons To Be Hyped For 2025 Patriots Training Camp

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