Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Time to Move on Tuesday: Patriots are on to 2020 - 3/24/2020

Episode Date: March 24, 2020

It is time to move on in Foxboro. Today, host Mike D’Abate is joined by Steve Balestrieri of PatsFans.com to discuss the release of Stephen Gostkowski, the Patriots looking for defensive depth in the upcoming NFL Draft, and whether the Patriots quarterback of the future is already on their roster. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Patriots fans, you are now locked in to the Locked On Patriots Podcast. I'm going to show you how to make a beautiful and beautiful flower. I'm going to use a small flower pot. I'm going to use a small pot All of you Foxborough faithful, it is a time to move on Tuesday here on the Locked On Patriots podcast, your daily home for news notes and analysis infused with the occasional opinion on your six-time Super Bowl champions, the New England Patriots. My name is Mike DeBate, your host of the Locked On Patriots podcast,

which of course is a proud part of the Locked On podcast network, your team every day. And because it's your team every day, that means your questions, your comments, your feedback, always welcomed and appreciated. And you can send that feedback to me by reaching out to me and following me on Twitter at MDABATEFPC. And while you're out there wandering throughout that Twitterverse, please be sure to follow the Locked On Patriots account as well at LO underscore Patriots.

Patriots fans, I'm sure it is no surprise why I'm calling today's podcast Time to Move On Tuesday. One week ago today, Tom Brady announced to the sports world via social media that he was indeed moving on from the New England Patriots. Shortly thereafter, we found out his destination was Tampa Bay. He would be the Buccaneers' new quarterback. On Friday, he officially signed the contract. And this afternoon, Tom held a conference call with members of the media officially being introduced as the new Buccaneers quarterback.

And folks, even though you'll see a lot of posts and articles dissecting every word he said, every voice inflection that he made, every conceivable opportunity to read between the lines, Tom's conference was pretty much what we expected. Per usual, he handled himself with class, with dignity, took the high road, and did not undercut anyone. And in just a moment, I'll get into some of the notable takeaways from Tom's press conference, but the Patriots have also made some news in the last 24 hours, making an under-the-radar signing that might end up paying dividends for them, and also saying goodbye to a key member of their dynasty over the past few years.

It's clear that Tom's moving on, and it's clear that the Patriots are moving on, so in this time to move on Tuesday, we need the wisdom and counsel of someone who's as good with analysis and strategy as there is in the business. My friend Steve Balistrieri of Patsfans.com joins me here on the Locked On Patriots podcast today, and we will talk about the recent departures, how they affect both their draft strategy and their playing strategy for 2020. And last but certainly not least, we will take a look at the quarterback position and what we can expect from the Patriots in the future when it comes to the man under center.

So settle in, folks. Steve will be joining me here in just a moment. And as always, I sincerely hope that you enjoy today's podcast. But before I proceed with that, I just wanted to take a couple of moments to catch you up on the latest news from Foxborough. And before we get into Tom's press conference today, we start with the news that made headlines yesterday. And that is the departure of the Patriots' all-time leading scorer. Someone who's been a major part for the success that the Patriots have enjoyed for the last 14 seasons. And of course, folks, I am talking about kicker Steven Gostowski.

On Monday, Boston Globe's Jim McBride reported that Gostowski was indeed being released, ending his 14-year tenure with the Patriots. Now, we all know that Gostowski's season was brief. He was placed on season-ending injured reserve after experiencing some difficulties with mechanics at the beginning part of the season. We learned later that Gostowski's problems were due to a hip injury that eventually ended his season. Now, the Patriots struggled pretty much all season long to find a suitable replacement. Nick Folk handled those duties for the better part of the year, did an admirable job, but definitely did not measure up to what Gustavski gave them.

And I know Gustavski struggles to get his share of love. I've never understood it. I think for 14 years, he has been a remarkably reliable kicker and someone whom I believe the Patriots will miss greatly. Regular season statistics, Gustavski was solid. He connected on 374 of 428 field goal attempts and 653 of 664 PATs. He finishes his Patriots tenure compiling 1,775 points in 204 regular season games. In the post season, Steven Gustavski once again solid, folks. He hit 39 of 44 career field goal attempts in 28 postseason games. It's true that he never quite had that snowball moment that Adam Vinatieri had. He didn't have that walk-off field goal that won the Patriots the Super Bowl as time expired.

But you can make the argument that his field goal in the closing moments of Super Bowl 53 was a key reason why the Patriots were able to defeat the Rams and bring home their sixth championship in franchise history. Now, at first, it was believed that this move was done to free up cap space for the Patriots. It was reported that they would free up approximately about $2.6 million. However, thanks to Miguel Benzon, aka the Pats cap, our resident cap guru here in Locked On Patriots, that cap relief is likely to be spread out over a couple of seasons. It frees up about $1 million in cap space initially, and in the 2021 season, the Patriots will receive an additional $1-2 million

in cap relief. So it begs the question, why do this? Do the Patriots feel that they can get younger at the position? Do the Patriots have legitimate concerns over Stevens' health? Or does this signify a true change in their philosophy? You know what, folks? These all seem to be good questions to ask another Steve, as in Balistrieri, and I will ask him that in just a moment when I welcome him in. But Gostowski's release was not the only news that the Patriots made on Tuesday. They also announced the signing of safety Cody Davis, who will primarily be a special teams contributor for the Pats in 2020. Now, Davis is technically a safety, but again,

his contributions will primarily be on special teams. He spent the last two seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars and the previous five with the Rams organization. He has only five starts on defense throughout his career, so I wouldn't quite look for him to be a big presence in the defensive backfield. But Davis's style of play will help to replicate, not duplicate, but replicate some of what is left behind by Nate Ebner, who recently signed with the New York Giants. Seeing that the Patriots special teams unit will be going through a bit of a transition this year, having lost former coordinator Joe Judge, who became the head coach of the

New York Giants, as well as the loss of Ebner, the additions of guys like Cody Davis and Adrian Phillips, who signed last week with the Patriots, ensure that Bill Belichick is still placing a great premium on these players, and look for special teams to be a big part of what the Patriots do in 2020. So if Monday was a day of hello and goodbye, meaning hello to Cody Davis and goodbye to Steven Gostowski, Tuesday was once again a reminder that it was time to move on. And again, folks, as I said to open the show, just a little after noon Eastern, Tom Brady held an introductory conference call with members of the media to officially be introduced

as the new Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback. Now, I said earlier that Tom continued to conduct himself with class and integrity. That shouldn't be a surprise to anyone. He's done it for 20 years. It's who he is. It's who he'll always be. Even though his comments about the Patriots will be magnified, Tom didn't really say all that much about his time with New England, or what led to his departure. He did indicate that his final decision was actually not made until March 16th, when he had an in-person conversation

with Patriots owner Robert Kraft, and subsequently a telephone call with head coach Bill Belichick. And Tom did not reveal the substance of those conversations, other than to say that he will always remain a fan of the New England Patriots, and he has nothing but love and respect for Robert Kraft and Bill Belichick. When asked if there was anything the Patriots could have done to retain his services, Brady once again took the high road by saying that he wasn't here to talk about the past. All he was here to do is move on and be excited about his new opportunity in Tampa. And with the conclusion of that brief press conference, it is likely that the next time Tom Brady will make an NFL headline is when he finally takes the field in Tampa Bay.

So here in Foxborough, it's time to move on. And here on this Tuesday, I will be welcoming Steve Balistrieri of Patsfans.com, where we will discuss the Patriots quarterback situation, what they might do in the NFL draft, and what exactly were the Patriots thinking when they decided to release Steven Gostowski. Patriots fans, in uncertain times, you always welcome a voice of reason. And that voice of reason is once again here today on the Locked On Patriots podcast to answer all of your questions, solve all your problems.

He's one of the best and most knowledgeable columnists that you can find in Patriots media anywhere. You know his great work from patsfans.com, as well as being the co-host of two amazing podcasts, Patriots 4th and 2, and One Patriots Place with our great mutual friend Thomas Murphy. He is my paisan, my good friend, and I always say this, folks, but I don't mean it enough. Despite what he will tell you, he is worthy of all of the praise he gets and then some. Steve Balistrieri joins me today on Locked On Patriots. Welcome back to the show, my friend.

Always a pleasure, Mike. You know I always love talking football with you, and in days like today and what we've been going through for several weeks now, you know, it's a nice distraction to be able to talk about some football. It really is. I mean, and i know things are a little bit difficult for patriots fans in foxborough right now and all across the country displaced patriots fans no matter where you're listening to the show from we know that there are difficult times ahead for your new england patriots but uh my good friend

here today might be able to shed a little bit of light on the Patriots season and why it's not necessarily a smart move to bet against Bill Belichick and the Brain Trust in New England. Not a smart move to bet against Tom Brady in Tampa Bay either, but I think a lot of people are assuming that the Patriots are going to crumble. And I think we're going to give them some insight today as to why that is not the case. However, my friend, we start with the big story in New England, and that is the release of Steven Gostowski. And 14 seasons, he had to replace a legend in Adam Vittarri, Steve. He did so admirably, in my opinion, and I think the opinion of a lot of people. show, Kostowski connected on 374 of 428 field goal attempts, 653 of 664 PATs, 1,775 points in 204 regular season games, the highest scorer in Patriots history. Additionally, he hit 39 of 44 career field goal attempts in 28 postseason games. There are a lot of people say, oh, he wasn't that

great in the postseason. That to me is a very impressive record over a course of a 14-year career. So Patriots fans, I think, saw a lot of this and they assume that the team is headed for the tank. I think that's incorrect. And I'm putting that as diplomatically as I can. But when you look at Gostowski's release, Steve, do you see this as a simple cap savings move? Do you think they had legitimate concerns over his health? Or does this really signal a significant change in the way they're doing business in Foxborough moving forward? I think it was a little bit of each, but that's kind of sitting on the fence and I don't want to do that. But I think, you know, when you look at Gustowski, I mean, I think if you go back the last decade, other than Justin Tucker, I think you can make the argument pretty solidly that he was the best kicker in football.

You know, after Justin Tucker, who to me is just, he's not even human at times. It's like when he misses a kick, you look at yourself like, did he actually miss one? But, you know, Gus Kowski, as you said, I mean, he's replacing a legend in Adam Vinatieri, but a lot of people kind of look back now on Adam Vinatieri with rose-colored glasses. Obviously, he made picks. That kick in the snow against the Oakland Raiders, I still think is the best kick ever in the National Football League. 100% agree.

You know, you go back to that Super Bowl against the Carolina Panthers. He missed a couple of kicks in that Super Bowl. If they don't turn around and win it on the last second, you know, people would be having maybe a different opinion on Vinatieri. I think Vinatieri is like, I always thought he was money, but he wasn't perfect. And Gostkowski did a great job, I thought, for about the first 10, 12 years of his career. The last couple of years, he struggled a little bit. And now we know last year that his struggles were obviously due to a bad hip that required surgery.

So, you know, I think the main reason is they figured there's younger guys out there that can do the job, and I think it was a big cap savings. I mean, I've heard now that maybe it isn't. I know Miguel had something last night that maybe it wasn't. I thought they were going to save about $3 million, but now I'm hearing it might not be. So we'll have to see how that works out. But I think at the same time, 14 years, he had a great run, and I just think they feel like there's younger guys

that can do the job better. I know a lot of people want the kicker from Georgia on this team, and I wouldn't be against that. Yeah. Yeah, Rodrigo Blankenship is the kid that you're talking about, and really I think he's a little offbeat. He reminds me a little bit of Tucker in his mannerisms, not necessarily comparing him to Justin Tucker.

I think that's a gross, gross disservice to him as being a rookie who hasn't even taken a professional snap yet. But this is along the same lines, I think, of what the Patriots are thinking. And I agree with you. I'm glad that you mentioned the cap savings, first of all, because I do want to clarify that for our listeners here on Locked On Patriots. It was originally reported when Jim McBride broke the story yesterday, meaning on Monday, a lot of people were reporting that it was 2.6 million saved against the cap for the New England Patriots for

2020. Now we're seeing with the way that his contract is worded and things of that nature, that it really only equates to about a million dollars in savings for this year. There is an additional one to two that could hit in the 2021 cap. So there is additional cap savings coming. It's just not going to hit all at once. So I credit my good friend Miguel for that one. He'll probably end up cleaning me up a little on this when he listens to the podcast. But ultimately, that seems to be the narrative that's out there right now. So this wasn't a pure cap savings move by the Patriots with just this year in mind. I think they're

looking at maybe one or two years down the line in this. And again, you do mention the hip surgery and the problems that he had. You never know if he's going to be the same kicker. He might end up going out there and being effective for whatever new team he goes to. And you know, he's going to find a job. He's got too strong of a resume. And I think too much left in the tank for this to be it and ride off into the sunset. You will see Steven Gostowski in a NFL uniform this year, providing there's NFL football. That's a whole other argument for another day, but we'll stick to the hypotheticals.

We'll stick to what we know right now. And I do believe he will be playing. But again, I think that they feel they can get younger. They can maybe have a more cost-efficient option at the position. he will be playing but again i think that they feel they can get younger uh they can uh you know maybe have a more cost efficient option at the uh at the position and blankenship would be interesting uh for the patriots they're not afraid to take kickers and take uh punters in the uh in the draft we've seen them do it a couple of times oh they did it with gustowski and with a pretty high pick as well uh and that ended up working out pretty well for them. So as always, buddy, we keep a sharp eye.

It's funny you mentioned cap savings. Chris Price from the Boston Globe had a really interesting theory yesterday because we know that Jake Bailey can also kick off, and he has been an emergency kicker for field goals when he was in college. And Chris was wondering kind of out loud on Twitter yesterday if the Patriots could be looking at Bailey doing all three. And that would not only save you cap space, it would save you a roster spot as well.

Absolutely. And we actually talked about this steven went down with injured reserve and we knew he was going to be out we talked about jake bailey as being the possibility he did kick in college and one of the things that i uh even and i even in high school uh he uh he actually kicked a uh i kicked a pretty intense field goal uh for greater than 60 yards in high school this kid's got a leg he's able to do it. Whether or not the Patriots would want to entertain that option still remains to be seen, but ultimately, I think

there's still a good chance that we see them explore all of their options, and you and I both know Chris personally. He doesn't just throw stuff against the wall. He does this with a cerebral intent, so I definitely saw that report. I gave it its due diligence and

hopefully, you know, we'll see sooner rather than later what the Patriots have planned. But again, buddy, I just want to switch gears just for a moment. And we talked a little bit about the draft and maybe the Patriots using draft capital to bring in Rodrigo Blankenship or somebody that might be able to kick for the team this year. But, you know, the Patriots didn't just lose capital at the quarterback position. And we are going to get to the quarterback position in just a minute. But the Patriots have a pretty thin depth chart right now at linebacker. They experienced some pretty significant loss last week. When you talk about Kyle Van Noy, Jamie Collins, Landon Roberts, all departures.

And only Brandon Copeland has been brought in to help restock the cupboard right now. So with the draft having a pretty decent talent pool when it comes to linebackers and edge rushers, if the Pats go defense in the first round, Steve, or the early rounds, I should say, who would make the best fit in Foxborough in your estimation? Well, you know, I wrote about this a couple of weeks ago. I thought they were going to go linebacker right off the bat, and this was before these guys even signed. I put a kid from Iowa who had a really bad combine.

He didn't run very well. He didn't perform very well. And, you know, he started slipping down some people's draft boards. I mean, what's his name um now i'm drawing a black eponette uh aj eponessa yep eponessa yeah i can never say his name correct but i mean you you look at him i think he's a guy that you could conceivably now see falling to 23 i think he'd be a great pickup for the Patriots. Absolutely. I completely agree with you. And Epineza is someone that I've chronicled several times here, whether it be on Mock Draft Monday or through news updates that we provided here on Locked On Patriots.

I think Epineza is definitely an interesting option. He's that type of high motor player that I think the Patriots love to employ. He has the ability to make blocks. He's very cerebral. He does utilize versatility, and that's something that the Patriots absolutely love. I know Kenneth Murray is a guy that a lot of people are looking at right now as well at the linebacker position and looking at the type of fit he could potentially bring to the Patriots at the number 23 pick. I think they would have to use the number 23 pick in order to bring him in.

If he does fall to 23, I don't see him falling really much further than that. So the Patriots would need first-round draft capital. But I think Murray is one of those types of players that could be worth it. So again, I do. I think that right now, when you look at the cupboard in the New England Patriots organization, when it comes to depth charts, linebacker definitely has to be on their radar as being a thin position and something that I think they can use some young talent to come in and infuse because they're going to need that. A great option for one of these young linebackers

is getting a chance to work with a Dante Hightower, who I think now has a lot of value on this roster. I know a lot of value on this roster. I know a lot of people are still looking at him as a possible gap casualty and a release. I think that's a possibility, but I think if the Patriots want continuity on the defensive side of the ball, I think they do all they can to work out a long-term extension with Dante and have him around to be able to mentor some of these young players. So I share your curiosity, and hopefully the know, the Patriots will, you know, tip their hand and let us know exactly what they're doing prior to the draft

like they always do. We're never surprised by what Bill Belichick does. He always is so forthcoming with that. No, folks, I'm kidding. I can't even get that out with a straight face. You know, Bill's going to do something we have not even thought of yet, and I think that's the best way to put it. So my friend, lastly, and there's no other way to get around this, but, you know, we

all know that Tom Brady today is introduced as the official starting quarterback of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers virtual press conference. And they will introduce Tom as the next quarterback of that franchise. And all week long here on Locked On Patriots last week, we talked about Tom's legacy and what this means for the Patriots, what this means for him. But I want to take the focus off of that for just a moment. And I want to put the focus on the Patriots quarterback depth chart, because right now we have a chart consisting of Jared Stidham, Cody Kessler and Brian Hoyer, who's back for his third tour of duty here in New England.

My assessment of the Hoyer signing is that he's being brought in to mentor Jared. I think that really is one of the best ways to do it. I think if Jared proves that he's not ready for primetime in training camp, whenever that happens to be, that Brian is a guy that can come in and make spot starts. And he's capable of doing that. I also like this addition because if Jarrett proves at some point during the season that he is ready for the keys to the kingdom, he'll hand them over, I mean, Hoyer, Hoyer will hand them over to Jarrett and not make a fuss about it. But there's still a lot of rumors out there that the Patriots are not done at the quarterback

position, that they have their eyes on someone else. In your estimation, Steve, is the quarterback that's going to be starting for the New England Patriots in 2020 on the roster right now, or is there still a move to be made out there, whether it be for your agency trade or even in the draft? I think, I think he's on the, and I think you just mentioned him. I think it's Stidham.

I think they're going to roll with Stidham this year. And as you already mentioned, bringing Hoyer back to me was a very smart move. I was talking on a different podcast last week with somebody, and I was like, you know, at that time, Hoyer was still a member of the Colts. And I was like, I believe that they're going to bring in a guy like a Josh McCown, you know, a solid veteran presence, a very smart, cerebral guy that's going to help Stidham while Stidham's on the field.

When he comes off the field, this guy's going to be there and like Hoyer will be. And he's going to be able to tell him hey look I saw this this is what they're doing this is how you need to beat this that's the kind of Hoyer is very very good at that and he was always in Tom's ear and those two had a very good relationship that way I think that was the whole point of bringing him back especially um you know with with what's going on in the world right now we don't know whether there'll be OTAs or minicamp. Training camp might even be delayed. Yeah, absolutely.

So when you bring in a guy like Hoyer, already knows the offense, it's not going to be a steep learning curve for him. It's just, hey, I've been here twice before. I know what we have to do. I do believe they're going to address quarterback in the draft. They seem to do that almost every year. So they're going to address it one way or the other. It might be early. It might be later, but I believe that Stidham is going to be the guy because for the same reasons I already mentioned, even if you bring in a free agent or a, which I doubt, but

if you draft a guy, how much time are you going to have to learn the offense and will he be able to get a grasp of it that quickly? I don't see that happening. I think for better or for worse, I think it'll be Stidham this year. Next year, we'll see what happens. But I think this year it's going to be the you know, the second year kid from Auburn. I agree. And as usual, but I mean, you're always spot on in your assessment. And to me, I think two things make that the most likely destination or the most likely decision,

I should say, that the Patriots will will make when it comes to installing Jarrett as the starter. One being the signing of Hoyer. And I think that really signaled to me that this was the direction that they were going in. If they were going to look to bring in someone else, either as a veteran to make a trade or someone that would be able to come in and start for this team full time, I don't think Hoyer would have been an option for them at quarterback. Don't forget, they have Cody Kessler on the roster as well. He could have always maintained that number three position behind Jarrett as a number two, bringing in somebody as a number one

if they were worried about scout team acumen. To me, Brian Hoyer's familiarity with Jarrett Stidham's game is very telltale in this situation. Several times, Jarrett complimented Hoyer being a mentor to him, someone that he could always go to, ask questions, be able to give him hints on reading NFL-type defenses as opposed to college. This was something that Jarrett showed a lot of poise with last year in the preseason. And to me, that's really the biggest key in terms of why I think he's going to be the starter. I think the Patriots saw enough in the way that he was able to read and the way that he was able to make throws.

Yes, there are some arm mechanics, things that he needs to work on. Is it going to be a perfect work in progress? Is he going to step in and continue to lead this team to the top of the AFC? That's probably a lofty goal. And I don't think Patriots fans in their truest sense are expecting that. But at the same time, I think he's going to exceed expectations a little bit because I do believe that there is enough there to be able to work with. And I think he's going to exceed expectations a little bit because I do believe that there is enough there to be able to work with. And I think he can surprise a few people. So we live in hope,

my friend. And you did mention training camp and OTAs. That's always our annual tradition is the first time we get a chance to see each other for the year is usually during those moments. So it's going to be a little bit delayed this time, my friend, but I do look forward to hopefully seeing you on the practice fields at Gillette stadium when these things get going and you know, we'll see, it's going to be a new era, a new dawn and a new day in Foxborough. And I'm looking forward to it. Me too. And hopefully, you know,

minicamp will be going by June and you know, that's when we usually get down there and, you know, I look forward to it. I mean, as I'm'm firmly in the camp. I didn't want to see Tom Brady leave, you know. But at the same time, I think it's going to be exciting. I mean, this is, as you said, things have changed. It's a new change. I think they're not going to be a favorite to win the AFC at all

because, you know, you're dealing with the situation at quarterback. But at the same time, you look at the moves that Bill Belichick's making and he's building a team. He's getting these solid veteran-type guys in there. It's going to be exciting. I mean, it might not be as successful as we've been, you know, conditioned to expect every year. I'm looking forward to it.

I think, you know, with all the change that's coming, it's going to be fascinating to watch. It will be. And, you know, at the end of the day, Patriots Nation moves on. Even when you lose the most indelible part of your organization for the last 20 years. There was still a New England Patriots franchise before Tom took snaps in New England, and there will be one after him. It might not be the future we were hoping for, the immediate future, but that future was coming whether we wanted to accept it or not.

One way or another, whether it was Tom's retirement or whether it was now or two years from now, it was always going to come. So the day is here, and we move forward in Patriots Nation. Steve, what can I say? I appreciate you joining me today here on Locked On. Always appreciate your wisdom, your counsel, and you taking the time out of your busy day to join me here. Once again, my friend, floor is yours. Please let everyone know where they can find not only the great work that you do with the Patriots and the NFL, but also some of the great writing that you do with the U.S. military, which to me is second to none, folks. I can't recommend it highly enough.

Well, thank you. I really appreciate that. You know, you can find me on Twitter at SteveB7SFG. I write for PatsFans.com. I do a podcast there called Patriots 4th and 2 with Russ Goldman and Derek Havens. And I also do the One Patriot Place podcast with our buddy Thomas Murphy, who's the biggest character on Twitter. I guess that's a fair assumption to make about Murph. And I write for softrep.com, which is the military site you mentioned. It's mainly geared toward the special operations community and some of the things that's going on with them. But we delve into politics and foreign policy. And, you know,

there's a lot going on in the world besides what's happening within our borders. And it's a one way for our friends and citizens to keep up with what's going on in the world because everything interconnects these days. Absolutely. And again, folks, I cannot recommend it highly enough. Very eloquently said, check out everything that Steve does. I can't, again, I can't recommend any of it highly enough. You mentioned Murph. Yeah. He's well known to the airwaves here on Locked On Patriots. He actually has his own hashtag. Our only guest that has his own hashtag, Locked On Murph, but he deserves it. He is the greatest. We love him and we always will.

But Steve, you are definitely a part of the Locked On family here. And thank you again for joining me today. Have a great day, my friend. Always a pleasure. And so we conclude this episode of Time to Move On Tuesday here on the Locked On Patriots podcast. I always enjoy sharing the mic with Steve. He brings a level-headed approach to analysis that I admire so much. I always gain some new perspective every time I talk football with Steve, and I know you do as well. As for me, I will be back tomorrow to continue to bring you the latest news notes and

analysis from Foxborough. As always, please be sure to join me each and every day here on the Locked On Patriots podcast, subscribe and download via your preferred podcast provider. And don't forget, you can always listen on your smart device just by asking it to play the latest episode of Locked On Patriots.

Once again, I am Mike Debate. I thank Steve Balistrierots. Once again, I am Mike DeBate. I thank Steve Balistrieri for his time, his insight, and his appearance today. But most of all, I thank you all so much for listening and for staying locked into Locked On Patriots. And if you have enjoyed today's podcast, now tell your smart device to play the latest episode of Locked On Fantasy Football. Stay safe, stay well, and have a great day, everyone.