Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - To Be...or Not To Be? Patriots Need Improvement to Make Playoffs - 11/24/2020

Episode Date: November 24, 2020

Having fallen to 4-6 on the 2020 NFL Season, are the New England Patriots’ playoff-hopes to be, or not to be? That is the question that host Mike D’Abate and guest Steve Balestrieri of PatsFans.com will answer on today’s pod. The duo discuss the ramifications of the injuries to RB Rex Burkhead and OL Isaiah Wynn. Also, Mike will ask Steve his opinion on three Patriots, in particular, that have found their way into our host’s crosshairs.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! EchelonRight now, you can try any Echelon Fitness equipment at home for 30 days. Go to EchelonFit.com/NFLBuilt BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order.MyBookieINVEST IN YOUR INTUITION. USE PROMO CODE LOCKEDON AND DOUBLE YOUR FIRST DEPOSIT. NEW PLAYERS GET UP TO $1,000 IN FREE PLAY - DESIGNED TO ADD MORE EXCITEMENT TO THE SPORTS YOU LOVE AND THE GAMES YOU BET. YOUR WINNING SEASON BEGINS TODAY...ONLY AT MYBOOKIE!BuiltGoVisit BuiltGO.com and use promo code “LOCKED,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order.AxonGet the TASER Pulse Plus, or TASER Strikelight, at Taser.com with promo code [NFL]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You are Locked On Patriots, your daily New England Patriots podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Hello to all of you, Foxborough faithful. You are now locked into the Lockdown Patriots podcast, and it is to be or not to be Tuesday here on your daily home for news notes and analysis infused with the occasional opinion on your six-time Super Bowl champions, the New England Patriots. Lockdown Patriots is presented today by Pepsi, made for football watching. This football season will be different, and Pepsi is here to get you ready for game day, no matter how you watch this season.

Pepsi is the refreshment you need to power through game day and become a member of the League of Football Watchers. Because Pepsi isn't made for those who play the game, it's made for those who watch it. Pepsi, made for football. Watch it. Greetings and salutations, Patriots Nation. It is Tuesday, November 24th, 2020, two days before Thanksgiving. And here on Lockdown Patriots, that means taking a look into something that I know all of you in Patriots Nation are not so thankful for, and that is the 27-20 loss to the Houston Texans on Sunday.

The Pats definitely had their share of problems on both sides of the ball. Yesterday here on the pod, my good friend, the Green King of Sting himself, Thomas Murphy, joined me, and we talked about a lot of the problems the Patriots had, both offensively and defensively. Today we continue on that topic and even take a deeper dive into some of those issues. And joining me in that discussion here on the pod today is another weekly guest of Locked On Patriots, the resident voice of reason himself, Steve Balistrieri of Patsfans.com. And in addition to that deeper dive we'll take into the Patriots' 27-20 Sunday loss,

we'll also be talking about whether or not the Patriots' plans for the future, meaning the playoffs, folks, are to be or not to be. A little Shakespeare for you there for this Tuesday before Thanksgiving. But in any case, I thank you for joining me today here on the pod. 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 folks, because it's your team every day, that means your questions, comments, and feedback are always welcomed at our Thanksgiving dinner table,

even when we're trying our best to practice social distancing. Always feel free to share that feedback anytime by reaching out to me and following me on Twitter at MDABATEFPC. And while you're out there doing some Tuesday traveling through the Twitterverse, please be sure to follow the Locked On Patriots account as well at LO underscore Patriots. And while we're at it, speaking of Tuesday traveling, today is a little bit of an anniversary of sorts. 33 years ago, the long two-day journey to Chicago for one Neil Page and Del Griffith

to get home for Thanksgiving began. And of course, folks, I'm talking about Steve Martin and the late, great John Candy in the John Hughes Thanksgiving classic, Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, which is undoubtedly one of my favorite comedies of all time. Such a great movie to watch. Folks, if you haven't seen it, please check it out. Two comedic legends in Steve Martin, John Candy at the top of their game, and really just the trials and tribulations of them trying

to make it home in bad weather conditions, in an era before Wi-Fi, before cell phones, and before Uber, it's still hilarious to this day. And the events take place starting two days before Thanksgiving. That's why I'm bringing it up today. To me, one of the best Thanksgiving movies of all time. I highly recommend it. Check it out. I'm sure you'll be glad you did.

For those of you that have seen it, I'm sure you're going to be watching it again this week. You know it. You love it. And you know why I mentioned it. But this is Locked on Patriots. And don't worry, folks. That is exactly what we will be discussing today.

And even with the Thanksgiving holiday coming up on Thursday, the Patriots are still very much focused on business. The Arizona Cardinals come to town for a Sunday showdown. And this is an explosive offense led by Karl Murray, DeAndre Hopkins, Chase Edmonds, Larry Fitzgerald, and so much more. Also, a much improved defense that is capable of making plays in all three aspects of the defense, and the Patriots are going to need every bit of what they got to keep it close in this one. And with the exception of Rex Burkhead's injury, which has pretty much all been confirmed to have ended his

season, it's still way too early to determine which Patriots might be on the field or not on the field due to injury. One thing we know for sure is two players who made the initial 53-man roster for your 2020 New England Patriots are now expats. That is outside linebacker Derek Rivers and offensive lineman Yelda Frohold. Both Rivers and Frohold were waived last week in order to make roster room, most notably for the return of Sonny Michel. And word has it that the Patriots were hoping that at least Rivers or Frohold, if not both, would fall through waivers and find their way to the Patriots practice squad. Didn't happen with either one of these guys.

Derek Rivers claimed by the Los Angeles Rams, who just happened to be fresh off of a Monday night victory against old friend Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Yelda has been claimed by the Houston Texans. Credit to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle, who first reported Yelda's claiming by the Texans, and of course Field Yates of ESPN was the first to report that Rivers had been claimed by the Rams. Both of these players came in with a great deal of pedigree, especially Rivers. Rivers was chosen in the third round of the 2017 draft at number 83 overall. He had great size for a linebacker or an edge rusher, 6'5", 250 pounds, really performed well

at Youngstown State, did have a few injury concerns, otherwise it was pretty much a foregone conclusion that Rivers would have gone a lot higher in that draft. And since his arrival in New England, he continued to be plagued by injuries. And ultimately, his legacy here in New England might be what if. Because you really can't question Rivers' talent. Injuries kept him out of the majority of the games he should have played during that span. 15 games during his tenure in New England, including the postseason, finishes with six tackles, two and a half sacks. But here's the problem, folks. Rivers saw two of his initial three years in the NFL end in August due to knee injuries. Just seemed like every time Derek was trying to fight his way back onto the field,

he would suffer another setback. But he did it with a lot of class. He did it with a lot of determination. And Derek is really one of the great guys that I've had the opportunity to be around on this Patriots team. This year, he had played 86 snaps on the edges of the defense, but it looked like his playing time was starting to decrease. And as a result, the Patriots placed him on waivers.

I think this is one they would have liked to have pulled back, but the Rams pounced, and smartly. They get a guy who's dedicated, does have his injury concerns, but if healthy, he can provide a lot of pop to that defense who's playing very well in Los Angeles right now. As for Frohold, he came to New England as a fourth rounder in the 2019 NFL Draft, number 118 overall. Again, good size for his position, much like Rivers.

6'5", 310 pounds, pretty versatile lineman from the University of Arkansas. He went on injury reserve prior to the start of his rookie season last year, played in eight games this season, 61 snaps on offense, and 31 snaps on special teams. And again, Yelda's someone that I thought had a lot of promise. In fact, when David Andrews went down with his injury, I put Yelda on that short list of candidates that could fill that role temporarily. True, he was inexperienced, but he gets set quickly. I think he does a good job of staying in front of his assignment and pass protection, but ultimately, the Patriots ended up going with Joe Tooney in that role and James Ferentz as his backup. That probably wasn't

a good sign for Yelda, who saw his playing time decrease week after week, and that's why the Patriots chose to place him on waivers. Again, another player I think the Patriots wouldn't have mind pulling back to the practice squad, but the Texans pounce. They've got their issues on the offensive line right now. Laramie Tunsell was out for Sunday's game against the Patriots. Yelda can definitely add some size and strength as a depth piece on that offensive line. He still has his issues with getting beat by defensive linemen and linebackers, and ultimately I think that's why the Patriots were a little leery on giving him more playing time, but maybe with the opportunity for more playing time in Houston, he might be able to work that out. So best of luck to Derek Rivers.

Best of luck to Yelda Frohold. Tough breaks for the Patriots, but life goes on here in Foxborough. And in just a moment, my good friend Steve Balistrieri will join me here on the hot seat as we discuss what the potential losses of Rex Burkhead and even Isaiah Wynn might mean for the Patriots offensively. We will also talk about players that I have in my patriotic crosshairs. Players in which I believe very strongly, folks, but I think they need to step up quickly and in a big way.

And of course, don't forget, folks, that even though we'll be taking a break on Thanksgiving Day, Locked On Patriots will continue to come at you both tomorrow on Wednesday and on Friday as we continue to look ahead to the Patriots' Week 12 matchup against the Arizona Cardinals. And for those of you who love it when we cross the streams here on the Locked On Podcast Network, fear not, because it will be crossover Friday this week.

Locked On Patriots and Locked On Arizona Cardinals will get you ready for game day this week, so be sure to stay locked in to Locked On Patriots. But first, Locked On listeners, when Thanksgiving rolls around each and every year, the first thing we think about is giving thanks for the many blessings we have in life. And in a year like 2020, that hasn't always been easy. But one thing that most of us can agree on is giving thanks for our loved ones. And this year, maybe more than any other year, we want to do our best to protect our family. Not just health-wise, but bodily as well.

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Patriots Nation, we continue to attempt to digest the Patriots 27-20 loss to the Houston Texans on Sunday. And help me further break it all down is my Patriots paisan. This man is an amazing columnist for Patsfans.com. And I say it every week, folks, but it doesn't get any less true. One of the best guys in this or any business, Steve Balistrieri, joins me today. Welcome back to the Lockdown Patriots podcast, my friend. Oh, thank you once again for always having me on. I don't know how you're standing, but I'm very appreciative of that. Well, we're very appreciative of having you here.

Are you kidding me? You're one of the easiest guys in the business to stand my friend first of all and second of all we love absorbing your wisdom and counsel it's like the perfect antidote to the green anger that we get on mondays i'm only kidding i'm only kidding you know you you know that guy we both hold that guy in pretty pretty high regard and that is one count of murphy fisto himself thomas murphy but no all kidding aside um we look forward to having you on here every week i always love talking ball with

you and it's always a great way to uh bring uh you know thanks back to the people that help you out and being thanksgiving week it's a perfect time to do it buddy so we dive into it uh there's a lot of disgust in patriots Nation right now, Steve. Four and six through ten games, all hope for the division seems lost. There's a mere thread of hope for the playoffs, and I'm probably being generous on that. But let's start with the obvious here, and the Patriots may not have just suffered a loss in the standings.

Two significant losses in personnel really could end up being a problem for this team, and let's start with Rex Burkhead. You and I hold Rex in very high regard, and I know we were both sad to see him go down with the type of injury that he went down with on Sunday. He was in the middle of a very impressive season, statistically, and he was that versatile change of pace option for the Patriots in the backfieldfield and really was a great compliment, I thought, to Damian Harris and really gave another dimension to that running game. Before his injury, he had touched the football 92 times, 466 yards, six touchdowns. That's a lot of productivity to have to replicate for the Patriots in a short period of time now. Replacing him is not going to be easy, and we know that.

With Burkhead likely to miss the remainder of the season. Again, the Patriots haven't confirmed that yet, but all indications are that he will be. The running back group is going to be Damian Harris, Sonny Michel as the early down options. I think Harris will be your first option. Sonny will be your second option. James White's going to be the receiving back. And I think J.J. Taylor now is going to have to work his way back into this rotation.

He's been a scratch the last few weeks, but I think you'll see him get back in there. Either way, those four players are going to have to help replace what Rex gave you on the field. Steve, in your opinion, I know this weakens the running back core without any question, but is this going to change the dimension of how they did business, or do they still have enough horses in the stable to make this the key part of their offensive attack?

Well, I think in the running game, they have plenty of depth there. I think they'll be just fine there. But as you and I have talked about many, many, many times, Burkhead brings that added dimension where he's very versatile. He's not as good a runner as maybe Sony or Damian Harris, and he's not quite as good a pass catcher as James White, but he does both of them very well, And that's what they're going to miss. They're going to miss that versatility that, you know,

that dimension where the opponent isn't really sure what they're going to do when he's on the field. And, you know, he was having such a really good season and it was scary because, I mean, you could hear him scream on the TV feed when that happened because obviously with no fans in attendance, you could hear that happen. And as soon as that happened, I think everyone's antenna went up knowing right away that this isn't good.

And they're going to miss that. But, you know, at this point in the season, the 4-6, I think the path to the playoffs is 2021 at this point of the season, the 4-6, I think the path to the playoffs is 2021 at this point. I would much rather see, and they probably won't do it, but I would much rather see what they have in J.J. Taylor rather than pushing Sony right back into the mix. I know I'll probably be in the minority there, but, you know, we saw, and again, it was very limited, you know, snap count,

but I liked what they had with Taylor, and he brings that added dimension of having some speed there. I don't know how well he'd do in the passing game because he is small, especially when it comes to pass blocking. But I would really like to see what they have in him rather than force Sony back in there. And we know Sony's not a threat in the passing game. Yeah, without question. And look, I think you're right on the money.

I think you're not. Well, if you are in the minority of thinking that way, then I'm right there with you. And this is coming from a Sony apologist. I've been called the Sony Michelle apologist several times, but I still think there is something there in terms of substance with Sony. But I agree with you with the problems that he's had, whether it be, you know, he's on the COVID list.

I mean, he's had, you know, injuries. I mean, there's no question about it. Rushing him back for what may seem like a futile attempt at an opportunity to maybe increase or decrease your draft status, depending on how you look at it, rushing him back for what may seem like a futile attempt at an opportunity to maybe increase or decrease your draft status, depending on how you look at it. It may be smart for the Patriots to look and see what they have in J.J. Taylor. J.J. does have an explosiveness to him. He's, you know, he's little, but he is fierce. And I think in a lot of ways, we saw that early on this season. Haven't really seen it much lately.

Again, you know, the illness has kept him out of games. And, you know, JJ has been, you know, used sparingly since we saw him kind of explode on the scene a little bit early this season. But I think you're absolutely right. And I think that does open up an opportunity for him to get some reps and maybe get some touches in this offense. Before we move on from Burkhead, the one thing and the one question that I keep getting an awful lot of

is his status as a free agent this year coming up in 2021. We already saw him restructure the deal. Is there a possibility we've seen Rex Burkhead play his last down as a New England Patriot? Oh, I think there's a very good possibility of that. In fact, before the season started, I kind of had the feeling they were going to cut their ties with them this year.

But I think because of, you know, what the situation was with Sonny and his off-season surgery once again, that they got, you they got Rex to agree to a pay cut. I know the coaches love him, but I think now he's looking at a pretty long recovery

time, even in the best situation. I don't even think he'd be ready to go at the start of next season. I think the chances of him coming back just took a big big hit yeah I think they did as well and it's unfortunate because Rex is definitely one of those Swiss Army knife players that is so versatile like you said can do so much catching the ball out of the backfield extending plays getting the yak that you know Murph loves so much and also not only what he brings on the field, but also he's so well-liked and so well-respected in that locker room.

And bottom line, my friend, I mean, you know, it's all window dressing when it comes to what these guys can do on the field. These are human beings, and we definitely wish, you know, Rex a great recovery, a speedy recovery, and a full recovery and with as little pain as possible because he is one of the good guys in this business. And you always want to see someone like that do well. Steve, the other potential loss that the Patriots suffered on Sunday isn't expected to be a season-ending loss, but it could end up being a difficult one. It seems to be coming at a pretty bad time when the offensive line has had its roughest game of the year. Of course, I'm talking about Isaiah Wynn.

His spot in the lineup was filled by Jermaine Illuminor when he went down with the injury. And if there's any possibility that Isaiah is going to be out for any type of extended period of time, and again, folks, we don't know yet what the status is. Bill Belichick was very vague when speaking to the media yesterday about Isaiah Wynn. The educated guess was that Jermaine Illuminor would fill that spot. He did it against the Texans. And the other possibility exists that Mike Unwainu may move over from his starting right tackle spot and maybe take the left tackle position. There's also been talk about possibly shifting over Joe Tooney into the left tackle position. There's also been talk about possibly shifting over Joe Tooney into the left tackle position because he's so versatile.

And with the experience that he has, maybe he could provide more protection for Cam Newton. Your thoughts right now on Isaiah Wynn, him going down with the injury, the injury problems he's had throughout his career here in New England thus far. And who do you think might be the best option to take his place if he's going to miss any time? Yeah, it's sad. I mean, you know, this kid has proven he can play when he's healthy, and I think he's been a really, really good tackle.

I think the Patriots are really happy with him, but he has had some injury issues, just like Rex. And, you know, it's a great question of how they're going to, you know, move with this. I have the feeling they'll either shift Illumina or Michael Awanyu around a little bit, because then if you move Joe Tony around, then you start tinkering with multiple pieces. I don't know.

They tried that in the past, and we saw, and we saw it didn't really work too well. But I guess it will depend on how they feel about this moving forward. But I would stick with one of those guys. I really do. I do think that's what they're going to do. Because then if you move Tony around, then you still have multiple pieces moving around I don't know I I think they're going to go with maybe Illuminor at right tackle and move a one year to left yeah I mean I think that you could make that argument

I mean Illuminor could stay in the left tackle position but we've seen the left tackle position be such an important part of protecting the quarterback protecting the quarterback's blind side and I think in a lot of ways what you need to do is put one of your best run blockers or one of your best offensive linemen in that position to be able to thrive. Oweinu can definitely play the tackle position. We've seen him do it, but he's also more of a natural guard as well. So whether it be Illuminor, whether it be Oweinu, I think those are the two best options. Unquestionably, Joe Tooney is your most versatile. He's your best lineman.

But I do agree, tinkering with a lineup like that. We've seen that happen in the past. It did not yield good results for the Patriots. And I think they'll leave Joe exactly where he is in the left guard position. But stranger things have happened in New England. And of course, this could all end up being a moot point if Isaiah is out on the practice field tomorrow on Wednesday, and it looks like he's going to be able to go. But right now, folks, it really is up in the air. There's a good a chance of this being a long-term injury this

season for Isaiah as there is for him being on the field. We simply won't know, I think, a lot until Wednesday. Steve, we talked a lot about the latest bout with injuries that the Patriots have had, but Sunday's game brought into sharp contrast to me the fact that there are still some players that are in need of stepping it up, both in a big way and quickly. In just a moment, folks, I will seek the wisdom and counsel of our resident voice of reason here when it comes to my list of three Patriots in the crosshairs. No, folks, that's not a bad movie. That's a new segment here on Locked On Patriots, and you can find out who when the Locked On Patriots podcast continues.

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That's B-U-I-L-T-G-O.com, promo code LOCKED. Let's go! Patriots fan Steve Balistrieri joins us here today on Locked On Patriots. And Steve, Sunday's game shed some light on some glaring needs for improvement for this team for me. And I alluded to that just before we went into our break. All we know is that the tight end position is at the top of this list. I'm sorry, Claire, but it's true. I really hate to break it to you. But we know the tight end position is a glaring need on this team.

But in my postgame analysis, I identified three players that I'm placing under the microscope, in the crosshairs, if you will. And I'd like to get your take on them, my friend. And Claire, relax. I'm not going to be talking about tight ends in this segment. My first player is Chase Winovich. And I thought he struggled with Deshaun Watson on Sunday. Chase generated some good pressure on the quarterback, but more often than not, he ended up out of position when he tried to finish off his plays. Deshaun Watson is a great quarterback. He was able to extend the play, found receivers downfield. One thing I will give credit

with Chase is he's drawing penalties a little bit better. He drew two holding penalties, which is a credit to him, but I think there were too many plays where he just seemed to be out of control. And Watson was easily able to sidestep him a few times when he was trying to rush. And that was without wearing army tonsil in this game. I thought without tonsil in the lineup, that was going to help the Patriots get after Deshaun Watson, maybe more than they have against other quarterbacks this year, especially seeing that Deshaun was going to be missing his most valuable protector. But nobody was really able to get into the backfield from the left side, and that seems to be Chase's strong suit. That was disappointing to me. But in your opinion, Bud, am i being too hard on chase here do you think he

belongs in my weekly crosshairs or is there something to the jekyll and hyde type chase winovich that we've seen on the field too often this year well i thought the linebackers especially the outside linebackers i thought winovich and um john simon didn't have what I would call particularly good football games on Sunday. But a lot of that I place on the scheme that they were petrified of Deshaun Watson making plays with his feet. And they decided they weren't going to rush him very much. And, you know, when they did, obviously they didn't get home.

But, you know, when I looked at this, I thought they were especially, you know, his left tackle, his left guard are out. You'd think they would try to force the issue and make him get rid of the football while trying to contain them. They didn't do that. And then when they did decide to rush, they didn't get home. As you mentioned, Winovich, he got some pressure on there. He got two holding calls.

He should have had a third on that touchdown right before the half. I thought that was clear holding on him. But at the same time, the referees, I thought, overall were terrible because I thought they missed a couple of calls on Houston on those two touchdowns, and I thought they missed a couple on the Patriots as well. So I guess you could say it evened out in the end. But, you know, I don't think Winovich had that bad of a game.

I thought him and Simon should have been much, much better. But at the same time, I'm not overly concerned. I think we saw him turn the corner in the last couple of weeks. I just thought it was more scheme than anything on Sunday. Yeah, and I think that's a fair point. And I'm glad you talked me off the ledge with Chase a little bit because we were seeing him come off of arguably his strongest performance of the year, getting a lot of playing time, seeing a lot of playing time in snaps.

These are the types of things that you hit the nail on the head. Scheme can definitely cure. And because of the scheme, I think we saw the linebackers as a whole struggle on Sunday, including edge rush and in the middle of the field as well. And staying on that defensive middle of the field as well and uh staying on that defensive side of the ball my next player in the crosshairs is a linebacker in the middle part of the field and that's juwan bentley uh juwan obviously returned sunday after missing the last two games because of a groin injury didn't provide that much of an impact and i know coming back

from an injury you can't expect too much but there are times where he consistently looked very slow in his reads. He got torched over the middle of the field in coverage. He just picked apart the middle part of the field. He also got pretty well run over by Deshaun Watson on his rushing touchdown in the first half. Jawan Bentley, to to me is showing a lack of speed. And I think that limits him as a linebacker, especially in the middle. He really lacks that full field ability when covering. And don't get me wrong. I like Juwan. I think he's a

great complimentary piece in this defense. I think he's playing the role the best he possibly can, but he hasn't quite been the main man in the middle that we've all hoped for. And we've seen some indications that Bill might be willing to experiment with Josh Uche as the Mike linebacker, but that's a lot to put on a rookie's shoulders. And I think he's been reticent to do that for that reason. Steve, in your opinion, based on what you've seen from Bentley, is it time to unleash Josh Uche and maybe even Anferty Jennings see what these kids can do or is the best of Juwan Bentley still to come this season no I'm certainly in agreement with you again and let's see what the kids can do I mean like I said I think the path to the the playoffs is 2021 let's get these kids you know warts and all some experience and you're going to have kids, you know, warts and all, some experience. And you're going to have warts, you know, when you put rookies in key situations.

But at the same time, you know, Bentley's limitations have come full circle this year. I don't think he's, quote, unquote, the key, like a guy like Dante Hightower is. In fact, that one play where Watson scored on that touchdown right before the half, you know, I thought Carl Davis was being held. That was one of the other calls I thought that the referees missed. But at the same time, I thought Bentley took a terrible angle. And when you're taking bad angles and you have a lack of speed to begin with, I thought he put Devin McCourty in a really bad position. And then Watson ran right over McCourty. Kudos to him. I thought it was a great play.

But at the same time, then Uche steps up in the third quarter. There was that key third down play where Watson tried to scramble. I think it was a third and seven, and Uche took him down. Those were the kind of plays we were looking for out of a guy like Denton, who's a veteran. And, you know, Uche got some pressure. Again, nobody was getting home.

They only had two quarterback hits no sacks but it's enough at least to say hey you know this is something we can build off of with this kid I think him and Jennings need to start seeing more snaps I don't I don't believe that this team has any shot at making the playoffs now so let's get the kids some experience. Not saying Bentley should be benched, but I want to see much more of those two guys like you said. Yeah, agreed. And I think the speed and the youth that's going to be infused by guys like Josh Uche and like Anthony Jennings

is something I think the Patriots are going to continue to look at in the offseason. And unfortunately, my friend, I agree with you. I love to try to hold to that Lloyd Christmas, so you're telling me there's a chance at the playoffs type thing i use that line a lot folks i know but it's it's pretty i think accurate considering what the patriots are going through but bottom line this does give them the opportunity to see what the kids can do and mushe and jennings they expunged a lot of uh draft capital to pick these guys. I think they owe it to the players,

and I think they owe it to themselves to see what these kids can do. So hopefully we will see that, but hopefully Bentley can step it up too. Because again, I do like Juwan. I just think that he's been put in a very difficult position. And when you have a lack of speed at the type of role you're being asked to play, it can lead to the problems we're seeing on the field. Last but certainly not least, my friend, I think the player who's drawing the ire of the Patriots nation is Nikhil Harry. And look, I know it's popular to roast this kid. Everyone loves to post on social media about how much of a bust Nikhil is. We see it. Bill has lost his mind. We could have had Metcalf. We could have had A.J. Brown. We could have been a contender. You name it. They're all out there. And anyone underrated quickness. He was expected to be a threat to make athletic and contested catches when needed. So I don't want to hear that he had a trash reputation coming out of college. That is not true. sports talk machine and they're not looking at it from an honest perspective but that being said i'll get off my soapbox now i will say things have not worked out the way the patriots had hoped and

nikhil has to shoulder some of the blame for that without question on sunday he committed two penalties in the game before he even recorded a catch now albeit i think the argument can be made that neither of them was really a penalty but these were plays that were designed to get Nikhil Harry involved. Oddly enough, following those penalties, Cam and Harry actually started to work better together. Harry had five catches, 41 yards in the game. All that production came in the second half. So I sound like I'm defending Nikhil a lot here,

but he is in my crosshairs this week for one main reason, Steve. The Patriots needed more of that in the first half. They need Nakiel to be that type of receiver that can take the pressure off of guys like Damir Bird, like Jacoby Myers, who are going to see a lot more heavy coverage now because they've been playing much better. Steve, we've seen this kid in practice. We've covered him since the day he was drafted. Do you believe the Patriots will work more to incorporate him into the game plan earlier and more often? Or are we seeing the beginning of the slow erosion of Nikhil Harry

from this offense? That's a good question. I think Cam likes him. I think Cam's going to make sure that they try to get him more involved. I think it comes, again, I think it comes with the scheme. But to go back to your first I think it comes, again, I think it comes with the scheme. But to go back to your first rant that you were talking about, all these people that are screaming from the rooftops about how bad a choice this was,

I don't remember seeing one of those when the Patriots selected him. I don't remember seeing one of those that said we could have had Metcalf. We could have had this guy. I thought that by and large, you know, again, when he was available, I thought the Patriots made a good choice. You know, there's a lot of, you know, rewriting history. I remember there was a lot of people that weren't convinced, even professional NFL draft guys, who said, you know, Metcalf's a one-trick pony. The only thing he can do is go deep with that speed. And he's proved everybody wrong. But that doesn't change anything, you know.

So, again, we go to that. That's all behind us now. You know, hindsight's always 20-20. But in the long run, the Patriots need to get him more involved, and they need to get him more involved down the field. You know, they're asking him to run three- and five-yard little slants. So, you know, with a guy that's as big as him, if he's only catching the ball in three and five yards

and that one pass that Cam threw in the dirt that he was able to scoop out, that was a three-yard pass that ended up a three-yard pass because, you know, that one was on Cam. But they really need to get him involved more down the field. I really believe that. And, you know, I think it all comes with scheme. They have guys that can catch the ball short and make yardage afterwards. He shouldn't be one of those guys.

He should be in that middle tier, those deep comebacks, those deep crossers where he can use his size. And I still don't believe we've seen the best he can do. And I know everyone wants him to dump him, but I think, you know, he'll go somewhere else and start playing well. You know,

it's easy to be a Monday morning quarterback, but you can always look to criticize after the fact. And I completely agree with you. Look for all that. We could have had Metcalf crowd. The last night check DK Metcalf did not go immediately following Nikhil Harry in that draft, folks. So, I mean, for everyone that says that the Patriots are the only ones

that missed out on him, there are a lot of other teams that missed out on him as well. We know from personal experience a certain quarterback that went number 199 in the draft. Every other team passed on him, including the Patriots, repeatedly until they found the opportunity to bring him in. So you can always, always be hindsight. You can always use it being 2020.

But unfortunately, you know, like I said, there's been some difficulties in the keel shoulders. The blame for some of that. But for people to absolutely roast this kid with the vitriol that I've seen is just simply not fair. And if you're doing that, you're not looking at things objectively. I'm sorry to tell you, but that is indeed the case. I agree with you. I think there is still more to this kid. One thing that I keep coming back to was Herm Edwards just immediately following this draft. I remember sitting in on a conference call that Herm gave to the Patriots media, and he really lauded this kid's ability to go up and make contested catches. The one thing he kept saying was challenge him. This kid loves a challenge. Challenge him. Let

him go up and make the contested catches. He thrives on it. He loves it. And I don't think the Patriots have done that enough. And I think you outlined that very articulately. They need to put him in situations where they test him down the field. Let him go up, challenge some of these defenders, go up and make contested catches. Sometimes the best way to see what someone can do and to really allow them to live their potential is to push them to the limit and see what they can do. Challenge them a little bit, you might be surprised at the results. So that being said, I think the Patriots may look to try to unleash him a little bit. And the fact that Cam likes him, I think we might see

that a little bit more. That, you know, being said, of course, Josh McDaniel is going to have to take away the training wheels a little bit and let Cam throw the ball down the field and see what can happen, you know, instead of constantly putting him in position where he needs to do the checkdowns and whatnot. That's a good way to open up the offense, but I think we need to see what Cam can do in the open field as well. Buddy, what can I say? I always appreciate your wisdom and counsel. I always appreciate you taking the time out to join me here on the Lockdown Patriots podcast. For the benefit of our new listeners, please let everyone know where they can find you on social media and what we can expect

in the coming days and weeks from the great pen of Steve Balistrieri. Well, I just finished my report card for the Texans game. And as you can imagine, there wasn't a lot of stellar things to talk about, although I do think there was a lot of stellar things to talk about, although I do think there was a lot of positives in there. Defensively, not so much, but I don't think Clara will be talking to

me if she reads my report card for Sunday, but it is what it is, my friend. Now I'm starting to dig into, like, what's going on this weekend because the Patriots out of the frying pan into the fire. It doesn't get any easier. They have the Arizona Cardinals on tap this week. You talk about a mobile quarterback who can make things happen. I think you just take Deshaun Watson and multiply it times two, and you have this week. Yeah, without question, definitely a tough test on the horizon

for the Patriots this weekend. Kyler Murray, DeAndre Hopkins, a lot of offensive weapons and a much improved defense in Arizona. And as the week progresses here on Locked On, we will continue to take a look at the Arizona Cardinals and what Sunday's game may face in terms of challenges for the Patriots. Steve, thanks

again, buddy. Always, always appreciate it. A very happy Thanksgiving to you and your family. Stay safe, stay well. And we look forward to breaking it all down again with you next week here. Hopefully we're back in the win column, but we take them as they get them, my friend. And we'll definitely bring you the latest win, lose, or draw for the New England Patriots.

Thanks again for having me. Anytime, bud. And just like that, Patriots fans, we are one day closer to the holiday, and that means on tomorrow's Thanksgiving Eve episode of Locked On Patriots, we will turn the page away from the Texans and begin our look ahead at the Arizona Cardinals. So to ensure that you do not miss a single second of the action, be sure to subscribe to and follow the Locked On Patriots podcast on platforms such as Stitcher, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts.

Wherever you get your podcasts, just make sure that you're staying locked into Locked On Patriots. Once again, my name is Mike DeBate. I thank my friend Steve Balistrieri for his time, his insight, and his appearance on today's pod. But most of all, I thank you so much for listening and for making Locked On Patriots a daily part of your New England Patriots coverage. Until tomorrow, stay safe, stay well, always be the change you wish to see in the world. Have a great day, everyone.