Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Tre Day, Mac Makes and Impact and More from 2022 New England Patriots Minicamp

Episode Date: June 18, 2022

With 2022 mandatory minicamp now in the books for the New England Patriots, the collective interest of Pats fandom will now turn to training camp. Host Mike D’Abate welcomes Steve Balestrieri of PatsFans.com to discuss the minicamp performance of Mac Jones, the emergence of wide receiver Tre Nixon and more highlights from mandatory minicamp in Foxboro.Find and follow Locked On Patriots on your favorite podcast platforms:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/locked-on-patriots-daily-podcast-on-the-new-england/id1140512627 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1c5ZxFmwg3WbfxAU3tR5Ve?si=k196wH-yRqifUcQQz8SjIQStitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/locked-on-patriots And follow host Mike D’Abate on Twitter, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the New England Patriots and talking with fans.On Twitter: @mdabateNFLSupport Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!Built BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKED15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.BetOnlineBetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!Rock AutoAmazing selection. Reliably low prices. All the parts your car will ever need. Visit RockAuto.com and tell them Locked On sent you.Blue NileMake your moment sparkle with jewelry from Bluenile.com, and LOCKED ON SPORTS listeners get $50 off purchases of $500 or more using code LOCKEDON.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Mac Jones is still the man, Trey Nixon makes an impact, and what can we expect from your New England Patriots as they march toward 2022 training camp? I'm Mike DeBate, you're about to be locked in to the Locked On Patriots podcast. You are Locked On Patriots, your daily New England Patriots podcast, part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Hello to all of you, Foxborough faithful, and thank you once again for making Locked On Patriots your first listen every day and also a daily part of your New England Patriots coverage.

Remember, folks, Locked On Patriots, free and available on all platforms. So download, subscribe to, and follow the Locked On Patriots podcast wherever you get your podcasts, and smash that subscribe button to YouTube. Today's episode of Locked On Patriots is brought to you by Blue Nile. Make your moment sparkle with jewelry from BlueNile.com. And Locked On Patriots listeners get $50 off purchases of $500 or more. This podcast exclusive includes engagement. So use the promo code LOCKEDON at checkout.

Pats fans, thank you once again for joining me here on this weekend episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast. I'm your host, Mike DeBate. In addition to being your host here on Locked On Patriots, I also cover your Pats for Patriots Country of Sports Illustrated. So let me know what's on your mind. Interact with me by smashing that subscribe button to YouTube and also interacting with me on Twitter at MDABATENFL. And while you're out there showing some love to the Twitterverse, please show some love to the Lockdown Patriots account as well at LO underscore Patriots.

Pats fans, 2022 minicamp is in the books. The Patriots going for a two-day minicamp this time around. Day three washed away by weather on Thursday, but the New England Patriots still managed to make a little headline when it comes to the news of the day. And here to discuss that news of the day and training camp overall is our resident voice of reason. And we're always thrilled to welcome him back. One of the best, most knowledgeable columnists that you'll find anywhere in Patriots media. Not just a great columnist for patsfans.com, but also the host of not one, but two amazing Patriots podcasts.

Patriots 4th and 2, alongside Derek Havens and Russ Goldman and as well as one Patriots place with our good friends Thomas Murphy and the Countess of Clas herself Miss Claire Clasie Claire Cooper the resident voice of reason has returned Steve Balistrieri joins me here today on Locked On welcome back to Locked On Patriots my friend oh as always thanks for having me Mike I you know I love talking football with you and you you know, I was missing being up in New England this week because, uh, mini camp, uh, you and I have been sitting there in the past and first time the players are on the field, you know, and officially, I guess you could say, I know OTAs are a little bit different, but you know, mini camp is

kind of when it all starts to fall into place. Absolutely. Yeah. And I definitely, you know, I missed you, but, uh, without any different, but, you know, minicamp is kind of when it all starts to fall into place. Absolutely. Yeah. And I definitely, you know, I miss you, but without any question, but your presence was definitely felt. And the minute Jake Bailey started popping those hang times over 5.7 seconds, all of a sudden I thought of you, my friend, and I guess a couple of them maybe on their way down. I think Jake still hit a couple of them that might be, you know, entering your atmosphere pretty soon. If you start to see some of the footballs flying, you'll know they came from Jake and they came to you directly.

But no, all kidding aside, buddy, it's always, always great to join you on the microphone. And I know you still have your sharp eye affixed on the New England Patriots and the progress that they're making when it comes to training camp and it comes to, you know, making those progress that they're making when it comes to training camp and it comes to you know making those moves that they need to make to make sure that training camp is productive and that the Patriots put the best quality product out there in 2022 as they possibly can you know let's dive right into it I mean all eyes are always on the quarterback and I know a lot of

fans have questions about offense defense play calling that's all valid but a lot of this stems from the progress that mac jones is going to be able to show in year two and one of the things that impressed me most this week about mac was his ability to command leadership command respect but show leadership i should say but command respect from the guys that are in the locker room the guys that are in the huddle. Mack looks much more confident this year. He looks much more comfortable leading this offense. Got a little extra zip on the arm. I'm sure we're going to talk about that in a moment.

But really, I just think that the steps that he's taken, the maturity that he's shown, is really going to make this team pop this year. Judging from what you've read, what you've seen, what you've heard on Mac Jones' performance the last couple of days, how confident are you that the New England Patriots will take a step forward this year with Mac Jones under center? Oh, I definitely am in that camp. I think he's primed to make a big jump in year two. And we kind of saw it.

I mean, you know know since the season ended he's been taking more of a leadership role he was get gathering guys down in florida for workouts you know he uh he worked on himself uh you know everyone was talking about his body i think uh probably more so than we probably should have been but But, you know, then he was working with Tom House, improving his arm strength and mechanics, you know, which is a big thing when it comes to throwing a football. And, you know, everything we've seen so far, all going really, really positive.

I think, as Bill said, this is his team now. Mac's our quarterback. Absolutely. And, you know, I think, as Bill said, this is his team now. Mac's our quarterback. Absolutely. I think he feels it this year, and now he's ready to take that step. I completely, completely agree with you. And, look, the stuff that we're seeing him do on the field this year is much different than what we saw Mac do in the previous year. I mean, first of all, he knows it's his job now,

and I think you're absolutely right on that. For Bill Belichick to start saying Mac is our quarterback, do you know that he's going to be the starter this year? He's not singing for his supper. He's not trying to go out there and prove anything, knowing that at best he was probably going to be a backup. During minicamp last year, we're all assuming Cam Newton is getting the starting job, and I think everyone believed that even if

Mack performed at a high level and overtook Cam throughout the season, that they were probably still going to go with Cam right out of the chute as the starting quarterback. Definitely not the case this year. And for anybody worried about his arm strength, Mack had a couple of nice deep balls this time around, a couple of them to Trey Nixonixon who we're going to talk about in just a moment uh but to me the 60 yard completion that he made on wednesday really was the eye opener i mean that was the very tight window uh credit to trey nixon who made a great catch on that jonathan jones even had his arm this kid went around with and made a great catch but mac wasn't afraid to talk to press the issue he threw into coverage he knew that his receiver could go up and get it and put it in a situation or he threw into coverage he knew that his receiver could go

up and get it and put it in a situation or put it in a place where only the receiver could really make a play on the ball those are things we didn't see Mac do too much of last year sitting there looking at what he was able to do making completions 25 30 yards down the field these are moments where Mac would have checked the ball down last year The fact that he's making these completions now shows to me that he has more confidence. He knows the playbook better, and he's also improved his arm strength. And for all of the arm strength experts that reside in the Western New York area, that they, they got everything covered up there. They know all about arm strength. You know, they're, they're really, they're, they're really dialed into it. Two years of success, I guess, makes

you an expert after 20 plus years of futility, but I digress, folks. Let's get back to the problem at hand, or let's get back to the notion at hand, my friend. This, to me, is where Mack, I think, is going to really stand out, and he's showing that leadership. Definitely love to see it, and even just the fun that he's having out there on the field i mean you got living on a prayer blasting in the background john bon jovi's in attendance you know mac just whips out the air guitar i mean he just starts you know playing and guys are really enjoying playing alongside of him so even though that's like a more fan friendly moment where you just look at it and go that's just a kid having fun

those things mean a lot because if he's having that type of fun playing football, he knows he's in a groove. He knows he's got the respect of his teammates. It's all about keeping it now. And everything he did on the field over the course of the last two days really, I think, solidified his position as the starting quarterback. So good stuff. Good, good stuff.

Yeah. And, you know, to piggyback off those comments, I mean, you know, the Patriots are known for being all business when they're on the field. But, you know, they've always traditionally had one or two of those guys who keep things light, not saying that they don't take their job seriously, but, you know, who tend to get everyone fired up and i think they have about three of those guys on offense this year mac being one of them uh damian harris you know is is a guy that loves having fun while he's out there doing his job and although he didn't play

this week kendrick bourne is another one right. And I think you have to have those guys. You know, Belichick used to, you know, as serious as Belichick was, Mike Vrabel used to crack him up at times. Absolutely. That's a team bonder there, and I think that's a great thing to have. It truly is. It really is. And you see it in moments like this, especially training camp, minicamp especially,

because you get a chance to see these players interact with each other when they know that only the media is watching the fans are not in attendance they're not really forced to put on a show but they still want to be the showman uh and you mentioned those guys and i do agree and on defense there goes there are those guys too matt judon belted out a chorus of living on a prayer i gotta say it he sounded pretty good uh you know john bon jovi's taking notes and he's going, hey, you know what? That's not bad. No, all kidding aside, it really is. It creates levity. It creates

I think an aura of fun on this team. And despite of what Lane Johnson will tell you, this team is having fun out there. So if the New England Patriots are doing that, then they will definitely go places. And look, if you want any evidence, any hardcore evidence that this team had fun out there on the field, but also performed very well, Bill Belichick foregoing the last two days of OTAs,

which was scheduled for Monday and Tuesday. I know Friday's, you know, practice was canceled due to inclement weather. Again, our friends in western New York seem to be weather experts. I tell you, they just know everything up there. But when it comes to the Patriots not taking the field yesterday, yeah, it was nasty up here in New England. There's no question about it. Not good conditions for a final practice. Apparently, Bill Belichick saw enough of what he needed to see in those two days

for minicamp to say, you know what, take an extra day and let's hit it hard when you guys show back up here in late july and um you know it's nothing new he's done that in the past too he's done that yeah he has done that for going the final day is a little against the grain for bill i thought maybe if they did miss on friday then maybe he'd bring everybody back on monday just to regroup But at that point, players have plans. They have things that need to go on. And, you know, there's no point in really keeping these guys here if he's seen all he needs to see. So in Bill, we trust. And we'll see what this team looks like in training camp in a little over a month when they begin in Foxborough. But Steve we're not ready to take our leave of training camp just yet.

Because there were some standout moments on the field. For the Patriots during these last two days. Including a second year wide out. That might end up being this year's new camp darling. Trey Nixon stood out above the rest. And Steve and I are going to talk Trey Nixon. And we're also going to talk a little defensive side of the ball as well. When this weekend episode of the Lockdown Patriots podcast continues.

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here today talking training camp. We talked a little Mac Jones. We talked the lighthearted mode of the Patriots training camp, two-day training camp in Foxborough this past week, but not all of it was lighthearted, Steve. It wasn't just about guys getting together and, you know, shooting the breeze that haven't seen each other in a while. There were some standout performances and arguably the standout performer, if you don't count Mac Jones, who I think was the MVP of the last couple of days, but a standout performer, maybe a breakout performer, maybe a better way to put this, was wide receiver Trey Nixon. Of course, everyone knows Trey Nixon as seventh rounder in the 2021 NFL draft, the final pick of Ernie Adams' illustrious NFL career. He submits the draft card and Trey comes in with a little bit of mystery surrounding him,

some promise. Everybody knew about his speed and his potential to be a downfield threat, but we didn't see it too much last year. This year in training camp, Trey came to play, and he's developing a very nice relationship with Mac Jones. These two are on the same page. He's making contested catches, going up, getting the football, getting open. This kid looks good to me so far, but in what you've seen, what you've read about Trey and the history that he brings to the table, how seriously should the Patriots be taking him as a potential roster candidate for 2022?

Oh, I would definitely think they were taking him seriously. Obviously, like you said, it was the last official act of Ernie Adams' career. And that speaks volumes in terms of inside that building because he's been what I call an FOB, a friend of Bill's since high school. Those two have known each other for over 50 years, so Bill trusts him implicitly. So I think they believe that if this kid can develop a little bit more, he can play in this league. And the fact that he was showing out not only on day one, but day two, you know, he put together back to back really solid, you know, performances out there on the field. I think that, you know, uh, open some eyes a little bit,

but I'm sure that the coaches already know he, you know, what he can do, but, you know, now he's proven it. And the thing about it is he wasn't going against a guy that might be a bottom of the roster guy. He's going against one of the better, uh, slot corners in the league, Jonathan Jones, very good point, you know, and, you know, he got a 40, a 60, and I think a 70-yard touchdown and two days of work. Granted, no pads, no contact, but they're still competing out there. And the fact that he was able to do it, and as you said earlier, made a great one-handed catch when, you know,

Jonathan Jones armbarred his other arm so that's that's huge right there absolutely i'm glad you mentioned the pads i'm going to come back to that in just a moment but this kid definitely has it he has that it factor and i think it all goes back to really uh coming into his own in terms of gaining that confidence that he needed to be a factor this year in the Patriots wide receiver rotation. I think back to the story that Trey told us last year when he found Ernie Adams working out on one of the treadmills in the training room in New England. He was curious as to what made him catch Ernie's eye, basically. What know, what was it about me that really made you, you know,

want to choose me as your final, you know, draft choice? Because let's face it, there were people out there on the board that were still available. And Ernie just said, you know what, kid, don't think too much into, you know, the future, just don't make too much of it. You know, you're smart, you got good size, and you play the game well. And that's exactly what we need to help us. And he mentioned his speed. And by the way, there's definitely his, you know, speed game well and that's exactly what we need to help us and he mentioned his speed and by the way there definitely is uh you know speed i think that's what we were looking from from trey nixon last year run ran the 40 in a 4.43 so you know this kid can get down the field and he can beat his defender but where i think he stands out and this is where i know a lot of fans like you said about the pads i've gotten a lot ofs, a lot of questions the last few days. Let's see what he looks like with the pads on.

Let's pump the brakes a little bit. Is Trey being overhyped right now a little bit? Maybe. I mean, I think that any journalist in our business, Steve, that says they don't overhype a player a little bit for journalistic or dramatic effect is probably being very disingenuous. We all do it. But there's a difference between overhyping a little bit and turning water into wine that's not what we're doing with this kid he's got the ability and the thing that impressed me the most about watching

him and looking at what he what he brings to the table is the physicality that i thought he lacked a little bit at central florida during his college days this kid has that necessary toughness to make those catches in tight coverage you mentioned going up against guys like jonathan jones he went right in between devin mccordy and kyle duggar two of the better safety defenders on this team maybe in the conference and he made contested catches in that availability he also had a chance to be able to blow by some of the defenders as well to show what he can do so I look at that I do look at his ability to demonstrate that he can run smooth routes he can facilitate the catch and short yardage but I think that quickness that he

has at the line to me separates him from the rest he can use his speed to shed defenders early right at the line, and that's where I think he's going to shine, and that's why I believe that he's going to be relatively the same type of player without the pads on as with them on. I think that spells a lot of great stuff for Trey Nixon, so I don't have much concern, folks, about when they put the pads on. Yeah, it's going to get a little more physical. Yes, the competition level is going to be upped. But if you're thinking that you're going to see a totally different Trey Nixon with pads as opposed to without, I don't see this kid wilting down the stretch or not being able to live up to the hype. I think he's ready for it. Yeah. And especially he's in his second

year. And as we all know, the Patriots' route for their, you know their wide receivers is really, really intricate. And last year, he might have happened to think about everything. I mean, it's his first year in the system, and we hear that from guys all the time. The second year, they feel like, okay, now I know what I have to do. I can just go out and not have to overthink it as i'm you know making my moves and i can just run and play football the way i'm used to playing it so that uh i i think it's it's a legitimate um talking point and i think that you know if he can carve out a role for himself

i uh i wanted to get your take on this because i didn't see it but I heard they even used him a little bit in the kicking game of day two you know how did he look doing that he looked good I mean the Patriots are trying on a lot of different aspects there as well we saw Ty Montgomery back there we saw Jack Jones back there a little bit I think they're trying to see what they have ultimately I think those responsibilities for the kick return may end up going to tie the way I'm looking at the way they're putting this together. I think they would love Marcus Jones to be their punt returner, but he's still wearing the red non-contact jersey, limited in his availability.

I hope he's able to get some rest, kind of, you know, heal up whatever injuries that he's got going on, because I would love to see him returning punts in training camp. He was electric doing that for Houston during college one of the big I think selling points of bringing Marcus in here but Trey is someone that can do it and I think that in a lot of respects the Patriots have a lot of options to use this year maybe more so than they've had in years past I know the last couple of seasons coming in this was Gunner's job I mean there's no question about it he was they made that man a gunner for a reason uh but when you look at the the versatility on a lot of these guys i would throw him right in there into the mix but my

guess is that the job is more going to be for john montgomery for kick returns and then marcus jones for punt returns but a lot of that is going to be based on health as well. So Marcus still comes in and he's still showing some signs of being a little worse for the wear. Things could get interesting in Foxborough in a huge hurry. Excellent. Yeah, because, you know, we know what Marcus can do. And I was curious, you know,

how if Trey Nixon can carve out a role for himself on special teams. I mean, that's a path to the roster. And then if somebody gets banged up, that's a path to, you know, getting some solid reps in there. Absolutely. And we saw this with Christian Wilkerson last year, who did a lot on special teams, worked closely with Kyle Duggar a lot of people thought that relationship and that budding chance to be able to have these guys move forward was something that would catapult him into a roster spot ultimately he found himself as a practice squatter but Trey Nixon and his ability to connect with Mac this year is something interesting but again we've seen players do that and then not necessarily be able to carry the hype. I do believe in Trey Nixon, and I think he will carry that hype.

But ultimately, it's going to be about how he performs on the field. And we'll see. We'll see if he's worth the hype that he's getting now. But look for it more in the coming days and weeks, because he'll continue to be a hot topic of discussion heading into this season, and especially the start of training camp coming up in less than a month. Steve, it's always, always a blast to talk football with you, but we're not quite ready to take our leave of training camp just yet because it wasn't all about offense,

and it even wasn't all about on special teams. A couple of defensive standouts as well, and I'm going to get Steve's thoughts on his opinion on what these guys can do heading into training camp, as well as any other storylines that are still out there for Steve to be able to lend his unique and down-the-middle wisdom and counsel that we all know and love here on Locked On Patriots. And we will do so when the Locked On Patriots podcast continues in just a moment. But first, folks, as I said earlier, summer is indeed coming.

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So don't delay. Do it today. Head over to Built.com and enter the promo code LOCK15 to get 15% off your next order. That's promo code LOCK15 at Built.com. Patriots fans, we're almost ready to wrap things up here on this weekend episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast, but not before getting a little Balistrarian wisdom and counsel on not only the Patriots defense, but also the future of this team heading into training camp. As always, I am joined by my good friend Steve Balistrarian, columnist extraordinaire of Patsfans.com.

And Steve, we've talked a lot about the offense. We even sprinkled in a little special teams talk. But it wouldn't be complete for your visit here unless we talked a little defense, unless we talked a little bit about the protective side of the ball. And on the field, it's always tough to evaluate some defensive standouts during training camp. Pads aren't on. You're not doing a lot of hitting. You're not doing a lot of physicality.

So it's very difficult to see what these guys are truly able to do. It's a lot more about coverage. Great seeing John Jones back out there on the field. Just having him back, having him in there is truly great to see. And the Patriots sorely need his presence in the slot without any question at the very least for this year it's good to see him directing traffic out there again we're also seeing guys like Malcolm Butler out there Jack Jones getting a lot of reps with the first team when it comes to the cornerback position linebackers guys like Raekwon

McMillan back out on the field Cam Cam McGrone, Josh Uche. These guys are leading the charge to try to see if they can infuse more speed and maybe a bit more athleticism to this defense. As you look at the defensive side of the ball, the way this team is put together, what are your thoughts on what you've heard in training camp and what are you most looking forward to as this team heads toward training camp in less than a month yeah i mean one of the surprises right off the bat you know at minicamp was that they were throwing jack jones right out there with the you know the the top unit and they weren't afraid to match him up with the Patriots' best receivers, which tells you a lot.

It tells you that they're not worried about this kid's confidence, that they feel like he can play, and they wanted to see him, you know, how he reacts. I mean, if you're a cornerback in minicamp, you know, not able to jam, you're going to get beat occasionally i mean they all do but the fact that they wanted to see how he reacts to that which tells me a lot i think i mean i think they have a lot of confidence in this kid i think he acquitted himself very well from everything i've seen in red and i think that was a really good positive. Again, you and I talked about him a couple of weeks ago

where we both were of the opinion the reason he was a fifth-round pick really didn't have much to do with his on-field ability. It was more he had some off-field issues. Hopefully those are all behind him now. I was very pleasantly – I'm not going to say surprised because I thought he could play, but I was surprised to a degree that they threw him out there that early. Yeah, I was a little bit surprised as well.

But when you see him out there on the field, you understand exactly what the Patriots are looking for. Two things that really stand out to me with Jack, outstanding athleticism. This kid is a tremendous athlete he really is able to uh you know contort his body in a lot of different ways that allow him to be in position even when you think he's out of position he had a way of sliding into it just when you thought that he wasn't able to get there uh so that really to me is really to stand. And he's got very good ball skills, too. This guy has a nose for the football. He can find it. He knows how to read quarterbacks. Don't forget, he's out there. He's competing against Mac Jones in a lot of ways. So he's

competing against NFL-level talent. I know a lot of people are saying, oh, well, he got some looks against Bailey Zappi. And it's not the same as going against the seasoned veteran by the way macker is really not a seasoned veteran either folks he's a second year quarterback um but definitely a lot more pro experience and definitely on another level uh and he's holding his own with the guys that are out there and the off-field issues were definitely the deterrent from i think people trying to give him the benefit of the doubt the patri Patriots did it. Let's see if that's how it works out. I know they highly vetted him, heavily vetted him, heading into the draft process.

But that, I think, to me, is going to be something where if he shows that maturity and he's able to come onto the field and really express a desire to be a sponge, absorb all of the wisdom and counsel that he can get from all of his players around him in the secondary, then I think good things for Jack Jones on the horizon. Maybe not a starting role this year, but who knows, toward the end of the season, maybe, but I think definitely in 2023, you're looking at a guy that definitely is going to be a factor on the perimeter for this

team at the cornerback position. Steve, we are almost done here today with our evaluation of two-day training camp in Foxborough. But it wouldn't be a typical visit from you unless we got your thoughts into that Belistrarian crystal ball that to me is just as valuable as the Belichickian crystal ball that they look in in one Patriots place. As this team heads toward training camp, what are the most pressing storylines you're looking at? Is it something that came out of minicamp that you're looking forward to seeing continued? Or is there something that's still under the radar for you in training for a minicamp that you're really looking forward to see popping in training camp?

What are you looking forward to next month? Well, I think I just want to see more of the young guys, the guys they drafted and brought in as, you know, undrafted free agents. I always, in training camp, I always love to see how they do in their first go around. I think, you know, watching guys like Cole Strange, and many can't get a good feel for the running game because of the no pads aspect. But I want to see how he holds up in the running game as well as in the passing game.

Tyquan Thornton, I mean, we know about his speed. And then it comes to the play calling. I mean, we've heard that they're gonna you know introduce some of that shanahan style offense to the the team this year right and i think that plays well into guys like you know taekwon thornton pierre strong you know i want to see what those guys do when they have those kind of misdirection plays where everything flows like to the left. And then they cut across to the right. You know, you can get the ball to these guys in space.

There might be a lot of opportunity for them to make plays. And then, you know, for all the talk about the play calling and with the coaches, the big thing for me in training camp was to see not so much the play calling, but as long as the guys going out on the field for a package of plays, are they lining up right? Are they, you know, is there miscommunication? Are they throwing 10 guys out or 12 guys out? You know, these are the things I would look for.

And if we're not seeing any of that, then I'm not concerned at all. Because, you know, as we all know, 68,000 people in the stadium, 67,000 are going to disagree with the play call on third down if they don't make a first. You know what I'm saying? Absolutely. It really is a thankless job. It really is.

And I know we didn't talk too much about the play calling today. We've been talking a lot about play calling. So I wanted to give our viewers and our listeners a little bit of a break on it. A lot of talk earlier on in the week, whether it be Murph coming on or talking to Claire earlier this week as well. We talked a lot about that and what that brings to the table and how matt patricia uh will uh you know handle those duties and joe judge as well because i think a lot of people are forgetting that joe judge is still involved in the play calling process as well as bill belichick so these are going to be interesting times that we live in steve no question about it and i'm looking forward to that uh but i agree with you the thing that i'm looking forward to most in training camp is seeing the young guys not only the rookies that we have, like a Taequann Thornton, who I can't wait to see, the two new running backs coming in, Kevin Harris and Pierre Strong, being able to really show what they can do, but also some of the second year players,

particularly guys like McGrone coming in now and showing what they can do and help to not only infuse some speed into the offense, but also that speed that everybody wants to see in the defense. Once the pads come on, it's going to be interesting to see how that front seven of New England matches up with the new look offensive line. And who knows, maybe we'll be seeing Isaiah Winn at right tackle a little bit more. I thought maybe it was just kind of a whim, but there's apparently rumblings that this may stick.

So we'll see. Training camp is going to be the definitive word on that. And I think that's something that I'll be looking forward to as well. Steve, what can I say? You always lend the wisdom and counsel the way only you can, the level-headed wisdom and counsel, and bringing us back to a real place here on Locked On Patriots. I'm always eternally grateful for you taking the time out and joining me here today on the pod.

For the benefit of our new listeners, please let everyone know where they can find you, your great work, and what we can expect in the coming days and weeks leading up the training camp from the great Penn and the great voice of Steve Balistrieri. Well, thanks again, as always, for inviting me on, Mike. It's always a pleasure. You know, I miss my Patriot Paisan, you know, this time of year up there and Gillette. So, no, but I appreciate all that. You can find me on Twitter at SteveB7SFG, just as it says right there.

You know, I'm on Facebook and Instagram and all that other stuff at Steve Ballesteri. I write for passfans.com. We do the podcast, as you mentioned, at the outset of the show. And, you know, looking ahead, you know, you mentioned Isaiah Wynn. We never really got to him. You know, I think there's a chance, and we'll see, and we won't know until probably midway through training camp that they might

deal Isaiah win and save 10 million in cap space. Absolutely. I wrote about, yeah, I wrote about Isaiah a little bit earlier this week and that's one of the big questions. Uh, you know,

are they moving him over to make him more of an, you know, more of a palatable trade piece? Uh, you can say the same thing about Nikhil Harry getting some reps at tight end. Does it make these players a little more versatile and maybe a little bit more apt to be moved? We'll see what happens there because I can tell you the Patriots are very high

on what they see coming out of Justin Heron. So that's something to keep an eye on, and we'll continue to keep an eye on all of the latest news notes and analysis from Foxborough right here on Locked on Patriots, folks, each and every day. Locked on Patriots, free and available, all platforms. So once again, download, subscribe to, follow the Locked on Patriots podcast wherever you get your podcasts, and smash that subscribe button on YouTube. Thank you all so much for joining me here today. And again, for making locked on Patriots,

but daily part of your new England Patriots coverage on behalf of my good friend, Steve Balistrieri of batsfans.com. I'm Mike debate. Stay safe. Stay well, be the change you wish to see in the world. Have a great weekend,

everyone. And thank you so much for all of your support here at lockdown Patriots.