The New England Patriots added 10 rookies in the 2020 NFL Draft, and signed a handful more afterwards, which should inject youth into one of the league’s older rosters in 2019. Tom Brady is gone. Stephen Gostkowski is gone. And New England seems intent upon replacing them with younger players.
The youth movement could continue into training camp, with a number of veterans losing their jobs to this rookie class. What’s more, there is a decent free agent class of low-budget additions who should be in competition for roster spots — but they may also be on the bubble.
Here’s a look at which veterans will be fighting for their jobs.
Matt LaCosse, TE
The arrival of two rookies could bring an end to LaCosse’s tenure with New England. It’s likely that rookie tight end Devin Asiasi arrives to the Patriots as a bigger contributor than LaCosse, who struggled to make an impact in 2019. LaCosse has as good a chance as anyone to get the third tight end spot behind Asiasi and Dalton Keene, the other 2020 third-round draft choice at tight end. But after LaCosse’s supremely rough season, New England could go the way of one of the undrafted rookie tight ends for the third spot.
Ryan Izzo, TE
Much of what I wrote about LaCosse is true of Izzo. He’s entering his third year in the NFL after he failed to make the second-year leap. Izzo was touted to be a blocking tight end, but he was not proficient in that department — nor did he come through with contributions as a pass-catcher. Unless he breaks out to contribute in one way or another, he’ll be off the roster at the 53-man cuts.
Korey Cunningham, OL
He will be in competition with 2019 third-round draft choice Yodny Cajuste to serve as the team’s third tackle. Cuningham joined the Patriots via trade in August 2019 in exchange for a sixth-round pick, and yet when tackle Isaiah Wynn ended up on injured reserve, the Patriots did not turn to Cunningham. Cajuste’s return from injury and the arrival of versatile offensive lineman Justin Herron in the draft could spell problems for this veteran offensive lineman.
Jermaine Eluemunor, OG
The competition for the backup guard job has gotten quite competitive this summer. New England retained Joe Thuney with the franchise tag, and Shaq Mason is set to keep playing on his sizable deal. Behind them, Hjalte Froholdt, 2019 fourth-round pick, will compete with Eluemunor and Michael Onwenu, a 2020 sixth-round pick. Froholdt showed an impressive amount development during the 2019 preseason before the team shut him down with injury for his rookie season.
Deatrich Wise, DE
The defensive end position is sort of an oddity in the front that they ran last season. New England generally had three defensive linemen or fewer on the field, which makes a lanky athlete like Wise a small role player. If New England favors four-man fronts more often in 2020, then perhaps Wise will get more work. In the meantime, he’s a situational player who could potentially lose his job to the arrival of a handful of rookie edge players. Nick Coe, for example, may end up being a source of competition for Wise.
Derek Rivers, OLB
While Wise doesn’t exactly have a huge source of competition for his job, Wise’s draft classmate, Rivers, is entrenched in one of the most competitive sports on the roster. The edge linebacker job could get heated, with Brandon Copeland signing in free agency and Shilique Calhoun re-signing. New England also drafted Michigan’s Josh Uche in the second round and Alabama’s Anfernee Jennings in the third round. Rivers, a 2017 third-round pick, seemed like a promising selection out of Youngstown State, where he set the school’s record for sacks. But he hasn’t panned out in New England, in part due to injuries shutting him down in recent seasons,
Shilique Calhoun, OLB
New England seemed to like Calhoun last year. They experimented with him in the starting lineup during training camp. But during the regular season, he saw a small number of snaps, and as mentioned, the outside linebacker job has a major influx of talent, even if there are two openings after the departures of Jamie Collins and Kyle Van Noy.
Terrence Brooks, safety
The arrival of Adrian Phillips seemed like a problematic addition for Brooks. Then the Patriots drafted Lenoir-Rhyne safety Kyle Dugger at 37th overall. Finally, the team signed Patrick Chung to a contract extension Wednesday. The only promising sign for Brooks was that Duron Harmon got traded to the Detroit Lions — but Brooks’ job is much closer to that of Chung and Phillips. The Patriots clearly liked working with Brooks in 2019, but he wasn’t super consistent when they gave him a bigger role on defense.
Adrian Phillips, safety
The addition of Phillips may have been because of some sketchy game film from Brooks in 2019. When Chung was dealing with injuries, the Patriots needed a big, physical and versatile defensive back to step up and help in run defense while holding up in coverage against tight ends. Brooks wasn’t quite ready for the job. Perhaps another year of seasoning will help and he can beat out Phillips for the fourth safety job. Perhaps Phillips wins out.
Gunner Olszewski, WR
The slot receiver and return man suffered injuries, which ended his 2019 season prematurely. His cowboyish attitude on and off the field made for a fun story, and there’s good reason to believe the Bemidji State product could someday be a productive NFL receiver. But the competition for the back end of the receiver position is getting crowded.
The top of the depth chart will be some combination of Julian Edelman, N’Keal Harry and Mohamed Sanu. And then Marqise Lee, Damiere Byrd, Jakobi Meyers, Olszewski, Jeff Thomas, Will Hastings and Isaiah Zuber will be fighting for the remaining roster spots.
Jakobi Meyers, WR
Meyers is entrenched in the same position battle as Olszewski. In fact, they pretty much play the same position, with both predominantly playing in the slot during their rookie seasons. Lee, a five-year veteran, will also be in the mix for that slot spot, along with Hastings, who played slot for Auburn.
That slot backup job may be the most competitive gig on the team. Byrd and Thomas will be the ones competing to take over Phillip Dorsett’s old job.
