Bill Belichick went out and made another trade on the second night of the 2020 draft. This time, the Patriots traded their No. 71 and No. 98 picks to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for their No. 60 and No. 129. With that 60th overall pick, New England selected Josh Uche out of Michigan.
Uche spent four seasons as a Wolverine, totaling 52 tackles, 19.5 of which were for a loss, and 15.5 sacks. While Michigan didn’t experience a lot of success during his career, Uche was one of the bright spots this past season.
Here are a few things that Patriots fans should know about the latest linebacker to call Gillette Stadium home.
Uche has an injury history that cost him time in college.
During his freshman season at Michigan, Uche suffered a torn meniscus that cost him nine games. Then, the following season, the linebacker sustained a stress fracture that limited his time as well. Both of those injuries have long recovery times and significantly impact the performance of the player. New England shouldn’t have this injury in the front of their mind, but it’s something that should be remembered.
Uche is close with former Wolverine Chase Winovich.
For three seasons, Uche and Winovich were teammates. In that type of locker room environment, playing similar positions, the two spent a lot of time together. Uche said that they would talk about pass rush techniques and mentioned that they have great chemistry. It’s important to have some level of familiarity in a new place, and it seems like Winovich can help provide that for Uche.
Uche shows similarities to a few former Patriots
It’s common for newly drafted players to draw comparisons to those who have played with their new team in the past. Watching the tape of Uche’s time at Michigan shows characteristics that are similar to both Tedy Bruschi and Kyle Van Noy. Both of these players had the versatility to do a little bit of everything at the linebacker position and were strong personalities. Uche can provide both of those things for New England.
One analyst believes that Uche can be very successful in today’s NFL.
Uche’s game is perfect for the Patriots. He can play on the line or off the line and both play the run and rush the passer. ESPN’s NFL analyst Louis Riddick is a big believer in Uche’s game. The analyst said that the linebacker had the perfect skill set.
It’s so important to be able to play all three downs on defense today. Guys like Brandon Spikes, who were more mostly run-stopping, downhill linebackers aren’t built to have long, successful careers. Uche should be able to excel in his role in New England.
