The New England Patriots have many things to figure out for the 2021 season, including the league-high eight opt-outs they had.
Veteran running back Brandon Bolden is the first of that group to publicly announce his intention to return to the Patriots. Bolden’s spent eight seasons in the NFL and seven of those years were in New England. His value comes primarily from special teams but he contributes at running back when needed, with the occasional over-the-shoulder touchdown catch.
He opted-out because of concerns with COVID-19, but the vaccine is out and the 2021 season will hopefully be much more organized. Bolden announced his intent to return on Twitter.
For everybody asking 💩 yea I’ll be back pic.twitter.com/U0ykrXzGsx
— Brandon Bolden (@BB_HulkSmash) December 30, 2020
The other opt-outs include Dont’a Hightower, Patrick Chung, Marcus Cannon, Marqise Lee, Danny Vitale and Najee Toran. Hightower and Cannon will be the most important players to return and the 32-year-old Chung will be a game-changer if he doesn’t retire.
New England has a lot of uncertainty ahead, but here’s one positive the team can look forward to.
