The intriguing position battles set to take place at Patriots training camp
FOXBORO -- Training camp is here in New England with another season of Patriots football kicking off behind Gillette Stadium. The Patriots will hold their first practice of training camp on Wednesday, and there will be some pretty important position battles taking place over the next month-plus.
Unlike last season, there will be no quarterback battle this camp. This is Mac Jones' team now, and everyone knows it. And he's actually pretty well set up on offense -- at least on the field. There remains one massive question with the offense, but that rests on the sidelines.
The defense is where the real position battles play out, as the Patriots have big question marks at every position but safety. Their safety corps is pretty solid and deep, but just about everywhere else on the roster is a great unknown.
Here's a glance at the position battles we'll be paying attention to throughout camp and the preseason, because they are in some pretty important spots for the New England Patriots.
The Corners
Are you ready for Jalen Mills and Malcolm Butler as the starting corners on the outside? That could be how it all shakes out after training camp.
Mills feels like a lock to be one of the starters following a strong finish to his first year with the Patriots. That strong play came, however, playing opposite J.C. Jackson, who got a massive payday from the L.A. Chargers over the offseason. Now Mills is set to be the guy, so we'll see how that goes.
Maybe Butler will win that No. 2 spot, but that is no guarantee after a year away from the game. Veteran Terrance Mitchell is a candidate as well, but he is also a candidate to be cut ahead of the season. That kind of sums up the battle for a corner job in New England.
Joejuan Williams and Shaun Wade are other options, as are the Jones brothers -- Marcus and Jack, no relation -- but they are both rookies. A rookie being able to jump in and take over as one of the team's top two corners is unlikely, but could be necessary depending on how the veterans play in camp.
Jonathan Jones is a lock as the team's slot corner, and he was greatly missed after he went down with a shoulder injury. So at least the Patriots are set at that spot in the secondary.
After that, it could get interesting, especially given the offenses that the Patriots are set to face this season.
Linebackers Everywhere
Inside. Outside. It doesn't matter which group of linebackers we're talking about -- there are question marks everywhere on this part of the field.
Gone are veterans Dont'a Hightower (who is maybe retired?) and Jamie Collins (who remains a free agent). Ja'Whaun Bentley will be back as the early-down, run-stuffing guy, but we have no idea who will be sharing the field with him.
Cameron McGrone has been hyped up quite a bit this offseason after he sat out his rookie season while rehabbing a torn ACL, and Raekwon McMillan is also in the mix after also missing last season with a torn ACL that he suffered in training camp. Mack Wilson, whom the Patriots acquired from the Browns in a trade for Chase Winovich, is also a big body that can play in the middle. All three could be used in a platoon with Bentley as New England irons out some wrinkles on the defense.
And there's a chance that the Patriots could go unconventional and have some of their safeties play up in linebacker spots, with veterans Adrian Phillips and Jabrill Peppers potentially contributing out of position.
On the outside, we know that Matt Judon will be setting the edge on one side. But who will be his running mate when it comes to getting to the quarterback now that Kyle Van Noy is in sunny California?
Josh Uche, Ronnie Perkins, and Anfernee Jennings will all be vying for that role during camp. Uche is still looking to break out after two seasons in the NFL, while Perkins didn't play at all during his rookie year. Jennings missed all of last season with an injury, but played a third of New England's defensive snaps as a rookie in 2020.
So the options are... not great. But Uche and Perkins were both blocked by other players ahead of them on the depth chart, and now the Patriots have no choice but to play them and see what they've got.
Third-Down Back
James White is still on the mend from last season's hip injury, which leaves a big opening on the roster at an extremely important spot. Brandon Bolden made some big plays when he filled in as the team's pass-catching back last season after White went down, but now he's in Vegas with Josh McDaniels. That leaves the third-down duties in New England up for grabs.
We'll see J.J. Taylor, rookie Pierre Strong, and potentially Ty Montgomery vying for the gig at camp. Taylor is heading into his third season in the league and has yet to really carve out a role with the Patriots. Some improved pass-blocking would earn him the gig.
If Strong can pick up the offense he could maybe snag the job, but he only had 50 receptions during his four years as a member of the South Dakota State Jackrabbits.
Montgomery is an intriguing option for the role given his hybrid receiver/running back nature. And we all know how Belichick feels about players who can double dip on the depth chart.
The third-down back is an important part of the New England offense, one they'll need to figure out this spring
COACH BATTLE
Perhaps you have heard that the Patriots do not have an offensive coordinator. And you may have heard some complaints that no one knows who will be calling the plays on offense. Both are kind of a big deal with Mac Jones heading into his second NFL season.
Bill Belichick didn't provide any clarity on Tuesday morning, though he did profess his full faith in both Matt Patricia and Joe Judge, the two guys who will have their fingerprints all over the New England offense. Chances are one of those two will be calling the plays once the season kick off, though Belichick said Tuesday that he's responsible for "everything."
Maybe the Patriots already know who will be calling the shots on offense and they just don't want to tell everyone. Maybe we'll get a better idea when the preseason kicks off.
But keeping their offensive coaching plan a mystery has just led to a lot more intrigue (or as many would call it, criticism) of how the Patriots are running things on the sideline.
