Welcome to first and 10, a roundup of all the (mostly) Patriots-related news you need to start your Thursday. Grab your coffee and let’s get to it.
Going to jump right into things this morning because we have a lot of good stories, and a ton on tap for the day. So without further ado, on with the links…
1. I had a BLAST doing this story. When future Patriots' draft picks Jarrett Stidham and Damien Harris were both eight years old in 2003, they played on the same Kentucky youth football team, the 49ers. (The team picture is above -- Harris is middle row, center, while Stidham is third row, second from the right.) I talked to coaches, family, and friends around that team, and take a closer look at the bond that's developed between the two, one that endures to this day.
2. Miguel drops his latest mailbag with questions on a bunch of topics, including Brian Hoyer, Kyle Rudolph, Rex Burkhead and Ryan Allen. A ton of terrific info in here.
3. Mike Renner of Pro Football Focus names his steals of the draft. Included on his list? Michigan’s Chase Winovich. “Winovich had back-to-back 90.0-plus graded seasons at Michigan and tested out as an elite athlete at the combine,” Renner writes. “At that point, there are not too many question marks in our eyes. His on-field play compared to teammate Rashan Gary at this point isn’t even close.”
4. Maurice Moton of Bleacher Report has post-draft win-loss predictions for every NFL team. He has the Patriots going 13-3 -- he writes of New England: “Between Weeks 11-14, the Patriots will face teams that made last year's postseason. It's a tall order to play the Eagles, Cowboys, Texans and Chiefs in a four-game stretch; they'll drop one or two of those games. Other than that, New England should go through the season without many hiccups.
5. So the Vikings announced they wouldn’t pick up Laquon Treadwell’s 2020 option. If you were the Patriots, would you give Minnesota a call? We looked into this possibility earlier this spring, and it could very well make some sense for both sides.
The ? @TomBrady preparing for another season! It's always an honor to see him work!#OnlyAtUCLA pic.twitter.com/o34AncMWGQ
— UCLA Football (@UCLAFootball) May 1, 2019