Welcome to first and 10, a roundup of all the (mostly) Patriots-related news you need to start your Monday. Grab your coffee and let’s get to it.
--Sunday's announcement that Ben Watson will have to sit for the first four games of the 2019 season because of a PED violation brings another layer of uncertainty to the tight end position for the Patriots. Can Austin Seferian-Jenkins be relied on as a steadying presence? In Watson's absence, could Matt Lacosse -- who looked good at times on Thursday -- provide some production? (This could theoretically open the door for one of the youngsters like Ryan Izzo or Andrew Beck, at least when it comes to the short term.) And is this merely the latest sign New England is going to de-emphasize the tight end spot in 2019? We shall see. It is worth noting Watson did a good job controlling the message, providing some context to what happened and being as transparent as possible, but this is just the latest chapter in an eventful offseason at the position for New England.
Going to have a shortened version of the links because of the holiday. Let's get to it...
1. One last shout-out for my weekend notebook, which looked at the big week for N’Keal Harry, squared away a few things on the coaching staff, wondered if Julian Edelman might break new ground this coming season … and much more. Check out out here.
2. Based at least partly on what we saw at last Thursday’s OTA session, here are five Patriots who are facing a key stretch in a race for a roster spot. It’s a group that includes young safety Obi Melifonwu, who is out to prove he’s more than just a special teamer.
3. Greg had a weekend Q&A that ran the gamut — check the transcript here.
4. Here’s the transcript of Watson’s statement from Sunday,
5. Even with the holiday, we’re going to hold our weekly Monday afternoon Q&A. Get your questions in now, because it’s going to be epic.
Extra Point: Always felt there was a comparison to be made between Starr and Lombardi and Brady and Belichick on a few levels, including the fact that they would have achieved some level of success separately, but in the end, they were born to be together.
Sadly, Bart Starr doesn’t get just due as a QB b’cuz too many people fixate only on Super Bowl era. Starr was the MVP of SBs 1 & 2, but those were the end of a run where the #Packers won 5 NFL titles in 7 years & reached 6 title games in 8 years. Best comp for Starr is Tom Brady.
— Tom Oates (@TomOatesWSJ) May 26, 2019