Welcome to first and 10, a roundup of all the (mostly) Patriots-related news you need to start your Tuesday. Grab your coffee and let’s get to it.
Lots of people writing about Chase Winovich the last couple of days.
I think he can be a good situational pass rusher at this stage of his career -- going to be interested to see him as part of a personnel package that includes the likes of Michael Bennett and Adam Butler on third down and other passing situations. One thing I do want to see him do more of is drop into coverage. In our conversation a few weeks ago, Michigan DC Don Brown acknowledged Winovich didn't do much of that over the course of his college career, and if you're going to be a regular edge defender in the Patriots' system, you're going to have to do that frequently. (I think back to Rosevelt Colvin, who said it took him a year as a veteran to really learn all the nuances of what they wanted him to do as an edge defender in New England.) But right now, Winovich is a really talented prospect who has a chance to play significant snaps -- on a rotational basis -- as a rookie. Where he goes from that point will depend on how he evolves and grows as a player.
You guys may have missed it -- there was another big sporting event on last night -- but the NFL Network re-ran the September 1994 game between the Patriots and Dolphins that became an all-out shootout between Drew Bledsoe and Dan Marino. So much fun. A condensed highlight package is here. Still worth checking out.
Just a reminder ... we'll have three more chances this spring to see the Patriots in opn practices. There's mandatory minicamp from June 4-6, and one more OTA session on June 10th. Then, it's summer vacation until the end of July.
Now, on with the links…
1. It was another epic Monday Q&A that had a lot of hypothetical trade talk, plus more offseason chatter.
2. Connor Price of Pro Football Focus looks at some rookies who can steal time from veterans in 2019, and Winovich is one of his choices. “Winovich maintained the fourth-highest pass-rush win percentage (21.7%) in the FBS last season, while he racked up an impressive 53 quarterback pressures in the process,” Price says. “The rookie edge defender will compete with Deatrich Wise Jr. and Michael Bennett for snaps in 2019.”
3. Lot of Winovich talk — Matt Miller of Bleacher Report offers his pick of the top franchise-changing rookies of 2019, and Winovich makes his list. Miller argues that the Patriots “have shifted to more of a pass rush by committee in previous years, but a presence like Winovich will allow them at least one anchor who can stay on the field no matter the defensive formation used.”
4. Gary Davenport of Bleacher Report predicts the rookie gem for each team. When it comes to the Patriots, he goes with cornerback D’Angelo Ross. “Is Ross a long shot? Sure,” says Davenport. “But given New England's eerie ability to find talent at the position after the draft ends, it's unwise to bet against him.”
Every so often, I think about the fact that for four games at the start of the 2010 season, the #Patriots had Randy Moss, Rob Gronkowski, Wes Welker, Julian Edelman and Aaron Hernandez all on the same roster at the same time.
— Christopher Price (@cpriceNFL) May 27, 2019