Patriots 2023 Season Thread

To kick things off, a "Week of" position by position post for Gm 1

QB - Ideally, your #2 QB doesn't play so it would be a shame to waste 1 of the 2 PS elevations here. That being said, if Corral hasn't picked things up enough in his short time here, we could see BZ elevated (as UMass first suggested)

RB - Will certainly see an elevation (or signing to the 53) with only Stevenson/Elliot currently available. Assuming it's one of the PSers, it will come down to Monty's ability out of the backfield vs Harris the BIG back. With both of the 53 guys having 3rd down abilities, Harris would be a differentiator. But, if healthy, Monty is likely the better candidate. Especially given . . .

WR - Not sure how many WRs they activate but it likely is based on Parker's availability after missing 2 practices earlier (has since returned). This could be where Monty's versatility gives him the advantage (before getting hurt, he was practicing with the WRs).

TE - Feels like they go 3 TEs, especially after the "promotion" of Brown. They seem to want to use a lot of 12 personnel so the extra TE makes sense. Of course, if going heavy, that could depend on . . .

OT - This is where things start to get messy. Not only do we not have comfort in our projected starters, but we also have 3 of the players just starting to participate in practices within the last week (Anderson activated from NFI and Wheatly/Lowe acquired at cutdown). Do they have to activate 5 OTs (those 3 plus Brown and Sow) just to ensure they are covered? That's not ideal. If only 4, I wonder if Wheatley's prior role as a TE gives him an edge

IOL - Andrews is locked in. Strange/Onwenu assuming health but Mafi (assuming he's the 3rd G) will get time. This could be another spot where an elevation is used. Are they comfortable with Jake Andrews being the C if David goes down? Or is Ferentz a gameday elevation? I think JF missed a practice recently so, hopefully, he's okay and available (if needed). If elevations are used at RB (certainly) or QB (maybe), then JA will have to be the guy.

DL - All along the defense, it will be interesting who gets spots on the 48. SOMEBODY has to be inactive and, given some versatility of folks, I wonder if Ekuale is odd-man out on Sunday. With Godchaux, Guy and Barmore the top 3 "inside" guys on running downs and Wise, Barmore and White a possible top 3 on passing downs, maybe this is where they gain a spot to cover for the OL depth needed. I'd prefer Ekuale plays (and keep everyone fresh with fewer snaps) but the active spots have to come from somewhere.

ED - Judon, Uche and Jennings would seem to be the Top 3 and they have others that can line up here in various sets. Don't see an elevation.

LB - I was somewhat surprised they used an initial 53 spot on Wilson. Thought he would definitely be a candidate to cut and sign to PS. Figuring Bentley, Tavai and Board (Special Teams) are active and Mapu could get time here as well, where does Wilson fit in for this game? I'm probably missing "game plan" specifics (and that could really apply to all of these comments) and/or I might be assuming BB puts rookies into roles immediately but this seems to be another position where they might have enough depth to sit someone.

CB - At this point, is it fair to assume Jack Jones will be available? If so, Wade would seem to be the odd man out. Marcus Jones likely is active, even if he only plays in the return game. Plus his gimmick role on offense puts him in the top 5 (even if he didn't seem to progress on D during camp, as some have suggested). Speed is another candidate for the inactive list, assuming everyone else is available.

S - Depth is great if everyone is healthy. And assuming Mapu gets time here, it could be another area where they steal an active spot to cover for the OL (though less likely, IMO).

ST - Baringer, Ryland, Cardona, Slater, Schooler and Board would seem to be the locks. Munson seemed to have a great camp so he COULD get an elevation spot but, given needs elsewhere, I think it less likely.

Per MassLive, Suffolk County DA has dropped charges against Jack Jones. Assuming that's the end of his legal issues from this matter, I'd imagine we'd hear from the league shortly.

Guy has loaded guns on his carry on bags and gets probation, despite the mandatory 1 year. Must be nice to be a millionaire with a billionaire boss.

Apparently it’s a pretty easy case to defend if you’re an attorney according to a lawyer who broke down this case with Curran

You more or less claim only an idiot would try to knowingly get guns through airport security and that somebody else packed the bag. Said it happens more often than you’d think.

I don’t think I’ve ever been asked that tbh, but I also mostly use a carry on

Prediction: 6 sacks for the Eagles.

Pats are only 4 point underdogs. I thought it would be more like 10. Las Vegas knows something I don't. Maybe they believe our Defense is really good and our rookie stars will make a surprising difference. With Brady in attendance, maybe he will inspire the team. Anyway, if we manage to actually beat Philly, this will be a fun season. If we get crushed, not so much.

This is Matt Patricia’s legacy.

Jack Jones ro miss some time with a hamstring injury.

Karen G reporting that Rhamondre is dealing with a stomach bug that should not hinder him for Sunday. Need him. 

Corral released, Zappe to 53 man roster. I'm surprised, I really thought they'd use the 3 options before doing that. They must feel they need to call up two other players for depth, one RB for sure and?

The Patriots planned on calling up Zappe from PS and using Coral as the emergency QB. The rules states that the emergency QB had to be on your 53 man roster, they didn’t say you couldn’t elevate a QB from the PS to serve as your number 2 and use the QB on the 53 as the emergency QB. NFL “clarified” the rule this week. Which means they changed the rule because they didn’t write it correctly.