2023 Patriots Season PREVIEW + Jack Jones Latest | Greg Bedard Patriots Podcast - video Dailymotion

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In the latest episode of the Greg Bedard Patriots Podcast with Nick Cattles, Greg and Nick preview the Patriots 2023 season. They tackle the recent news about Jack Jones' dropped gun charges, share their optimistic takes on the Patriots. Additionally, they explore the Patriots' potential journey to the playoffs and voice their concerns about possible pitfalls. The episode rounds up with a look at the team's x-factors and predictions for the AFC East standings. The duo wraps up with their anticipated game picks for the Patriots vs. Eagles Week 1 showdown in Foxboro.  EPISODE TIMELINE:  0:00 Intro 0:05 Jack Jones charges dropped 10:50 Three things that give you confidence about this team 23:10 Three things that worry you about the Patriots 28:45 3 x-factors for this team 35:10 Pick the AFC East standings 41:30 Season Prediction 45:20 FanDuel Game Pick: NE +4 UNDERDOGS, O/U: 45  Check Greg's Coverage out over at www.bostonsportsjournal.com, for $50 on BSJ's annual plan. Not only do you get top-notch analysis of all the Boston pro sports, but if you're a Patriots junkie — and if you're listening to this podcast, you are — then a membership at BSJ gives you access to a ton of video analysis Bedard does on the coaches film, and direct access to him in weekly chats.  This episode of the Greg Bedard Patriots Podcast w/ Nick Cattles Podcast is brought to you by:  FanDuel Sportsbook, the exclusive wagering partner of the CLNS Media Network. NEW customers can bet $5 and get $200 in BONUS BETS – GUARANTEED. Plus, all customers who bet $5 will get $100 OFF NFL SUNDAY TICKET from YouTube and YouTube TV. Now is the best time to join FanDuel! The app is easy to use and you can be on everything from spreads to player props and more! So, visit FanDuel.com/BOSTON and kick off the NFL season with an offer you won’t wanna miss.  21+ and present in MA. First online real money wager only. $10 first deposit required. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable bonus bets that expire 7 days after receipt. Restrictions apply. See terms at fanduel.com/sportsbook. Hope is here. GamblingHelpLineMa.org or call (800)-327-5050 for 24/7 support. Play it smart from the start! GameSenseMA.com or call 1-800-GAM-1234. NFL Sunday Ticket Offer ends 9/18/23. No refunds. Terms and embargoes apply. $100 off NFL Sunday Ticket, not YouTube TV. YouTube TV base plan required to watch YouTube TV. Redemption requires a Google account and current form of payment. Commercial Use Excluded. Subscription renews; cancel anytime.

Transcript

00:00 This is the Greg Bedard Patriots podcast with Nick Cavill.

00:04 - Boy, if we could only share what happened

00:09 before this podcast actually started to record,

00:14 it might melt your brain.

00:15 But we are here.

00:16 You can see the both of us, hopefully, if you're watching.

00:18 You can hear my voice.

00:19 You will hear Greg momentarily,

00:21 which I couldn't for about 45 minutes.

00:23 But here we are.

00:24 This episode, as always, is brought to you by FanDuel,

00:27 the exclusive wagering partner of the CLNS Media Network.

00:30 Right now, new customers can bet $5

00:32 and get 200 in bonus bets guaranteed.

00:35 Plus, all customers who bet $5 will get $100 off

00:40 the NFL Sunday ticket from YouTube and YouTube TV.

00:45 And AG1, the daily foundational nutrition supplement

00:48 that supports whole body health.

00:50 Of course, Greg, we are going to talk about

00:53 the Patriots-Eagles coming up on Sunday.

00:55 We'll get through that game.

00:56 We'll give you our pick, or at least one of us

00:59 will give you our pick, a little bit of tease there.

01:01 But first, let's start with the news of the past 24 hours,

01:04 and that's Jack Jones.

01:05 So Jack Jones, the charges were dropped.

01:08 He gets one year probation

01:11 and 48 hours of community service.

01:13 Before we talk about the impact on the football field, Greg,

01:17 just your thoughts overall with the decision by the DA

01:20 to drop these charges and the fact that Jack Jones,

01:24 he's a free man, doesn't have to worry about jail time.

01:26 He's good to go.

01:27 - Look, I'm not a legal expert or anything.

01:31 That's why I sort of stayed away from this whole thing.

01:34 You know, it just, it seems like, you know,

01:37 he had a fall guy that said that they produced somebody

01:40 that said it was my guns.

01:41 He didn't know what was going on, and it's hard to prove.

01:44 It looked like that was going to be the defense.

01:47 That was really like the only defense.

01:50 And judging off of the prosecutor's comments about it,

01:53 that's what it seemed, that somebody said he didn't know,

01:56 I packed the bag, it was my fault, blah, blah, blah.

02:01 So, you know, it is what it is.

02:03 If he was Joe Schmoe public, do I think this happens?

02:08 Probably not, but it sort of is what it is.

02:11 I still think, separate from the legal issue,

02:17 you know, if I were the Patriots,

02:20 I would still send Jack Jones a message.

02:23 I would make him inactive for week one,

02:26 at least some sort of punishment,

02:29 because, you know, this was an extreme error in judgment

02:34 off of the suspension that he had

02:36 at the end of his rookie season to do this.

02:40 Like, they just, I think they need to send the kid a message

02:43 and I doubt that will happen.

02:46 You know, it's not my football team, it's their football team

02:51 but, you know, on the field, I expect him,

02:54 I expect him to be out there.

02:55 I don't think things will change.

02:56 It'll be interesting to see where he is in the pecking order

02:59 whether he's two or three or what the deal is

03:02 behind Gonzalez and John Jones,

03:04 how Marcus Jones factors into that.

03:06 But, you know, for now,

03:08 Jack Jones is fully ready to go for the Patriots.

03:12 - I'm so glad you started with, you know, I'm not a lawyer.

03:14 I don't know much about the legal world

03:16 because I have heard some people

03:18 who are trying to be district attorneys out there

03:20 the last day or so.

03:22 I'm not going to touch that.

03:23 All I'll say is like, I was kind of surprised

03:26 by other people being so surprised

03:29 that he got a slap on the wrist.

03:32 He's a celebrity.

03:33 This happens all the time.

03:35 Guys who have some kind of influence,

03:37 women who have some kind of influence,

03:39 whether it's, you know, they're movie stars

03:41 or they're pro athletes or they know some,

03:43 but this is what happens.

03:44 You know, when, as Greg said, like if you're Joe Schmo,

03:47 if you're Frankie and Foxborough,

03:49 you're probably going to have to go through something

03:51 more than Jack Jones did, but this is how it works.

03:54 And this is how it works across the league

03:56 and not only in the NFL and the NBA, just across everywhere.

03:59 You have guys that get slapped on the wrist

04:02 and women that get slapped on the wrist

04:04 for things that they in other walks of life wouldn't.

04:07 So did Jack Jones get off light?

04:09 Yes, just like pretty much every other professional athlete

04:13 and celebrity, unless you, you know,

04:16 murdered somebody in cold blood,

04:18 this is what happens.

04:20 And to me, the biggest question, Greg, is not,

04:22 oh, how did he get off and the DA and all that stuff?

04:25 I know, 'cause again,

04:26 that's just what happens in the real world.

04:28 But the biggest question to me is kind of

04:30 what you hit on late there, which is, you know,

04:33 what will the Patriots do?

04:35 Will they do anything?

04:36 And most of all for Jack Jones, will he learn from this?

04:39 Because I don't know how you feel, Greg,

04:42 but he didn't seem like he had much contrition at all

04:46 when people were asking him about it.

04:48 His activity on the field,

04:50 some of the things that he did post this incident

04:53 for somebody you thought that might be acting like,

04:55 hey man, I'm right on the rails.

04:57 I am doing everything I can to be the best teammate

05:01 and person that I can be.

05:02 He didn't always do that.

05:05 So I'm just wondering, will this guy learn?

05:08 He didn't learn obviously from the college days,

05:10 mistakes and stuff that he did.

05:12 Will this finally be the epiphany for him?

05:14 Yeah, it's a great question.

05:17 And we haven't seen any change in his demeanor.

05:20 Remember, he walked off the field

05:23 or got kicked out of practice at one point.

05:25 At the Packers joint practices,

05:27 he was in the middle of everything.

05:29 He had the really bad pass interference penalty

05:33 in the last game.

05:34 You know, it's still out there that, you know,

05:37 I mean, it's still true that he played a crap ton

05:41 in the final preseason game.

05:43 You know, why was that?

05:44 That sort of leads me to believe that

05:47 maybe the Patriots do decide to sit him down for one game.

05:52 I have a hard time seeing that

05:53 'cause I think, you know, Bill's just about winning games

05:56 and, you know, look, he's a football coach.

05:58 You know, and a lot of these guys aren't choir boys.

06:01 I understand all that stuff.

06:03 I just think, like you said, you know,

06:06 there's no question that Jack Jones is extremely talented.

06:10 There's never been any question about that.

06:11 Going back to high school and college

06:13 and his various stops and stuff like that.

06:16 But at some point, he's gotta get the message.

06:18 He's gotta be a professional.

06:20 And, you know, you don't have to be a choir boy,

06:22 but you just have to be smart about it.

06:23 And if he's just able to walk scot-free from this,

06:28 is where he is right now, is he gonna learn?

06:32 Or is he only gonna be more emboldened to be like,

06:34 no, you know, I can do whatever I want.

06:36 So I don't know, it's a dangerous slope for the Patriots.

06:39 He's a talented player, they need him.

06:41 You know, he's one of the keys to this defense

06:43 if they're gonna be really good this season.

06:45 And, you know, you just gotta hope the Patriots

06:48 make sure that his head is screwed on straight.

06:50 - And look, there's history with Jack Jones,

06:53 but there's history with other players too.

06:55 You know, Quentin Williams of the Jets.

06:57 He was somebody who, you know, got caught,

07:00 felony counter possession of a weapon,

07:02 trying to board a flight at the airport.

07:04 Same thing, this happened in October of 2020.

07:08 So almost exactly three years ago,

07:11 the Jets had to go through something like this

07:13 with Quentin Williams.

07:13 And from what we know,

07:14 Quentin Williams hasn't really had many issues since then.

07:18 I know he had something with the car, right?

07:19 Wasn't he driving and had a weapon or something?

07:21 But he's been able to keep himself on the football field

07:24 is the point.

07:25 And so there is a history of guys doing stuff

07:29 across the league, but then they figure it out,

07:33 or at least they figure it out enough to stay productive

07:37 and be an impact player,

07:38 and the team doesn't have a big issue with it.

07:40 So we'll see if that's what Jack Jones does or not,

07:43 and how the Patriots handle this.

07:44 Now on the field, Greg, the football impact of this,

07:47 is this a big win for the Patriots?

07:49 Because one of the things to me, I think it is,

07:51 and I tweeted that out, that it's a huge win for them.

07:54 Because one of the things that I think

07:56 that we didn't spend a ton of time on

07:58 is depth at cornerback.

08:00 And if you took Jack Jones away from that equation,

08:03 all of a sudden now you're depending on some other cats

08:06 that you might not feel as confident.

08:08 And not to say that Jack Jones was fantastic

08:09 in the preseason, you just mentioned he was god awful

08:12 in the last one.

08:14 But the impact on the field,

08:16 how big of a win is this for the team and for the secondary?

08:19 - Well, I mean, it depends

08:21 what you thought the alternative was.

08:22 I mean, if you thought he was going to jail

08:24 or something like that, then yeah, it's a big win.

08:27 I mean, I really stayed away from that

08:31 because I've covered too many things in professional sports,

08:35 too many legal situations where it's just like,

08:38 it took like Johnny Jolly of the Packers,

08:42 like forever to go to jail on like serious drug charges.

08:46 And so, I never,

08:49 I thought he was going to be playing at least this year.

08:51 I never thought, I wasn't one of these people who was like,

08:54 oh, well, he's got to serve jail time.

08:57 These people weasel out of things.

09:00 So, I never thought that they were going to be without him

09:04 for a long period of time.

09:06 They could still be without him for a week or something.

09:09 If the NFL decides to step in,

09:11 I doubt that the NFL will do that

09:15 now that the charges have been dropped,

09:16 but you never know with the NFL.

09:19 You really never know.

09:20 And guns seem to be becoming a problem in this league again.

09:24 And you're just waiting for the right case

09:26 where Goodell sort of steps in

09:27 and makes an example of somebody.

09:31 Could be Jack Jones, could be the next guy, I don't know.

09:33 But look, Jack Jones is important to this team.

09:37 They don't have much depth at cornerback at all.

09:41 I mean, when you're talking about Sean Wade

09:44 and Amir Speed being the next cornerbacks up,

09:47 like, good luck.

09:49 Yikes.

09:50 Those guys shouldn't be on a roster, really.

09:53 But, you know, maybe this,

09:56 maybe Jack Jones' future being solidified

09:58 makes them let go of one of those guys,

10:00 or, you know, we'll have to see.

10:02 Yeah, I don't think this is the case

10:04 because of how he handled it,

10:05 like you and I talked about a few minutes ago.

10:07 Like, the lack of contrition and all of that,

10:09 and his swagger was there.

10:12 Maybe you could say possibly, probably a stretch,

10:15 but maybe his focus was impacted during camp,

10:18 and maybe his focus was impacted by stuff

10:20 that was happening off the field at times.

10:22 And maybe you didn't see the best of Jack Jones

10:25 because of that.

10:26 And now that it's hopefully behind him fully,

10:29 he'll have that focus.

10:30 But I think the jury is still out.

10:31 Depth-wise, I do think it's good for the Patriots.

10:34 All right, let's jump into the season now.

10:36 Again, we'll talk about the Eagles in a little bit,

10:39 but Greg wants to talk about kind of the bigger picture,

10:41 outlook of this team as we're on the precipice

10:44 of week one, game one, Sunday, 425, Tom Brady day,

10:47 yada, yada, we know the drill.

10:49 And we want to start positive.

10:50 Wet blanket, Greg, wet blanket, Badard,

10:53 wants to start positive today with this team.

10:56 So Greg, let's go one, two, three here.

10:58 We'll alternate, you and I,

11:00 three things that give you confidence in this team.

11:03 So if you're a Patriots fan right now,

11:04 and you're sitting there thinking about

11:06 how this season is going to go,

11:08 three things that make you confident in this team, Greg,

11:12 what's one of your three?

11:14 - Sub-package rush with Matthew Judant, Josh Uche,

11:18 Christian Barmore, and I will assume Keion White.

11:22 I think that's going to be, you know, on paper,

11:24 that's a formidable group that presents matchup issues

11:27 for an offensive line.

11:29 Who do you double?

11:30 Somebody, a lot of people are going to get singled up.

11:32 You're talking about, you know,

11:35 all four guys can defeat one-on-one blocking,

11:38 which is really good.

11:39 I mean, I'm a little bit worried

11:41 heading into the season about Barmore.

11:43 He didn't have much of a summer at all.

11:46 You know, maybe he was pacing himself.

11:49 Maybe they were, you know,

11:50 working his way through his knee or foot or whatever

11:53 was bothering him last year.

11:55 But, you know, on paper,

11:56 those four guys are very formidable sub-package rush,

12:00 and I feel good about that.

12:02 - Yeah, I'm going to copy you.

12:03 One of my three was pass rush.

12:05 Uche, Judon, Wise, White, Barmore, if he gets it going.

12:09 I think they could do some things blitz-wise.

12:11 They got, you know, a lot of versatility on that,

12:15 you know, second level if they use Mapu there.

12:18 And, you know, I think you can do some funky stuff as well

12:21 if you need to do some funky stuff,

12:23 but I don't know if they'll need to.

12:24 I'm pretty confident that they'll be able to get

12:28 to the quarterback at a decent rate this year

12:30 with the guys they have up front.

12:32 So I'm with you on that one.

12:33 All right, number two.

12:34 Number two thing that you're confident in.

12:36 - David Anders.

12:38 There's a lot of uncertainty,

12:39 a lot of moving pieces with the offensive line,

12:42 but I have the utmost confidence in David Anders,

12:44 not only with his level of play.

12:46 I think he's chronically underrated as a center,

12:51 as a player on this team, around the league as well.

12:55 You know, Cole Strange, he's got both guards coming back.

12:59 There could be sort of a rotation

13:00 as these guys get up to game speed

13:02 in the first couple of weeks.

13:04 But, you know, David Anders being there with Mac Jones,

13:08 leading this offensive line group,

13:12 it gives me a lot more confidence than say,

13:16 like they had some, you know, rookie like Jake Andrews

13:19 or somebody at center.

13:19 Like I think David Anders will give the Patriots

13:22 the best chance to be a good offensive line

13:26 at some point this season.

13:28 - I'm gonna go with the Zeke Mondre one-two punch

13:33 in the backfield.

13:34 I feel pretty good about these guys.

13:35 I think they'll run the ball effectively.

13:38 I think Zeke will get you, you know, 10 to 13, 14 touches

13:42 and Stevenson will handle the rest.

13:45 I think they'll be better in short yardage.

13:47 I think there'll be better in the red zone.

13:48 They'll be better on the goal line.

13:50 They'll be able to protect Mac, at least from their position.

13:53 They can't do everybody's job up front,

13:55 but I feel pretty good about this.

13:57 Zeke Stevenson one-two punch in the backfield.

14:00 I think Patriots will be able to run the ball

14:02 pretty well this year.

14:04 Number three for you.

14:06 - Yeah, that's a good call.

14:07 And I agree with you on that.

14:09 I wish I would have thought of it,

14:10 but number three for me is Hunter Henry.

14:13 I think that he's primed to have a good season.

14:17 He has a great rapport with Mac Jones.

14:19 I look at him as one of the sort of,

14:23 the ability to be a little bit of a difference maker

14:25 as far as the offensive weapons on this team,

14:28 especially in week one.

14:29 I think the middle of the field is something

14:31 that they could target against the Eagles.

14:33 So, I'm just looking for things that I know

14:37 that Mac Jones can find comfort in on offense

14:40 and Hunter Henry is one of those guys.

14:42 - I'm gonna go with something that would have been

14:45 absolutely bananas last year to say,

14:48 but the coaching staff.

14:50 Pretty confident.

14:51 If Belichick is gonna be CEO Belichick

14:55 and focus on the things that you have brought up before,

14:58 Greg, we had this conversation

15:00 about bringing in Bill O'Brien months ago

15:02 and the idea of how that opens up Bill Belichick

15:06 to be Bill Belichick and to make sure some of those things

15:10 that we've seen fall through the cracks,

15:12 not fall through the cracks this year.

15:14 So, I think the coaching staff with Belichick,

15:16 the CEO, Bill O'Brien running the offense,

15:20 Mayo, Steve Belichick running the defense

15:24 and also something that I would not overlook is Joe Judge

15:27 who look, I've criticized them, Greg's criticized them.

15:31 We know what he doesn't do well at the NFL level as a coach,

15:35 but what he has done a pretty good job of his special teams.

15:38 And so, I think with O'Brien, Belichick

15:41 and then little Belichick, Mayo and Joe Judge,

15:45 you have a hell of a lot better chance coaching wise

15:50 to win football games than you did a year ago.

15:53 So, I'll go with the coaching staff

15:55 and the confidence in those gentlemen.

15:57 All right, before we get to a three things that wore you,

15:59 because that's what we do here, right?

16:01 We don't just sugarcoat stuff.

16:03 We don't just kill things.

16:04 We give you the pretty fair look at this team.

16:07 Before we get to the three things that wore you,

16:10 staying on the optimistic side, Greg,

16:12 path to a playoff berth.

16:14 If I asked you, how do the Patriots find their way

16:19 into the playoffs?

16:21 What does that look like for you,

16:23 2023 New England Patriots?

16:26 - First and foremost, Nick,

16:27 the offensive line has to come together quickly.

16:30 Now, does it have to be week one against the Eagles?

16:33 No, but let's say we get in a situation where

16:39 Trent Brown seems to be in a good place.

16:42 Let's just say that Cole Strange and Michael Wenu

16:46 prove that in today's NFL, you don't need a lot of camp,

16:50 even for an offensive line.

16:51 That you don't need playing time in the preseason.

16:55 I mean, the Eagles don't,

16:56 they do even less than the Patriots do.

16:58 Their starters didn't play at all.

17:00 They don't practice all that hard.

17:02 Now it works for them.

17:03 I don't know why it hasn't worked for the Patriots,

17:05 but let's just say that the guards are able to,

17:10 no problem in week one, you have David Andrews

17:12 and they figure out right tackle.

17:14 I do think Vardarian Lowe,

17:16 out of the two tackles that they traded for,

17:19 I do think that Vardarian Lowe has the potential

17:22 to be a good player in sort of a

17:24 plug and play offensive tackle.

17:26 Now I know nothing about his mental capabilities

17:28 and how he's gonna pick up the system and all that stuff.

17:31 I have no idea about that.

17:33 But physically, to me, he looks like a Patriots right tackle

17:36 and has a chance to be a decent one.

17:38 So if that offensive line solidifies early

17:42 and they're able to hit the ground running,

17:44 I still think, yes, it's a huge problem.

17:47 Where they are is not ideal at all.

17:50 And were they throwing crap against the wall

17:52 to solidify the offensive line in late August?

17:55 Yeah, but still, on paper, if it all comes together quickly,

18:00 I think they have the best line in the division.

18:03 And that gives them a huge leg up.

18:06 The second thing with that, it coincides,

18:09 is that the quicker the line is solidified,

18:13 the quicker Mack Jones gets confidence

18:15 and hangs in the pocket and just is able to stay

18:20 with the play and get the ball down the field.

18:24 If the offensive line is a complete crap show,

18:27 especially for multiple games early on in the season,

18:29 that speeds up the quarterback.

18:31 He doesn't have confidence.

18:32 He's bailing out or all that stuff.

18:34 We see it all the time.

18:36 But if the protection's good early,

18:38 I think Mack Jones is early.

18:40 He's pinpoint down the field.

18:42 The lack of separation doesn't bother him

18:44 because he has confidence in the line.

18:45 He throws it up.

18:46 He does back shoulders, all that stuff.

18:48 And then the third part for me is,

18:50 the secondary's lights out.

18:52 I think there are some big question marks in the secondary,

18:54 from the rookie Gonzalez to Jack Jones,

18:57 to what Jonathan Jones is gonna look like coming back

19:00 after missing a lot of last year.

19:01 And plus, what they're gonna do with free safety.

19:03 But if those things get answered quickly and they're good,

19:08 then all those three things combined,

19:12 the Patriots are in good shape, I think.

19:14 - All right, so I think you've gotta be

19:17 a top five to eight defense.

19:19 I don't think this team has a good enough offense,

19:21 even with a solid O-line, if things go well, up front.

19:25 I don't think this offense is explosive enough

19:28 or good enough to win, right?

19:31 Like to say, all right, well, our defense fell back

19:34 to 10, 12, 15 in the league,

19:37 and our offense needs to make that jump

19:38 to be a top 10 to 12 offense.

19:40 I think you've gotta have a top five to eight defense.

19:43 If you're in that range, you feel pretty good.

19:45 You need to be healthy, across the board.

19:48 Like offensive line, Strange, Owenu, Andrews,

19:52 they all have injury histories.

19:54 Trent Brown has a little bit of a history as well.

19:57 So, can they stay healthy up front on that offensive line?

20:00 Can they stay healthy at wide receiver?

20:02 Heard Mike Reese on, Zolak and Bertrand yesterday

20:06 say that he didn't think Devontae Parker

20:08 necessarily looked great

20:10 when he came back to practice this week

20:11 after missing a couple of practices last week.

20:14 So, are they healthy enough at wide receiver?

20:17 Because once you start to tick down

20:19 and have to rely on the Pop Douglases of the world

20:22 and Keishon Booties, now you're asking those rookies

20:25 to do a hell of a lot more.

20:26 Tight end, can you stay healthy at tight end?

20:29 Hunter Henry has a little bit of a history.

20:31 Gacicchi already got banged up during camp.

20:35 So, you're gonna have to stay healthy.

20:37 You're also gonna have to have a quarterback

20:38 that levels up.

20:40 You're gonna have to have Mac Jones

20:41 be even better than he was in his rookie season.

20:44 He's got the coordinator now.

20:46 I think he's got good weapons, not great.

20:48 If that offensive line, again, off of my premise,

20:51 if that offensive line is healthy and they're solid,

20:53 then you need Mac to level up.

20:55 And finally, I would just say less freaking mistakes

20:59 and bad football, man.

21:00 Less moments where I'm watching this team on Sunday

21:03 going, "What the hell was that?

21:04 "And how in the hell could that happen?"

21:07 Less flags.

21:08 I want the operation to look clean.

21:11 And I don't expect wide receivers

21:13 to be running into each other this year

21:15 and the spacing to be terrible.

21:17 Turnovers, don't turn the football over.

21:20 Run the operation relatively clean.

21:23 Don't have stupid penalties.

21:25 Don't have 12 guys on the field multiple times this year.

21:28 If you take care of those things, I think you got a shot.

21:32 All right, before we get to three things

21:34 that Patriots fans should be worried about

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23:07 All right, so we went over three things

23:09 that you should be confident in

23:10 if you're a Patriots fan, Greg, heading into the season.

23:13 Now let's look at the wet blanket side of Bedard.

23:16 Let's talk about three things

23:17 that you would be worried about,

23:18 starting with one of the three on your list.

23:22 - Offensive line in general and Adrian Clem.

23:27 Just based off of the preseason and what I saw in practice.

23:31 And look, it's not a good look at it.

23:34 It's not a detailed or anything like that,

23:37 but just little things.

23:39 I didn't like some of the fundamentals.

23:41 I didn't see a lot of improvement on the offensive line

23:44 in the preseason game when watching the coaches film.

23:47 So is Adrian Clem a stickler for the details

23:52 like I hoped he would be?

23:54 At this point, I would say no,

23:55 but again, like I said, it's incomplete.

23:57 But just the offensive line in general.

23:58 I mean, it's not out of the realm of possibility

24:01 that Trent Brown either has an attitude issue

24:05 or gets hurt, which then you're left

24:08 with Calvin Anderson and whatnot at left tackle,

24:12 maybe Tyrone Wheatley Jr.

24:15 And that the guards aren't ready to go for a while

24:19 or maybe Cole Strange just isn't healthy the whole year.

24:23 Owenu, I guess I have a little bit more confidence in.

24:26 And right tackle is just, they never get it fixed.

24:31 So you're worried about that.

24:33 What's your number one worry on this team?

24:36 I'm assuming it might be the same thing.

24:38 - Yeah, it's the 5,000 pound big fat ass elephant

24:42 in the room.

24:42 It's the offensive line and Owenu coming off of surgery,

24:45 David Andrews concussion history,

24:48 Cole Strange's injury, keeping him off the field

24:50 the entire preseason.

24:52 Trent Brown, if he's not dinged up,

24:54 is he going to actually be engaged?

24:56 Is he going to embrace the idea of walking

24:58 into the final year of his contract?

25:01 I don't think he got that, maybe a little bit of a bump

25:03 or whatever that shoot on gut that we thought

25:05 he might be trying to angle for.

25:07 So will he be there all season long

25:09 and what happens at right tackle?

25:11 I'll give you another thing here on the list.

25:13 I'll give you a second thing on my list.

25:14 And that's, I kind of mentioned this earlier, Greg,

25:17 just the lack of explosiveness on offense,

25:20 the lack of speed, that could be a concern

25:24 because we've talked about it before.

25:27 Most of these receivers outside of pretty much Pop Douglas

25:30 and sometimes Kendrick Bourne, but you know,

25:33 Juju Smith-Schuster and Devontae Parker,

25:36 and you know, can they get separation consistently

25:40 and do they have that extra gear athletically

25:43 and speed wise to be an explosive offense,

25:45 which in 2023 is pretty damn critical in the NFL.

25:49 - Yeah, that was exactly my number two, Nick.

25:52 I have written no separation

25:53 or explosiveness among the targets.

25:55 I mean, it could be, and you combine the line thing

25:59 with that, you're talking disaster.

26:01 It's almost back to like last season, but you're right.

26:04 I mean, all summer, you know, outside of Pop Douglas

26:08 and you know, Ty Quon once in a while,

26:11 and he's going to be out at least the first four weeks,

26:14 you know, I could see separation being a big issue

26:18 for this team and you know,

26:19 is Mack going to throw it into those windows

26:21 or you know, is he going to hold the ball

26:23 and or take sacks?

26:25 Like it's just, you know, you got to invest,

26:30 you got to be better on offense.

26:31 And so you need really good protection for your quarter.

26:33 I mean, look at the Eagles on the other side,

26:36 great offensive line, great weapons,

26:38 and you know, not coincidentally, great offense,

26:43 you know, overall.

26:44 So yeah, that's a big worry of mine.

26:47 - All right, give me a third one.

26:49 Give me a third worry.

26:50 - That the Patriots defense really isn't any better

26:53 against top quarterbacks.

26:55 That, you know, Christian Gonzalez, while talented,

26:59 he's still a rookie.

27:00 He's not quite ready for prime time

27:02 as a number one bona fide cornerback.

27:05 That could be the case.

27:08 That Jack Jones gets targeted by his uber aggressiveness.

27:11 Mike Giardi talked to a personnel guy and he's like,

27:14 you know, he basically said that, you know,

27:17 we would go after his ass.

27:18 That, yeah, he's going to make a play on you,

27:20 but he's going to give up two or three at the same time,

27:23 which has pretty much been Jack Jones

27:24 to this point in his career.

27:27 And, you know, and that free safety is kind of an issue.

27:30 That they're, you know,

27:31 that they don't get the pass rush going

27:33 against the better offensive lines

27:34 and the quarterbacks are able to pick them apart

27:37 in the secondary.

27:37 I think that's been pretty much who they've been

27:40 probably the last three or four or five years on defense.

27:43 And if that continues, you know,

27:45 I think they're going to have a tough time.

27:47 - I'll follow up on your concern and say the run defense,

27:53 you know, you're going to rely on a couple of guys

27:57 in the middle of that defensive line, namely Devon Gotchow.

28:01 You know, is their run defense going to fall apart?

28:03 'Cause if their run defense isn't good,

28:04 now you get all sorts of problems

28:06 because that just opens up another can of worms.

28:10 So maybe I'm shook too much by that Green Bay preseason game

28:14 or whatever it was.

28:15 Maybe I'm, you know,

28:16 I'm kind of got PTSD after watching that,

28:18 but their run defense has to be good.

28:21 I think they can get there.

28:23 I think they, you know, it's, I wouldn't say,

28:25 I don't know if I'd say probability,

28:27 but at least the possibility that they figure things out.

28:29 If Gotchow is the guy that Belichick said he was,

28:32 you know, a year or two ago.

28:34 And if Barmore shows up consistently,

28:37 I'd feel better about it.

28:38 But I think there's some question about that run defense

28:40 to start this season.

28:42 All right, before we get to the AFC East,

28:44 before we get to a preview of the Eagles game,

28:48 let's talk about X factors.

28:50 I know, Greg, you got three guys on your list.

28:52 I got three guys on my list.

28:54 Let's start with your list.

28:55 - So the three X factors for me,

29:00 Christian Gonzalez, number one,

29:02 I think that if he's really good,

29:04 if he's like borderline defensive rookie of the year good,

29:08 that opens up a ton of possibilities for this defense.

29:11 They can play more man coverage.

29:13 That frees up people to blitz.

29:15 It just makes things a lot easier.

29:17 Marte Mapu is my second one.

29:19 I'll be interested to see what they ask him to do

29:22 in week one, based off the Packers preseason game.

29:26 He's ready to cover people one-on-one,

29:29 but as far as free safety and things like that,

29:31 I think it's going to be a work in progress.

29:33 But, you know, I wouldn't be surprised if they say,

29:36 go get Dallas Gartert in passing situations.

29:39 And that would be a great thing for them.

29:42 So if he's really good and can cover backs

29:44 and tight ends better where they've had issues,

29:47 it makes them much better.

29:48 And then Devontae Parker,

29:50 you know, there are times when he does dominate.

29:53 He has the potential to dominate.

29:55 Not a burner, but really good in the air, physical.

30:00 If he's that guy consistently for 17 games,

30:03 which is a long shot given his history,

30:06 but if he is, I think it makes the offense

30:10 a lot more dangerous.

30:13 - I like your three, I'll give you my three.

30:14 Number one, I'm going to go with Pop Douglas.

30:17 And part of this is, and I'm not telling you

30:18 he's going to catch 90 footballs,

30:20 but part of this is what Greg and I talked about earlier

30:22 on this podcast, which was the idea of the lack of speed,

30:25 but the lack of, you know, athleticism,

30:28 and just overall, no pun intended, pop to this offense.

30:32 Well, Mario Douglas can hopefully bring some of that.

30:35 He's going to be your gadget guy, I think.

30:37 He brings that quickness.

30:39 He brings some separation off the line.

30:42 He's fast.

30:43 So if he could all of a sudden be,

30:45 let's say he jumps to your third receiver,

30:48 whether it's jumping over Juju,

30:51 'cause he might have a knee issue pop up,

30:52 or he jumps over Parker 'cause Parker is in and out

30:55 of the lineup and he's dealing with soft tissue injuries,

30:57 or he jumps over Kendrick Bourne

30:59 because Bourne doesn't necessarily actually prove

31:02 to be the guy we hope he is this year.

31:04 I think Pop Douglas can help out and be an X factor.

31:06 Calvin Anderson, biggest question to me

31:10 of this offensive line is obviously right tackle.

31:13 If Calvin Anderson can prove himself to be worthy

31:16 after this sickness, getting back on the field,

31:19 and shout out to him, 'cause again,

31:20 I said this last week, sounded like he was really,

31:22 really banged up and had a pretty serious issue.

31:24 So great to see the guy actually being able

31:26 to get back on the field, first of all.

31:28 But if he could not only get on the field

31:30 and be productive at that right tackle spot,

31:33 now all of a sudden your offensive line falls in line

31:36 and Darian Lowe and those other guys,

31:38 you know, Moffey and Wheatley.

31:41 Now you have some pretty good young developmental talent

31:45 behind a solidified O-line,

31:47 which would be absolutely fantastic.

31:49 So I think Anderson right tackle could be a big, big deal

31:54 if he is that answer in that spot.

31:56 And finally, just because I know Greg loves his special teams

32:00 and just because I know people get all lathered up

32:02 about special teams, Chad Ryland.

32:06 Now I will tip my cap to Nick Folk,

32:10 fantastic job the last couple of years.

32:13 We know you don't have a lot of leg.

32:15 That's fine, Nick.

32:16 You did what you could do, my friend.

32:18 But this team, I don't think Greg, is going to be a team

32:20 that's putting up 35 spots every week.

32:23 You're gonna have, I think, a number of close games.

32:26 You're not gonna run away from a lot of teams.

32:29 And with that in mind, if we're talking about a team

32:31 that has to consistently win within three points

32:33 to six points, your kicker better be consistent.

32:37 Your kicker better be the guy.

32:38 And I know he can boom it, okay?

32:40 I know he can boom it, he can kick it 50 plus yards.

32:43 Fantastic.

32:44 But if he's kicking it 40 yards wide left from 55,

32:47 I couldn't care less.

32:48 Is he going to be consistent for this team?

32:51 Is he going to be the guy,

32:53 he doesn't have to be as great as Nick Folk,

32:54 but is he going to when he walks on that field?

32:57 Okay, let's just kind of picture this.

32:59 Week one, Eagles, close game, fourth quarter.

33:02 You need a field goal to tie the game.

33:04 Is Ryland that guy who you feel as a Patriots fan

33:08 confidence in that he's gonna walk on that field

33:11 and take care of that kick?

33:13 That's a big issue.

33:15 With a team with, you know, I think,

33:17 a very small margin for error,

33:19 it's a big deal if your kicker's not good.

33:21 So he better be consistent

33:24 and he better help this team win games like Nick Folk did.

33:27 All right, before we get to the AFC East

33:29 and a quick look at this Eagles game

33:31 coming up on Sunday, Greg,

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35:09 Let's jump to this division now

35:12 because people are talking about this division

35:15 like it's gonna be the greatest division

35:17 in football history.

35:19 A lot of talk about the Jets.

35:21 I'm just wondering if the Jets are gonna go undefeated

35:25 by some of the stuff I hear about this team.

35:28 But let's talk about this AFCE, Greg.

35:32 How do you see it stacking up here?

35:34 We get to week 16, 17, 18.

35:37 How do you think this thing lines up?

35:39 - I know I'm totally gonna regret this,

35:41 but I'm going with the Jets.

35:44 (laughing)

35:46 I'm going with the Jets.

35:47 I just think they're just too good.

35:51 I mean, especially the Dalvin Cook addition

35:53 gives them the potential to be really balanced.

35:57 I think they're cornerback.

36:00 But we talk about the Patriots have the potential

36:03 to be maybe good at cornerback.

36:04 I mean, when you're talking about,

36:07 you already have Soss Gardner, who's just incredible,

36:10 and DJ Reed already.

36:15 I just think their defense, their linebackers are great.

36:18 I just think the Jets are,

36:20 they're the best team to me on paper.

36:23 I think Rodgers is gonna be reinvigorated.

36:26 Change of scenery is good.

36:30 I think he's gonna be really good.

36:32 Of course, watch the left tackle

36:34 and probably Mekhi Becton and Rodgers

36:36 all get hurt in week one,

36:37 and they're never hurt from again.

36:39 But I'm going with the Jets.

36:40 I think they're the best.

36:41 I think the Bills are gonna take a step back.

36:44 I think they had their shot.

36:46 I think there's just some uneasiness about the Bills.

36:49 You know, when I have questions,

36:53 I think they're getting old on defense.

36:55 I don't think they're great at cornerback.

36:57 And their safeties are getting older.

37:00 They have to replace their linebackers other than Milano.

37:04 And I've never been a huge guy about him.

37:07 But I think it's Josh Allen is still just,

37:10 he's uber talented.

37:12 And you can pretty much pencil them in for 10 wins,

37:15 like, you know, every season that he's healthy.

37:18 You know, sort of like latter day Tom Brady.

37:21 And then I have the Dolphins and Patriots tied

37:24 for third slash last in the AFC East.

37:29 You know, I like a lot of what the Dolphins are doing.

37:33 I like the, I love the Vic Fangio addition on defense,

37:36 and the defense was their Achilles heel.

37:40 But I just can't, I'm not sold on two of staying healthy.

37:43 I gotta see it to believe it, to believe in them.

37:46 I can't go wishing on it.

37:47 And yeah, you know, they got more as the backup,

37:49 and that's better than what they had last year.

37:51 But, you know, I just can't see it.

37:54 And I just, you know, Belichick freed up

37:56 to do his thing this year,

37:58 instead of worrying about the offense,

38:00 and therefore the defense and special teams slacking off.

38:04 I think that helps the Patriots, you know, more.

38:06 I still think they're similar.

38:09 Both teams are similar around nine and eight,

38:10 eight and nine, seven and 10, that area.

38:13 But, you know, tough schedule for the whole division.

38:16 I mean, you know, it's gonna be,

38:19 not only are they gonna beat each other up,

38:21 but they got a lot of tough games just on the schedule

38:24 with the intra-division stuff.

38:26 So that's the way I see the AFC East.

38:29 - No, I do think the Bills won't be as good

38:32 as they've been the past couple of years,

38:33 but I still think they're the best team in the division.

38:35 And when we talk about this, when we say on paper,

38:37 I know some people say on paper,

38:38 well, hey, what the hell?

38:39 That's all we got right now is the damn paper.

38:42 Until they started actually playing football,

38:43 Greg and I has had the paper.

38:44 We just, we got, so what's on paper?

38:46 What's on paper?

38:47 You're talking talent.

38:48 It was interesting today, a report, you know, McDermott,

38:52 Sean McDermott saying that Micah Hyde's

38:54 dealing with a back injury that recently popped up.

38:57 So keep an eye on that.

38:59 Greg mentioned, you know, Micah Hyde and Poyer

39:02 on the backend of that defense.

39:03 So, you know, is that going to be an issue?

39:06 I do have the Jets second,

39:08 and it's not because I'm sitting here going crazy

39:10 and doing jumping jacks like everybody is

39:12 about Aaron Rodgers and his team.

39:14 But I do think they have talent on paper.

39:17 And I do think they're better than the Patriots

39:20 and the Dolphins.

39:21 Could that crumble?

39:22 Yes.

39:23 The one thing I think all of us have to keep an eye on is,

39:27 we get wrapped up in the bubble of New England

39:30 because that's what we pay attention to the most.

39:32 We care about the Patriots the most.

39:34 It's our job to break it down.

39:35 We get paid to do that, Greg and I, fortunately.

39:38 So that's what we do here.

39:40 And everybody's talking about the Patriots schedule.

39:42 Look at the Jets schedule.

39:45 Look at what they got to start off with, okay?

39:48 They got to play Buffalo on Monday night.

39:50 Then they go to Dallas.

39:52 Then they got New England.

39:54 Then they got the Chiefs.

39:55 Then they got to go to Denver.

39:57 Then they come back and pay Philadelphia.

39:59 So Buffalo, Dallas, Kansas City, the Eagles,

40:05 those are four of your top contenders in the NFL this year.

40:09 Jets got to play those four teams in the first six weeks.

40:12 Their easiest game on the schedule is probably,

40:14 depending on how you feel about Denver,

40:18 you'd probably say the Patriots

40:20 because the Jets are home in week three against the Pats.

40:24 But that schedule is really tough.

40:27 And it'll be fascinating, Greg,

40:30 because of all the pomp and circumstance

40:32 surrounding this team with the hard knock stuff

40:34 and Rodgers telling me about UFO sightings

40:37 and all that good stuff.

40:38 And Robert Sala just absolutely

40:41 in love with his quarterback.

40:45 All this talk, all this talk about,

40:47 it reminds me, the talk, not how this team was built,

40:51 but the talk reminds me of the Eagles dream team

40:54 from back in like 2010 or whatever it was.

40:56 A lot of talk about how talented this team is.

40:59 Well, if they start off two and four,

41:02 it's going to be very interesting to see

41:04 how Captain Rodgers handles that

41:08 and how that affects the rest of the team.

41:11 Because right now,

41:12 everybody's throwing their flowers at Rodgers.

41:15 Right now, it's the honeymoon phase.

41:17 They get off to a two and four start

41:18 and that offensive line's a little bit shaky.

41:21 And Rodgers looking around a little bit, getting pissed.

41:24 Then we'll see what they do.

41:26 If they start off, I'll look at it the other side, fairly.

41:30 If they start off four and two or five and one,

41:33 they're off to the races.

41:34 So it'll be fascinating to see the first six weeks

41:37 of the season, how they handle that.

41:38 I got bills, jets, Patriots, Dolphins.

41:41 I am scared of Tua's health if I'm Miami.

41:44 I know he took jujitsu courses in the off season

41:46 and all that shit,

41:48 but is that guy going to be able to stay healthy?

41:51 We'll see.

41:52 All right.

41:53 Greg is not going to give you his season prediction

41:56 on this podcast because A, Greg doesn't like me.

41:59 And so he's running away from giving you the best content

42:02 on this podcast.

42:04 B, he wants you to take a look at BSJ.

42:08 So on Sunday, Greg is going to have

42:12 his prediction of the game.

42:14 Okay, so that's going to happen.

42:16 Prediction of the game will be on the website.

42:18 - Prediction of the season.

42:19 So my season column, my season prediction.

42:22 - So I was right the first time.

42:23 The prediction of the season, I'll figure it out.

42:25 Post COVID, excuse.

42:26 I had it for two weeks.

42:27 So it's going to be the season prediction.

42:30 So I was right, season prediction.

42:32 So Greg's not going to give that to you right now.

42:34 'Cause again, he hates me.

42:35 And B, he wants you to go to BSJ.

42:37 But here's the thing.

42:38 I will give you my prediction.

42:39 I'm giving you eight wins.

42:40 Now I'm kind of fluctuating between eight and nine.

42:43 I'm like waffling.

42:44 I'll tell you why I sit at eight.

42:46 Because in my mind, Greg, if this team is fully healthy

42:49 and things click, again, they're healthy.

42:52 The operation has run well.

42:53 I think they could win 10 games.

42:55 So it was a little strange to me to say,

42:57 well, nine wins, but if everything goes really well,

43:01 they could win 10 games.

43:02 It's like, okay, one game difference between those two.

43:04 So I feel, you know,

43:05 I'll lean towards eight wins on the season.

43:08 I think if things are not great from a health standpoint,

43:12 you could see this team end up at seven wins.

43:15 But I feel like eight's a fair number.

43:19 The ceiling to me is 10.

43:22 The floor to me is, I can't imagine they, you know,

43:26 win less than six games.

43:28 So that's kind of where I am.

43:29 And, you know, I've mentioned this before.

43:32 I was on EEI a few years ago and it was, you know,

43:35 the first year post Brady

43:37 and people were losing their minds.

43:38 And I try to explain back then,

43:40 like, this is just the NFL folks.

43:43 And Greg's covered it for a long time.

43:46 He's older than me.

43:47 And if you look at the league,

43:50 you got usually when you walk into a season,

43:52 you usually have five or six teams that you say,

43:54 those guys could win the Superbowl.

43:56 Those guys are legit contenders.

43:59 And then you've got five teams that you usually look at

44:02 and say, they suck.

44:04 And I don't mean like the Felger, they suck, blah, blah.

44:07 I'm not talking about seven, eight wins suck.

44:09 I mean, suck, suck.

44:10 Like really suck.

44:12 Four wins suck, three wins suck.

44:14 Those teams have a great opportunity at a top five pick.

44:18 So you got the top five contenders,

44:21 you got the top, you know, five picks.

44:24 That rat race at the bottom.

44:26 And then you really got 20 to 22 football teams

44:29 in the middle.

44:29 And there's not a big difference.

44:33 I'm telling you, I've watched a lot of football

44:34 over the last decade, all across the league

44:37 because of what I've done for a living, thankfully.

44:39 I've watched a lot of teams.

44:41 I've watched a lot of football.

44:43 There's not a huge difference between teams

44:45 that win seven games and nine or 10 games.

44:48 There's really not.

44:50 The Patriots could have won 10, 11 games last year.

44:53 They could have won six or seven games last year.

44:56 That big fat middle of the league is where this team is.

45:02 And that's not where you want to be

45:06 'cause you feel like you're stuck in purgatory.

45:08 But that's kind of where they are.

45:09 They could go down to seven wins.

45:11 They could have as many as 10 wins

45:12 and slide into the playoffs.

45:14 But that's just the reality of the NFL.

45:16 All right, week one preview.

45:21 Let's talk about our pick.

45:23 Greg is going to give you this pick because he now likes me.

45:27 And he's going to give you the pick.

45:30 And then also while we give you the pick,

45:32 we're going to obviously talk about the game a little bit,

45:34 a little bit of a scouting report, the Eagles.

45:37 Before we get into the pick itself,

45:39 I will tell you that it's Philly,

45:41 according to our friends at FanDuel.

45:43 Again, check them out.

45:44 Philly minus three and a half.

45:45 The over-runner's 45.

45:47 Greg first, looking at this game, Eagles.

45:49 Let's kind of look at from the Patriots standpoint,

45:53 I think the one thing that I love about this game

45:56 is that this is really the ultimate test for this defense

46:02 right out of the gates.

46:04 They are going to be tested.

46:05 You've got a top quarterback who happens to be mobile,

46:10 which has been a big issue,

46:12 which was one of the things that you mentioned earlier.

46:14 And you and I have talked about ever since the beginning

46:16 of this podcast three years ago,

46:19 they've had trouble with mobility at that position.

46:21 You've got a mobile quarterback, a really good quarterback.

46:25 Read Mike Giardi at BSJ.

46:27 Mike thinks he might be the greatest quarterback

46:28 of all time.

46:29 I kid and jest, Mike, relax.

46:31 But they're also, they can run the football,

46:34 partially because of Hertz.

46:36 They were number five in the NFL last year in rushing yards.

46:39 They've got A.J. Brown.

46:40 They've got Devontae Smith.

46:42 And Devontae's no joke.

46:44 And they've got, I think,

46:45 if not the best offensive line in the game,

46:48 one of the best offensive lines in the game.

46:50 Greg, if we want to know how good this defense is

46:53 from day one, we're going to find out on Sunday.

46:56 - Yeah. To me, Nick, there is,

46:58 the Patriots have no excuse not to announce

47:01 their presence with authority as a defense.

47:04 I mean, if they truly are a burgeoning elite defense,

47:09 or they were even good last year,

47:10 and they're even better this year,

47:12 and we talk about the pieces,

47:13 they got Gonzalez and they got Keon White,

47:15 and they got Marte Mapu,

47:16 and they got this and that.

47:19 And you've had all summer

47:20 to get ready for this Eagles offense.

47:23 Like if they were playing them in week 10

47:25 and got steamrolled, I'd be like,

47:26 all right, this team's a tough team to get prepared for.

47:30 With all they do with the plus one run game,

47:33 which means the quarterback's involved

47:35 because you got to count for him as a ball carrier,

47:37 whereas a guy like Mack Jones,

47:38 you don't have to count for him.

47:39 It's a pain in the rear end.

47:41 The Patriots have had months to get ready for this.

47:45 They have worked on it even in the preseason game.

47:47 If you watch the Packers preseason game,

47:49 the way they didn't rush the quarterback,

47:51 that was to get ready for Philly.

47:52 They have Malik Cunningham here

47:55 to be the scout team quarterback,

47:56 to get them at least a look at a mobile quarterback

47:59 and how they do things.

48:00 And so to me, if the Patriots defense

48:03 is not really good in this game,

48:04 and really good against this offense,

48:07 to me is mid-20s.

48:10 If they can hold them 24 points or below,

48:14 to me that's a good outing.

48:15 Anything below 20 is awesome.

48:18 Go nuts, call them the 85 Bears if you want.

48:21 But if they get steamrolled,

48:23 they get steamrolled,

48:24 if the Eagles come out and score,

48:25 if they're like the Bengals last year,

48:27 when the Bengals scored on their first

48:30 three or four possessions,

48:31 I don't want to hear anything about this defense

48:34 the whole rest of the season,

48:35 because they haven't proved anything.

48:38 So that's the backdrop.

48:41 The Eagles, they are awesome.

48:44 I mean, they are.

48:45 They have probably the best offensive line,

48:48 probably the best defensive line in football.

48:50 If you're a believer in that, including me,

48:52 and I do, then you think that the Eagles

48:55 will win this game pretty easily.

48:58 They do have a new defense coordinator,

49:00 Sean Desai.

49:01 I watched his press conference today.

49:03 I know people who know him,

49:04 who think he's the real deal,

49:05 who think he's smart as hell.

49:07 He definitely looks green to me,

49:11 so we'll see how he does

49:12 with the Bullets are flying.

49:14 A lot of people in Philly think this is akin to,

49:16 remember when Matt Patricia left

49:18 after the Eagles Super Bowl when they lost,

49:21 and he left to go to Detroit,

49:22 and then the Patriots got Brian Flores,

49:25 and everybody felt better about that,

49:28 and that turned out to be true.

49:30 People with the Eagles think the same thing.

49:32 They think that Jonathan Gannon,

49:34 who got the Cardinals job

49:36 after giving up a ton of points in the Super Bowl,

49:38 going to Desai is similar to the Patriots

49:41 going to Brian Flores,

49:42 so something to keep an eye on.

49:45 New linebackers,

49:46 N'Kobe Dean,

49:47 first-time starter at middle linebacker.

49:48 I look for the Patriots to take advantage of him.

49:50 Reed Blankenship at safety.

49:52 They have two new safeties,

49:54 so right in the middle of the field.

49:56 That's where I think the Patriots

49:58 will look to make a living.

49:59 They'll do a lot of sort of counteraction,

50:04 traps, bubble screens, quick stuff,

50:07 just to survive this game

50:09 and sort of make the Eagles tackle

50:11 because they haven't done a whole lot this summer.

50:15 And then defensively,

50:17 they're just gonna have to match them physically,

50:20 and they're gonna have to hold up in the back end

50:21 against A.J. Brown and Devontae Smith and all that stuff.

50:24 I think the Patriots will play a lot of zone this season,

50:26 especially early,

50:28 split safety stuff.

50:29 Just try to limit the big plays

50:31 and tackle, take care of hurts,

50:34 but at the end of the day,

50:35 I just don't think the Patriots are ready for this game.

50:38 I don't think they're ready up front.

50:39 Just looking at the reporters

50:41 who are at practice right now on Wednesday,

50:43 Devontae Parker, extremely limited.

50:45 Looks like Cole Strange is limited.

50:47 Looks like Awenu is limited in practice.

50:50 You know, not really good signs going into this game.

50:54 You know, I think the Eagles,

50:56 thanks to, if you can believe this, Nick,

50:58 thanks to Matt Patricia being able to tell Nick Sirianni.

51:02 - Matty P.

51:04 - Yeah, it's not the intel on Mack Jones or anything.

51:06 I'm like, who gives a crap?

51:08 But Matt Patricia is the type of guy,

51:10 and a lot of these former Patriots assistants,

51:12 they do well, their offenses do well against Belichick,

51:15 because they can go to the coach and say,

51:17 or Josh McDaniels, they'll be like,

51:19 I know exactly what Bill's gonna try to do.

51:21 And I'm sure Sirianni went to Matt Patricia

51:23 and be like, Matt, what's Bill gonna try to do?

51:27 What's he gonna try to take away from us?

51:29 And I think they've been working on that.

51:31 I think they're gonna have counters.

51:32 I think the Eagles are gonna get off to a fast start.

51:34 I think the Patriots will make a game of it.

51:36 But at the end of the day,

51:37 I just think the Eagles have too much,

51:39 and I don't have an exact score yet,

51:42 but I think the Eagles easily cover

51:44 the three and a half point spread.

51:46 - All right, so a little pushback on the defense.

51:48 I would not burn them to the ground

51:49 if they're not ultra successful this weekend,

51:51 because I think they're still trying to figure out

51:52 the free safety situation.

51:54 I do think Christian Gonzalez is going to improve

51:56 throughout the year, so I don't think the defensive

51:59 force that you see or don't see on Sunday

52:03 is going to be indicative for the rest of the season.

52:05 But I do think if you look at it,

52:06 and Hurts kills them with his legs and all that stuff,

52:09 it's absolutely reason for concern.

52:11 But I would not freak out just yet and say,

52:13 oh, they're just not gonna be a good defense.

52:16 They're gonna have to have some time here

52:17 to figure some things out.

52:18 So we'll see how that all works.

52:20 Ultimate test for the Patriots offensive line.

52:23 That scares the crap out of me this weekend.

52:25 I know a lot of people have told you that,

52:27 oh, the Eagles led the league in sacks last year with 70.

52:29 I don't know how many of those people told you

52:31 that they led that statistic by 15.

52:34 They had 15 more sacks than the team that was second,

52:38 which were the Chiefs, with 55.

52:40 So they not only had the most sacks in the league,

52:42 they were in a different stratosphere last year

52:45 when it comes to getting to the quarterback.

52:47 And yes, Hargrave ended up going to San Francisco,

52:50 but Jalen Carter is the new man in town,

52:52 was seen as the best offensive tackle prospect.

52:55 He is a giant human being with freak athleticism.

52:58 He is absolutely no freaking joke.

53:01 They were only number one in sacks.

53:03 They were number two in pressures,

53:05 and they were number two in pressure rate.

53:06 So even if they don't get your quarterback

53:08 down to the ground for a sack,

53:10 they are breathing down his neck consistently.

53:13 That is a huge concern for the Patriots on Sunday,

53:18 especially given what Greg just told you.

53:20 Oweno looks limited, Strange looks limited,

53:22 Calvin Anderson is coming back from sickness.

53:24 Who's gonna be the starting right tackle on Sunday?

53:27 We'll have to wait and see.

53:29 I mean, it might literally be Belichick

53:31 drawing a name out of a hat by Friday of this week

53:33 to figure out who's going to be his right tackle.

53:36 Offensive line, gotta see what happens with those guys.

53:40 Bill O'Brien, how is he going to approach this?

53:42 I think he'll, we've talked about it,

53:44 a lot of quick passing game, a lot of short stuff

53:46 to try to open things up a little bit.

53:48 How does Mack deal with the pressure?

53:50 If he's getting heat early on from that defensive line.

53:53 Devontae Parker, after what I heard

53:56 from Mike Reese yesterday and what Greg just said

53:58 about the reports at Gillette today,

54:00 I'm not feeling overly confident in Devontae Parker

54:03 being able to make a difference on Sunday.

54:05 Hopefully he shows up on Sunday

54:07 and he looks like he's completely healthy

54:09 and jumped out of bed in the morning.

54:11 We'll see.

54:12 And I wonder about Zeke and Mondrae.

54:14 Again, I feel really good about those guys.

54:16 Philadelphia's run defense was not the best last year.

54:19 If there's one thing that you look defensively aside

54:22 from the new starting safeties that Greg mentioned,

54:24 you look at that run defense

54:25 and you weather if they're vulnerable there

54:27 and whether or not you'll see an early dose

54:29 of Stevenson and Zeke Elliott

54:30 in the first quarter of this game

54:32 to try to bring that physicality

54:34 and downhill running at the Eagles

54:36 and test the young rookie in the middle.

54:38 We'll see that.

54:40 And defensive questions, free safety,

54:42 what's it look like?

54:43 Who's playing back there?

54:45 Does anybody screw up an assignment?

54:47 How's the communication?

54:48 Does somebody take a bad angle on a tackle

54:51 and allow a huge play to develop

54:54 instead of stopping a 15-yard gain?

54:56 Christian Gonzalez, a big, big challenge this week.

55:00 What's gonna happen with Jack Jones and John Jones?

55:03 Is Jack starting on the outside?

55:05 We'll see.

55:06 Can Christian Bormor show up and show out

55:09 like we hope that he would?

55:12 The rookies, Keon White, how much does he play?

55:14 Does he make a difference early

55:16 against this really good offensive line of Philadelphia?

55:19 And Marte Mapu, what the hell is he?

55:22 What is he gonna do?

55:23 Where is he gonna play?

55:24 Multiple spots.

55:25 Is he gonna make an impact?

55:26 Lots of questions.

55:28 I'll take the Eagles, minus the 3 1/2.

55:30 I'll go over the 45.

55:32 They're just a better football team.

55:34 I'm not necessarily telling you

55:36 they're gonna run away with it.

55:37 It's gonna be a smoke show.

55:37 Could be, things go badly.

55:39 But I like the Eagles minus 3 1/2 in this spot.

55:43 All right, couple things.

55:45 You wanna check Greg out over at BSJ.

55:49 50 bucks for the year.

55:50 If you haven't heard, Greg Bedard brought in

55:55 a new tag team partner.

55:57 And me being a wrestling fan,

55:58 if you could see the championship belt behind me

56:00 that has my name and nickname on it,

56:02 it's right there between the beer cans.

56:03 - What's your nickname?

56:06 - Well, when I was younger, it used to be Hollywood.

56:07 'Cause I was the Jack Jones of all-star

56:11 and AAU baseball when I was younger.

56:13 - I could definitely see that.

56:15 There's no explanation needed.

56:17 - Add a little swag to me.

56:19 But so I'm a wrestling fan.

56:21 If you haven't heard, Bedard has brought in Mike Giardi,

56:24 who I don't think likes me, but that's fine.

56:26 He is really good at what he does.

56:28 And you've got Bedard and Giardi,

56:29 tag team champions of the world on Patriots coverage

56:32 happening at BSJ.

56:33 Check them out.

56:34 And also, if you don't hate me,

56:37 I'm starting a new show on Monday.

56:39 It's the Nick Cato Show on YouTube.

56:41 Yes, a podcast will be available.

56:43 It's going to be every day at three o'clock.

56:45 We're going to release it Monday through Friday.

56:48 I'll do breaking news stuff as well.

56:50 And that's happening.

56:52 So check it out.

56:53 I'll have a link up at Twitter soon enough.

56:55 I'm tweaking some things.

56:58 So once those things are tweaked,

56:59 hopefully by tomorrow, I will have a link,

57:01 a YouTube link for everybody.

57:03 But look, I'm not going to sit here and sell you on it.

57:05 If you want to listen to it, 30 minutes a day,

57:07 hopefully you'll like it.

57:09 But I do hope that everybody listening to this

57:11 gives me at least a shot.

57:12 And if you want to follow me on Twitter,

57:14 it's @NickCRadio.

57:16 And my goal really is just to force Greg Bedard

57:20 to hire me full-time at BSJ.

57:21 But I do know that Mike Giardi makes a lot of money,

57:24 so that might not happen.

57:26 Hopefully all of you enjoyed the podcast.

57:28 Hopefully we have something to at least enjoy on Sunday,

57:31 even if it's not a win, a good competitive football game,

57:33 I do think will tell us a lot about this Patriots team.

57:36 This episode of the Greg Bedard Patriots Podcast

57:38 with Nick Cattles, brought to you by FanDuel,

57:41 our friends, don't forget about them,

57:42 the exclusive wagering partner of the CLNS Media Network.

57:45 Sign up now at fanduel.com/boston.

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57:53 And plus all customers bet five bucks,

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57:59 via YouTube and YouTube TV.

58:01 The NFL Sunday ticket offer ends on September 18th.

58:05 So you got 12 more days to take advantage of that.

58:08 I've got YouTube Sunday ticket ready to go.

58:11 My plan is to have six games up

58:12 in the one o'clock window on Sunday,

58:14 'cause I'm a maniac, so that will be good.

58:17 But that's all I got to say.

58:19 And Greg, he's right again, BSJ.

58:22 We will of course be back early next week

58:24 to recap this game.

58:26 Hopefully again, it was a good competitive game.

58:29 Till then, be good, be safe, be healthy.

58:31 And let's see what this team does in 2023.

58:33 (upbeat music)

58:36 (upbeat music)

58:39 (upbeat music)

58:41 (upbeat music)

58:44 [BLANK_AUDIO]

2023 Patriots Season PREVIEW + Jack Jones Latest | Greg Bedard Patriots Podcast

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