Tell Us: Which Patriots rookie are you most excited to watch this season?
The New England Patriots have many promising and tantalizing first-year players for fans to meet.
Patriots
The New England Patriots look to make some noise this season. Out of all the players that made New England’s 53-man roster, that sentiment is probably most true for its rookies.
The Patriots employ first-year players across several positions. Some will protect Mac Jones on the offensive line, others will rush the opposing team’s passer.
First-round cornerback Christian Gonzalez was the highest-touted of all the Patriots’ rookies. He dazzled during his days at the University of Oregon, to the point where some experts thought he would be the first cornerback taken in the 2023 NFL Draft. He ended up falling to the 17th pick in the draft, and the Patriots have high hopes for him. He’s expected to play right away.
Joining Gonzalez on the defense is second-round defensive end Keion White. White dominated the Houston Texans in their preseason matchup, placing tremendous pressure on their quarterbacks and even forcing a fumble against Texans running back Dare Ogunbowale.
Rounding out the Patriots’ defensive rookie trio is third-round linebacker/safety Marte Mapu. Mapu spent most of training camp recovering from surgery due to a torn pectoral muscle, but that didn’t stop him from impressing inside linebackers coach Jerod Mayo, who praised Mapu’s intelligence and eagerness to ask questions.
The Patriots rookies on offense are led by a pair of sixth-round receivers: Demario Douglas and Kayshon Boutte. Douglas became the biggest surprise of training camp, turning heads with his speed and intelligence that made people question why he was only seen as a sixth-round pick. Boutte’s training camp wasn’t nearly as dominant, but his preseason games were. He made catches on all nine of his preseason targets, with one of those catches going for a 42-yard touchdown against the Green Bay Packers.
The Patriots drafted both a kicker and punter this year, and both will have very important roles on this team. They drafted kicker Chad Ryland in the fourth round, and they gave him their seal of approval by trading his competition, Nick Folk, to the Tennessee Titans. Punter Bryce Baringer went to the Patriots in the sixth round, and since then, he’s received praise for his incredible punting ability he showed in the preseason (average of 51.1 yards), as well as criticism from teammate Matthew Judon for taking the linebacker’s number earlier this month.
The Patriots still have plenty of rookies to look out for, including linemen Jake Andrews, Sidy Sow and Atonio Mafi, as well as specialist Ameer Speed. All of these rookies have potential to stick with the Patriots.
We want to know: Which Patriots rookie are you most excited to watch this season? Share with us in the survey below or e-mail us at [email protected]. Your response may appear in a future Boston.com article.
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